The Future of Employee Wellness Programs With Dr. Jessica Sharp

Speaker A: Foreign.

Speaker B: HR Break Room is brought to you by Paycom, empowering employees nationwide with HR and payroll tech in one easy app. Learn how Paycom simplifies business for your entire workforce at paycom.com hello, everyone, and

Speaker A: welcome to the HR Break Room, Paycom's podcast dedicated. Dedicated to having quick conversations on the hot topics in hr. I'm, um, your host, Ariana Stark. Today we're diving into a topic that's more important than ever. Employee wellness. But we're not just talking about the perks and benefits. We're looking at the neuroscience behind well being, the role of leadership, and the strategies that actually move the needle on engagement, retention, and performance. In this episode, we'll break down the latest research, explore practical strategies, and discuss how organizations can stay ahead in, uh, a rapidly evolving workplace. Whether you're a leader looking to build a healthier, more engaged team, or simply curious about the future of workplace wellness, this conversation is for you. Our guest today, Dr. Jessica Sharp, has devoted her career to helping companies improve their employee lifecycle. Sharp is a sought after leadership development consultant, working to transform organizations through, through leadership excellence while creating spaces for voices of those who have been historically and systemically marginalized. She has a doctorate in leadership psychology from William James College and a Master of Public affairs from the University of Missouri. Dr. Sharp is living out her life's purpose through her organization, Sharp Brain Consulting, which works with organizational leaders who want to create stronger cultures. With that, let's jump into the HR break room. Dr. Sharp, thank you so much for joining us today.

Speaker B: Yeah, thank you for having me.

Speaker A: Well, let's go ahead and dive right in. So let's start at the very beginning. So how do we define employee wellness?

Speaker B: Yeah, so employee wellness is really sort of this broad term, and the way that I'm going to conceptualize it and talk about it is really about employee well being. Um, so there's lots of different definitions, but I'll use one from the cdc, the center for Disease Control. Uh, and they have talked about and sort of described employee well being is an employee's ability to manage sort of the everyday, quote, normal stress, and also to be able to engage and to sort of live their life well in the way that they want to. So really being able to balance and manage. And when we think about employee wellbeing, there's sort of different buckets, Right. So there's physical well being, which is probably honestly what a lot of people think about, right? Like how well am I physically, does my body do what I need it to do? Right. So there's that piece. There's also emotional well being, there's financial well being as well as social well being. Right. So there's different ways to look at this concept. And the thing that I often think about is how can we look at an employee holistically and try to create an environment where they are well and their well being is strong in more than one facet. But again, it's really about an employee being able to manage their, their life, their stress, and to still show up and have a life that they want

Speaker A: well, going off of that. A September 2024 survey commissioned by Paycom and conducted by PSB Insights showed that 48% of HR pros cited employee well being initiatives as one of their primary focuses of 2025. Outside of just HR, why should, um, employee wellness really be a top priority for organizational leaders?

Speaker B: Yeah, well, you know, it really boils down to, you know, how successful do you want your company to be? Right. So, ah, Gallup has said actually that right now employees are experiencing more stress than they have certainly in the past several set of years. Right. And, uh, I know Covid was an interesting time, but there's a lot of things that are sort of stressing employees. Right. And if an employee feels like they are not able to manage that stress, that they are not able to sort of be well and show up from a place of wellness. Right. They're certainly more likely to just not be at work. But the research has been really clear from several different entities, including Gallup, that productivity is down. Right. Uh, and so leaders need to prioritize their employees because it's just good for the business. Now there's also like a good people part of this, right. That it's good to care about your employees. But in terms of your business, if your employees are physically unwell and they're having to take more sick time because they're not, they're not feeling well, Right. Or they're mentally and emotionally having a hard time. The way that I sometimes talk about it is like they're knocking on, um, burnout's door. Right. You know, in those situations, if, you know, if financially they're in a place where they just m. Things are stressing. Right. Like, I mean, you know, in the United States, there are more, uh, families than not that can't sort of shoulder the burden of a financial emergency. Right. If socially they feel disconnected, if they feel lonely. The most out recent, uh, outgoing surgeon general talked a lot about loneliness. And when he left, he created this parting prescription that he talked about that really talked about the urgency of connection if any or multiple of those things are absent. Employees again may not actually show up to work. But then when they do, we're not getting their full best self because they're worried and distracted and consumed by other things beyond just the work.

