The role of senior leaders in the development of healthy workplaces

Although there has been extensive research about managing the costs of health and benefit plans, there has been little focus on preventative approaches such as healthy workplaces. To date, the research has focused on the reasons why organizations should take a proactive approach. However, there have been very few studies to my knowledge that focus on the role of senior leaders in implementing and developing a healthy workplace program. This case study examines senior leader, manager and employee perceptions of the role of the leader in developing a healthy workplace program in two call centre environments. The study revealed that although the two call centres had very similar elements in their healthy workplace practices, the implementation and effectiveness of the programs varied based on the role of leadership and organizational culture. The findings from this study identified themes, including raising awareness, creating a culture, removing barriers, encouraging communication, and coaching for engagement as to what leaders are doing in workplace environments. The findings suggest that senior leaders have an important role in healthy workplace programs from endorsement to the approach in creating, developing, and implementing the programs