Transparent communication improves workplace wellbeing

Workplace wellbeing has a positive impact on employee productivity, but too often the wellbeing actions in the company are not visible enough.

With this in mind, we decided to create a program to both improve the healthy and safe working environment at Valmet South America, and also strengthen the communication about the progress. The aim of the program is to create a wellbeing focused mindset for everyone.

We also want people to be aware of their value to the company and their own role in workplace wellbeing. The process has involved different company functions such as marketing, communications, facilities and HR teams and is structured in 4 pillars of actions: health, relationship, leisure & sports and work environment.

Following up each action and celebrating every step

After launching the ‘Our Way’ program, we installed a big board that allows everyone to follow up the actions and celebrate each step accomplished. Every month we publish the program highlights in our corporate TV and intranet page, so that our employees know what's happening.

The program's actions range goes from environmental to health and wellbeing events. One of the first actions was the replacement of all plastic items at the office, such as coffee cups, for wood base products or non-re-usable material. Now each employee has their own mug and we have reduced the use of plastic cups from 35,000 per month (considering an industry of the same size as ours, this is also the average use by other companies) to ZERO plastic cups.

Among other initiatives we have also put more comfortable furniture in meeting rooms and done some improvements for modernization in common spaces. We started the year with the restaurant revitalization and opened our coffee shop. The last improvement was the “Mother Room”, a dedicated space for mothers and mothers-to-be to have a quiet place to relax.

Also in the plan is the revitalization of our lobby, with a gallery of Valmet Awards winners. Another planned action is a forest for walking inside Valmet’s office in Araucária to encourage employees to practice more sports and social actions.

Transformation depends on the attitude

We have received very good feedback about the program, as people feel well informed about the wellbeing improvements happening in the company. Transparent communication is very important in engaging employees to build common wellbeing.

The future of the program also looks promising, as it is clear we can count on our employees’ collaboration and understanding in modernizing our workplace and making people feel good at Valmet.

When developing employees’ engagement and wellbeing it is important to remember that small actions can bring big results. And if everyone is able to understand the big picture, the engagement results are even greater.

So, just get started! The transformation depends on the attitude of each one of us.