Speaker A: So you mentioned connection. So what does neuroscience tell us about the connection between workplace stress, employee well being and performance?

Speaker B: Yeah, so, you know, there's neurosciences. You know, it's this concept that I love, I talk about a lot. Um, and we've known for a while the impact of stress when it is chronic. So the way that sort of people like me talk about stress is that there's a, uh, little bit of stress that is normal. Right. You know, if you've got a big presentation coming up, you might be a little anxious about it because you're nervous. You're sort of wanting to make sure you do a good job. But when that stress is consistent and persistent and lasts over an extended period of time, that stress can become chronic. And before I sort of dive too, too much into what it looks like for performance, it's not great for your well being. Our bodies are actually not created to be that stressed for that long. So there's lots of stuff that happens. Like your cortisol increases, your ability to make decisions that you are happy with and proud of shifts because your brain is literally so consumed by the stressor. Right. And there's a cognitive overload that can happen too where it's just like it's too much the way I sometimes describe it as like, oh, it's just too loud. And so if you can't manage that stress, it's really, really hard to feel well. And let's also talk about the fact that stress, while it starts in your brain, it affects your entire body. Right. Think about, I would charge listeners to think about the last time they were carrying a lot of stress. I would venture to say that they may or may not sleep as well. They may be a little bit less, um, patient, they may be a little bit more frustrated. Um, they may feel like they're brains are more fuzzy. Right. This idea of just like cognitive load again and not feeling like they have full capacity like our bodies carry stress. And over time chronic stress can lead to some serious health outcomes that are not ones that anybody wants.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Like cardiovascular in particular. And so if you're carrying a lot of stress and if you have been for a while, it is really difficult to be well physically as well as mentally. Right. And also on top of that, when we're really stressed. We may or may not want to engage socially, even though that might be the thing that's really helpful. Right. Um, there's some, I can't remember who quoted it, so I'm going to mess it up. But I think it was something I saw on Instagram that talked about the best thing for your nervous system is another person. Right. But when we're stressed, we're more likely to sort of back away from people. So this idea of being chronically stressed, it has a direct relationship to well being. And then because of that it's going to impact workplace performance. You know, if I'm again chronically stressed, if I'm not showing up well, if my body is carrying too much of it, uh, it's just much harder for me to show up well at work. Doesn't mean I'm not going to show up. And I might do my. But I'm distracted. Right. And so my brain is not really fully focused. And so the outcomes are just different. And then you also are more likely to have folks take sick days, be more likely to leave, that sort of thing. So really there's a direct relationship between chronic stress in particular well being and because of that, organizational outcomes.

Speaker A: So going into that chronic stress that you've been talking about, um, how does uh, that chronic stress and burnout really affect decision making, um, leadership and organizational effectiveness? Like holistically.

Speaker B: Yeah. So I'll try not to sort of, as I often say, nerd out too much on the brain and give you all of this neuroscience. But stress, uh, and fear, Right, which sometimes they overlap but. And really our core emotions, they live in what I call the back part of our brain, our limbic system. Um, and that part of the brain is not where we do our most sophisticated thinking. That part of the brain, again as I've mentioned, is where emotions live. And it's really core and primary function is to keep us safe. The limbic system is trying to keep our body operating and to keep us safe. Well, the part of our brain where we make the best decisions, where we do our most sophisticated thinking is in our prefrontal cortex. Um, and some of you may have heard these terms called executive functioning skills. I sometimes joke that it is the thing that separates teenagers from adults because that part of their brain is not quite fully developed yet. But it's things like being able to plan into the future, being able to organize things, emotional regulation and something happening and you being able to sort of.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Understanding how you are showing up in a space, all of Those things they are coming from, again, as I sometimes say, the front part of our brain, our prefrontal cortex. So I give you that context to say if I am particularly stressed, if I am particularly overwhelmed, my limbic system is more active, it's more activated. Uh, and that part of the brain is worried about safety. So one, I'm sort of walking around and my brain is worried about safety. So things that may feel like a slight or something that is, um, othering or exclusive feels really intense. But on top of that, because of the relationship in the brain, which I won't go too, too much more into, it means that our prefrontal cortex does not have full space to engage and to make decisions because our limbic system is more engaged. So when we are significantly stressed, when we are in a place of fear, it is actually much more difficult for our brain to engage in its best decision making. Which then again, has a direct connection to our ability to make really strong and smart decisions that align with our organization's goals and values as a leader. Uh, and then it sort of can trickle down into how we are engaging with others. So it's both the decision making and then we're potentially creating cultures that people are not excited to be a part of, and that those two things together have a huge and significant impact on our ability to be effective as an organization and to cultivate a sense of belonging. So that being stressed and we can talk about some things that can help sort of decrease some of that, but it literally impacts your ability to make decisions. Wow.

