National Digital Wellness and Human Connection Expert Mark Ostach who works with Fortune 500 companies to reconnect in the hybrid workplace, says vulnerability is the first step toward combating loneliness. As companies struggle with a growing sense of disconnection, Ostach’s programs include an icebreaker exercise that ignites the process of social connection in the workplace.

According to the Surgeon General’s advisory, in recent years, one in two U.S. adults reported experiencing loneliness and that was before the COVID-19 pandemic cut off so many of us from friends, loved ones, and support systems.

Questions:
Mark, are you surprised by the U.S. Surgeon General's advisory that we are in an epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation?

What does this mean for the workplace?

How does finding ways to foster a culture of social connection will help employees?

More employees are disengaged not only in the workplace but also on the home front. Why is this a concern?

The surgeon general’s advisory concludes that making social connections should be a strategic priority in the workplace at all levels.

With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, Ostach has a packed schedule. He will be speaking with companies such as Nike, Rocket Mortgage, and education associations about fostering social connections.

Mark, you have a program to help foster social connection in the workplace based on the B.E.L.L. Method as a way to teach the basics of social connection. Mark, can you talk about this?

The Surgeon General's advisory made these recommendations for the workplace. Let's review them:
Make social connections a strategic priority in the workplace at all levels (administration, management, and employees).

• Train, resource, and empower leaders and managers to promote connection in the workplace and implement programs that foster connection.
Assess program effectiveness, identify barriers to success, and facilitate continuous quality improvement.

• Leverage existing leadership and employee training, orientation, and wellness resources to educate the workforce about the importance of social connection for workplace well-being, health, productivity, performance, retention, and other markers of success.
Create practices and a workplace culture that allow people to connect to one another as whole people, not just as skill sets, and that fosters inclusion and belonging.

• Put in place policies that protect workers’ ability to nurture their relationships outside work including respecting boundaries between work and non-work time, supporting caregiving responsibilities, and creating a culture of norms and practices that support these policies.

• Consider the opportunities and challenges posed by flexible work hours and arrangements (including remote, hybrid, and in-person work), which may impact workers’ abilities to connect with others both within and outside of work. Evaluate how these policies can be applied equitably across the workforce.

» Visit MBN website: www.michiganbusinessnetwork.com/ 
» Subscribe to MBN’s YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCqNX…
» Like MBN: www.facebook.com/mibiznetwork
» Follow MBN: twitter.com/MIBizNetwork/
» MBN Instagram: www.instagram.com/mibiznetwork/