I recently attended and spoke at the APA’s Psychologically Healthy Workplace Conference.  The goal of the conference as outlined by the APA’s visionary Assistant Executive Director, Dr. David Ballard (who also happens to have an MBA) was to celebrate and learn from,

“Employers who understand the link between employee well-being and organizational performance strive to maintain a work environment characterized by openness, fairness, trust and respect, even when difficult actions were required.  These employers are positioned for success in the economic recovery and will have a distinct competitive advantage in their ability to attract and retain the very best employees.”

The conference was organized around the core elements of the Psychologically Healthy Workplace Model:

Over the past few days, other speakers and attendees have shared their insightful overviews of the conference in the following posts:

• “the more we get together the happier we will be” post by presenter, Fran Melmed of context communication consulting, llc
• “The benchmarks of a psychologically healthy workplace” post and video by presenter, Judy Martin of WorkLife Nation
• “Building the business case for employee well-being” post by Marie-Josee Salvas Shaar for Positive Psychology Daily News

My main takeaway from the two days was simply that…every CEO should regret not attending, both professionally and personally. 

Had they participated, they would have learned about strategies to resolve many of their organization’s most vexing bottom line challenges—employee stress, lack of employee engagement, high cost of health care, truly leveraging diversity, etc—issues that directly impact growth and profitability.   

CEOs would have heard the former U.S. Secretary of Labor, Alexis M. Herman, in her introduction of the winners of the Psychologically Healthy Workplace Award point out the three main challenges facing companies as we move into a “do more with less” era:

1. More role ambiguity as everyone takes on more roles and responsibilities which increases the level of job stress.
2. Increased inter-generational worker tension as Boomers work longer, but graduates can’t find work.
3. Increased worker polarization and isolation as workers who lose jobs can’t find work at the same level of income or status.     

But perhaps most importantly, CEOs would have seen how they benefit personally from strategies that create a psychologically healthier workplace.  They would realize that they’re not alone in the isolation of overwhelming work+life challenges and stress which are outcomes of a work+life fit model that no longer suits even for those at senior levels.

A recent CNN.com article, “Why Being a CEO Should Come with a Health Warning,” highlights the research conducted by Steve Tappin for his book, The Secrets of CEOs.  From his interviews with 150 CEOs, Tappin learned that:

• “The major emotions a CEO has are frustration, disappointment, irritation and overwhelm.”
• “There should be a health warning.  If you have those emotions for 80% of the day, they lead to stress and cortisol in the body, which leads to accelerated ageing, heart attacks, and cancer.”
• “In many cases people were burned out and stressed.  The end game is that they’ve got very low energy.  People assume CEOs are superhuman but they’re grappling with a really hard job.”
• “ Being a CEO has always been tough, but the global nature of modern business means running a company has become increasingly complex, with decisions needing to be made around the clock.” 
• “About 90% struggle with work-life balance, when they talk off the record…Jobs are exhausting and emotional.”
• An unnamed CEO who has been married twice is quoted in the book as saying, “I can’t remember my boys growing up.  I can’t remember them when they were young.  People ask whether you have to make a choice between your family and your career.  You definitely do.  You can’t have both.”

Sound familiar?  CEOs are not immune to the unsustainable pressures created by old ways of operating that haven’t adapted and undermine success, organizationally or personally, in a 24/7, global economy driven by constant change.  From the compelling research and case studies presented at the conference, CEOs would know how to take the lead to create a new more profitable business model for their organizations and a healthier way of managing the fit between work and the rest of life. 

Since most CEOs didn’t attend the PHWP event, where do they begin to build a psychologically healthier workplace that’s a win-win for the business and the individuals who work there (including themselves)?  Take some tips from Labor Secretary Herman’s closing remarks, which centered on the fact that we need to strengthen relationships and reset the “balance” between work and the other parts of our lives:

• Engage in straight talk.  Be clear and honest with everyone across the organization.
• Focus hard on how to improve employee engagement.  What can we do?  (a presentation at the conference by Dr. Benjamin Schneider of Valtera Consultants presented compelling research that showed a strong link between engagement, customer service and profits)
• Form different strategic alliances and partnerships to create new types of work, and
• Expand options on the table that support many forms of spirituality in the workplace as a source of resilience. 

In the CNN.com article, author Tappin shares the story of Philip Green, CEO of the British company, United Utilities, “He is a Christian, and he has a "’five f’ formula: faith, family, fitness, fun and firm.  Notice he didn’t say firm first.  Those are the core to him being able to succeed.”  Philip Green is a living example of the factors that lead to a psychologically healthy life and workplace. 

Whether prompted by the compelling business case for change, or by personal crisis, hopefully more CEOs will seek out and advocate for the strategies that lead to a healthier and ultimately more profitable way of operating…and living. 

CEOs may regret missing this year’s conference, but they (as well as the rest of us) can follow the ongoing feed of helpful research, case studies and information from Dr. David Ballard and the APA’s Psychologically Healthy Workplace team: 

• Follow Dr. David Ballard and Dr. Matthew Grawitch on Twitter
• Subscribe to the Good Company blog and podcast series

And there’s always next year’s conference!   

Join me!  I will appear live on Friday, March 19th at 4:00 pm ET/ 1:00 pm PST on Maggie Mistal's radio show on the Martha Stewart Radio Network Sirius 112/ XM 157.  Topic:  How to Manage Your Work+Life Fit Heading Back to Work After a Layoff.  Click here to sign up for a free 7 day trial of Sirius/XM and listen.