Speaker A: It just kind of permeates everything.

Speaker B: Yeah, it really does.

Speaker A: Wow. So now how does work life integration contribute to overall employee wellness? And why should it really be a priority for organizations?

Speaker B: Yeah. So I really have been a fan of this term, work life integration. I think that millennials sort of coined it. Uh, we came up with it as a different way of thinking about work life balance. So work life integration is more of a modern way of thinking about this, uh, and really thinking about how can I blend my life together. You know, when we talk about work life balance, we talked about this idea about I need to have a work life and then I need to have an outside life and they need to be balanced. Right. But the reality is that life is not that simple. If you've got a child who's in a play or has a parent teacher conference, or has a doctor's appointment, those things don't exclusively happen between the hours of 5 and 10 o' clock at night. Right. Or whatever time you go to Sleep if you've got a parent who needs you to help support them in terms of their care. Right. Again, those things are happening during the workday. So work life integration acknowledges that and allows employees to sort of create a blended life. Right. So it might mean, hey, I'm going to leave around lunchtime to go to my doctor, my kid's doctor's appointment, and then I'm just going to go home and work from home and sort of, you know, make sure that I'm getting my stuff done right. Or I'm going to, you know, come in late because I have this thing that I need to do. And you know, it does require a level of balance and boundaries. Right. To say I'm not going to work 24 hours a day. But it really acknowledges that employees are whole people. And I think that it continues and really needs to be a priority because of everything I said. Right. You know, it can be frustrating to employees when we expect them to, you know, from, you know, 8 to 5, only be at work and only think about work when they have full whole lives outside of that. Right. And so, and millennials also, one of the reasons I think that we came up with this term of work life integration have sort of been pushing it is also because, you know, employees want to volunteer and do those sort of things during the workday as well, which again, make them whole people. So if we can acknowledge that employees have full lives and really allow them to live those, they're better for us when they're at work because they are able to focus on their family, focus on their volunteering, do whatever it is that they're gonna do, and then come back to work and be really present at work.

Speaker A: I mean, that makes sense. Uh, you know, so I love the neuroscience. So, um, behind all of this, so what are some neuroscience backed wellness initiatives that organizations can really implement to enhance employee well being?

