How mental health is the key to an organisation’s success

Clinical psychologist and our Chief Executive Officer, Paul Gilligan, explores how supporting staff mental health is the key to an organisation’s success.

Positive mental health in the workplace

Successful organisations are built on strong mental health foundations.

Despite the growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the use of technology, most organisations, to be effective, depend primarily on their workforce. One of the most important aspects of any workforce and of leadership is mental health.

There is widespread awareness of the need to establish employee assistance programmes, run staff wellbeing initiatives, and provide gateways to specialist support where necessary. Many organisations still see mental health as a challenge.

Promoting good mental health in organisations is actually the foundation on which success can and will be built. Making positive mental health a part of the culture of an organisation presents immense opportunities to nurture a strategy-driven, positive workforce.

Role of leadership

This starts with leadership. Applying positive psychological principles and a humanistic approach to encouraging and leading people is not only the best way to ensure an organisation achieves its goals, but fosters a culture of positive motivation.

The key principles of this approach are believing and trusting that people want to do and have the ability to do the right thing, and that they want to and have the ability to achieve success. Reinforcing and building on the positive attributes and achievements of people, supporting them through tough times, communicating openly, and making clear decisions in consultation with the key stakeholders all contribute to a positive psychological leadership approach.

Helping team members find meaning in their work is vital. Strong, positive communication with service users and customers is also crucial because it reminds us why we exist.

Importance of teamwork

Although, often today, it can be the leader who almost alone becomes the face of an organisation, it is the team rather than the leader solely who is crucial to organisational success. No organisation can be truly effective or psychologically healthy without a team. No one person has all the required skills or knowledge to deliver on an organisation’s goals. An organisation centred on one leader is managed with an iron fist and will crumble when that person is gone.

The main factors contributing to an organisation’s success are, first and foremost, having a set of values and principles; secondly, having a clear strategy; and, thirdly, having a dedicated and committed team who are all facing in the same direction. Without a strong team, there is no effective innovation or challenge.

If team culture is right, and if it is focused on trust, honesty of effort, clear communication, positive affirmation and challenge, then it brings immense reinforcement and a different type of accountability, with each person wanting to do their best for the team.

Culture of learning

All organisations face challenges and have failures. A commitment to continuous learning is so important in being able to cope with setbacks, grow from them and maintain a positive psychological culture.

Within organisations, creating a culture of learning, rather than a culture of blame, is vital. When things go wrong, a learning culture requires going back to the core and asking whether the values and principles underpinning the initiative were worthy; was it worth trying; was it just the first step?

If the answer is “no”, then something worthwhile has been learnt, which is that the initiative shouldn’t have been tried in the first place.

If the answer is “yes”, then the problems can be found in the process or structure of the initiative, providing even more learning opportunities.

Being accountable as a leader is important within the context of owning successes and failures and being prepared to explain, learn from, and build on both. A blame culture is toxic and psychologically damaging to all.

Support and tools for wellbeing

Wellbeing is a core human right which we all should be given the opportunity to enjoy. From this perspective, it is vital for any organisation to promote wellbeing among staff and leaders.

Central to this is empowering all those involved with an organisation to take responsibility for their own wellbeing, reinforcing that we all know how best to do this if we are given the right support and tools.

For an organisation, delivering on its goals requires a foundation of positive mental health. It requires building and enhancing a positive psychological culture. It is only through this approach that sustainable success can be achieved.