Speaker B: So some of the things that employees can do are, you know, there are a few things. So one, trying to allow some schedules that really fit an employee's life, which, uh, really leans into this idea of equity because you might have employees with different work schedules and it might challenge you a little bit in some ways as a leader to really communicate well. But every employee may or may not do their best work at 8 o', clock, doesn't mean they can come in at 12. But how can you just work with your employees to create a system and a schedule that works for them? So that's one of them. Um, one of the more traditional things that we think about is employee assistance programs. And there are lots of different ways that an employee can engage with an, um, but that's something that I really think we need to continue to engage in. Another idea and sort of tool that I think about is really prioritizing mindfulness and meditation. And neither of these concepts are new either. Right. Mindfulness is really just about this idea of being present in the present moment and sort of allowing us to suspend our worry and concern and attention on other things and just for a moment, focusing right here, right now, which is hard because the world is so loud right now. Right. Uh, and meditation is just deep breathing, which is really great for our brain. If we can just take some slow, deep breaths. When I work with kids, I used to work with kids back in the day, I sort of tell them, do belly breaths and sort of breathe in and hold it and release. It literally increases oxygen to our prefrontal cortex, which helps us to make better decisions. Right. So those, you know, those are some ideas. Another one is around social connection. So, uh, I've talked about this idea that, that our nervous system, which is our brain, is part of our nervous system, that we need other people. And so encouraging some outlets for that, whether it be employee resource groups, um, but really encouraging opportunities for employees to engage. Um, and then one of the other things is the environment. So are you allowing your employee to have decorate their cube or their office and allowing them, if they want to shift offices, that there's a different place they want to be? Sometimes it's tricky. Right. But are you allowing them some level of choice in the actual environment that they're a part of? Those sort of things can really help. And then the last thing that's really, really backed by neuroscience is this idea of wellness in the more traditional way. So I'm going to give you, like, three specific things that fit under that. So one of them is encouraging your employees, this might sound strange to have eating habits that work for them. And one of the ways that you can do that is to invest, um, in coaching. Right. And having experts come in and help employees. Because there's a connection between our brain and our gut, our stomach and everybody. For everybody, it's different, Right. For some people, they need to only, you know, they need to really double down on fruits and vegetables. For other people is this. For other people, is that. But if you can eat in a way that best maximizes your body, your brain will actually be at its best because of this connection. So there's that. Then the other one is breaks. Encouraging these micro breaks Right. So everybody. Most people, I shouldn't say everybody. Most people hopefully are at least taking a lunch break. But if you've been doing, you know, some really deep thinking, if you've been in the weeds in your financials and you've just been really using your brain, well, take a 10 minute break, right. Even if it's 10 minutes and you put a timer on and you're listening to music for a second, or you're scrolling on Instagram, or doing your duolingo for the day or whatever it is, but just like turning your brain off for just a second to give your brain just a minute to relax before you go into the next thing. And related to that is encouraging movement. The brain likes movement, which sort of wakes our brain up, gets us a little excited. So whether that means that you infuse a walking program where folks walk around the office, or, you know, something that just allows you to get up and get moving versus sitting at your desk for so long, it's certainly a wellness thing. But it also helps from the brain perspective as well.

Speaker A: So thank you for giving those examples. So how can organizations measure the impact of employee wellness programs on, you know, performance and business outcomes?

Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, in some ways it depends on what you decide to do. Right. So you know, first sort of deciding what, what strategy or strategies will we infuse or double down on? Right. Because there's a lot of things even just in that moment that I gave you. So I don't expect everybody to do everything. I expect folks to take what works for them. But first deciding that, um, the next piece is surveying employees. I am a fan of not over surveying people, but asking employees can be a really great way of understanding. Has this been helpful for them? You can also begin to track utilization of whatever these tools are. And while it's not directly related to the outcomes, it at least helps you to understand is there a causation? Right. Are these things actually connected? Um, and then start to sort of look at some metrics. So look at things like sick days and absenteeism, because that actually is related to wellness. Um, again, like I mentioned, look at utilization and then start to look at some of the outcomes that you would have looked at anyway in conjunction with these things. So maybe you do an employee survey and you look at the outcomes that you are maybe tracking anyway and say, do these things actually align? Right. Or do, uh, is there some sort of benefit? Things shifted because we've prioritized our employees. But just like anything, I think if you want to prioritize this, just go ahead and measure it. And if you already have an employee engagement survey, add in a few questions around wellness that are related to either. Have you engaged in these wellness activities? Are there things that you want differently? How have these activities shifted your ability to show up at work? So again, those are just a few ways that you can begin to measure the outcome.

Speaker A: Thank you for breaking that down. I think that's really important because sometimes it might be a little hard to measure some of these things or at least have kind of a, a clear standard to really know if it's working or not. But thank you for breaking that down. I think that makes it a lot easier to know what to look for.

Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker A: Yeah. Well, pivoting a little bit, um, can you share some of the emerging trends that are really shaping the future of employee wellbeing and what impact could they have on workplace culture?

Speaker B: So there are a few things that sort of trends, right. And some of them aren't quite new, but one of them is, is a, uh, version of hybrid work. Virtual work. What does it look like? The things I've been reading recently have said that sort of hybrid is the new way that a lot of organizations are looking at things. And so hybrid can really help build and really cultivate employee wellness. For some employees, they like this idea of this balance of being able to sometimes come into the office for all the connections, the meetings, that sort of thing, but also to be able to have a little bit of a break. The thing that some of us learned after Covid is that sometimes work just from quite frankly, a sensory perspective can be a lot. Right. There's a lot of going on. There could be lots of noise and sounds and people dropping in. And it can also be difficult to get a lot of work done. So a hybrid work environment can be really a trend to look into. Um, there's certainly a workplace trend around prioritizing mental health and mental well being, which fits into so many of these things. Um, and again, things like an EAP program where employees can talk to somebody about what they're experiencing, what they're going through. That social connection piece helps so much with mental and emotional well being, providing some really specific tools, things like mindfulness meditation, helping employees understand why stress can be really toxic to their bodies, and helping them create stress management best practices. Right. Um, so that is sort of one piece, um, the environment, uh, and really thinking about things like both sustainability, that's a trend that's sort of been coming up that may or may not fully. I mean, I feel like it fully overlays with wellness. But if employees feel like their organization cares about both them, but also the environment, the world, it can just help them be a little bit more engaged. Right. And to potentially be a little bit more. Well, one of the other things is this idea of unconventional benefits. So, um, employees who feel like their employers really are tailoring their benefits to them can feel like, oh, I actually feel like I'm being seen and heard and valued and, and funny enough, Paycom actually created a really great guide on some unconventional benefits. Um, and there are things like local discounts. Right. So there are places locally that you can provide a discount. Are there restaurants close by? Or you can say, hey, um, I'm a paycom employee and you get x percent off. Right. That can also help with this financial well being. So things like that, um, things like gym memberships, which are some, you know, things that potentially have been around for a while. Another thing that may feel like an unconventional benefit is child care support. There's also a trend that we're seeing that childcare is still an issue in terms of the price of childcare sometimes, but also the availability of it. I mean, I feel like every time that I have a friend who gets pregnant, one of the first things that they talk about is I've got to figure out what my child care option is going to look like if I want to go back to work. So providing some of those, again, just out of the box benefits. And one of the best ways to find out what your employees want in terms of benefits is maybe hr, having some conversations, doing a short survey, engaging and saying, hey, we're sort of looking at our benefits and trying to reimagine them. You know, what sort of things would you want in terms of a benefit? I mean, you can do all of them, but really just trying to think a little bit more broadly around what does it mean to support your employees and not it having to quote, just look like the way it's always looked.

Speaker A: I really like how you brought up, um, just kind of even the education behind it, just really understanding what goes into, well, being and um, those unconventional benefits is a huge step to getting there. So thank you for sharing that. Well, now as workplace expectations, you know, continue to evolve, um, how can leaders proactively adapt their wellness strategies to really meet the changing needs of employees, like you mentioned?

Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, I think part of what, what leaders can do is, is being mindful and aware of, of wellness and well being as these entities. Right. And, and like I said, none of this stuff is new. Ariane Huffington about 10 years ago wrote this. At the time it felt like it was sort of paradigm shifting, but called thriving, where she talked about this other dimension that we needed to pay attention to, which was well being. And we really need to find spaces and ways for our employees to be well. So again, this isn't necessarily new, but if employees, if employers and particularly leaders want to sort of stay ahead, part of it is prioritizing and saying, I care about my employees, right? Um, and another thing that we can do is they can work with sort of within themselves or within hr. I think HR has a really unique place to play in terms of well being, um, and trying to sort of stay up on top of trends. And I fully recognize that leaders and organizations have a lot of things that they're carrying, right? And I recognize that almost anytime I'm talking about things, I'm like, here's another thing you need to think about. But here's another thing you need to think about. Because in order for your employees to be best to show up in their best ways and their best selves, you've got to think about their well being, right? So I think part of it is just prioritizing it and keeping it top of mind. But then I also think it's things like talking to your employees, right? And, um, if you already do maybe a regular check in with your employees, sort of just add in a question around. You know, I've been thinking about employee well being and employee wellness. What are some things that you would like us to be doing more of or less of or differently to help support you and your personal well being, right? So asking some of those questions, um, just checking in with employees in that way. But, um, then I also think just staying on top of some of these things trends, right? Like I said, Paycom had a really great guide around unconventional benefits. So looking at some of the resources around that already exist and taking what works for you, right? Like there are probably 50 different things you can actually do to make your employees feel well. But try to find two or three, right? Because the other thing that I find about just behavior is that if you try to do too many things, it is less likely for any of those individual things to happen. But if you say we're going to really focus, you know, in this year, in the next two quarters on employee wellness and we're going to continue these following things, right? Thinking of like a start, stop, continue, which some folks know about, we're going to start, um, encouraging our employees to take breaks during the day and to walk around because we know it's good for their brains. And then we're going to, um, you know, not make our employees all come into the office as a way to engage in well being. If you can pick two or three things, that's going to really help. And like I said, if nothing else, talk to your employees, work with your HR departments, help use that expertise around what sort of helps employees to feel well. And then sort of, when in doubt, go back to the dimensions and components of, uh, well being. So think about physical wellbeing and what that looks like. And some of those are these traditional benefits, right? Like if you're already providing medical benefits to your employer, your companies or your employees. Right. So thinking about that, thinking about this idea of mental and emotional wellness and well being, are you creating space for your employees to be full humans? Right. And to have emotions? And what does that look like? Um, I know sometimes in organizations we like to sort of pretend that folks don't have emotions, but actually we do. They live in our brain and, um, like, baby, they don't like to be put in corners. So we have to create space for them to sort of be, um, so, you know, thinking about all of these, you know, and going sort of through all of the dimensions, thinking about social connection and what does that look like? So really just thinking holistically and picking, like I said, just two or three things. And even if you want to start small and if you, as a leader, let's say you've got five people you're managing, maybe you say, hey, I listen to this podcast, I always tell people, you can always blame it on me. And what if we tried this thing? Or what if you did this thing? Right? So just taking a few of these ideas and, uh, just starting to infuse them into the way that you work, the way that you engage, um, another sort, uh, of real quick, easy thing that you can do is at your next staff meeting, before you get started, collectively take two or three deep breaths. And so then you can be more present. Right? So there's lots of little things that you can do that don't have to be hard, that don't have to take a lot more time, but it can be better for everybody, including the leader.

Speaker A: Absolutely. Well, now, before we wrap up, is there anything else that you'd like to add about this topic?

Speaker B: One other emerging trend that I want to mention is technology. Right. You know, uh, everybody is talking about AI and everybody is talking about the shifts in technology, and we can, you know, infuse technology into employee wellness, into employee well being. There's some like wearable technology in things that we can think about and talk about. So things like that can track like you know, how well you are, how much you're walking, those sort of things like that is important, but it can also be tools that help automate things, right? So paycom in particular is really good about creating tools that can automate things like paid time off, right? Taking time off and being fully away is actually a part of well being and employee wellness. Now I know a million employees who are not great about actually fully being away, but utilizing technology to enhance what you're doing and to potentially automate things so that then it's both one less thing that you have to worry about. But it also allows employees and leaders to focus on some of those other things and to just sort of do employee wellness and well being a little bit better utilizing technology.

Speaker A: Well, thank you so much for joining the HR break room today, Dr. Sharp. That was such an insightful conversation.

Speaker B: Thank you so much. I have so enjoyed being with you all and I feel really thankful to be able to talk about these things that I think are really important.

Speaker A: Well, thank you, we appreciate it. And thank you listeners for tuning into our conversation. Paycom's single HR and payroll software provides tools that were designed with employee wellness in mind. Our benefits administration software streamlines enrollment, making it easy to offer benefits that help facilitate stronger work life integration and when employees need to unwind. Our time off request tool featuring Gone simplifies the process for them and the employer. It automates decision making and notifies employees immediately if their request has been approved. And Paycom Surveys helps you gather employee feedback to assess the impact of your wellness efforts. We hope you'll return to the HR Break Room very soon.

Speaker B: Be sure to follow and subscribe to HR Breakroom on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. For more episodes, visit hrbreakroom.com or follow us on social media. Thanks for tuning in to this episode and we can't wait for you to join us again inside the HR Break Room.