Does the Fate of Workplace Wellbeing Hinge on the Middle?

Most people assume that it’s senior leaders who make the difference. We hear: It starts from the top. Sure—senior leaders are the ones with the greatest control over resources, company-wide policies, and overall tone. And to be sure—having this top-level endorsement makes a big difference. 

But why do most wellbeing initiatives fail, even those that start from the top? Short answer: With few exceptions, the burden gets shifted to the bottom —the individual employee. 

But, what if there's another way?

In my experience, the fate of workplace wellbeing
hinges on the middle (aka, the managers)!

After training over 50,000 managers through our signature workshop, “Managers on the Move” (a leadership-meets-wellbeing program), I can unequivocally attest to the power of “middle-out” movements of wellbeing, driven by the often overlooked manager. Why? Because managers are the ones who are uniquely positioned within the workplace to either enhance —or undermine—the wellbeing of their team members. When managers are inspired, empowered and equipped to create ecosystems of wellbeing for their teams, everyone benefits.

Just how much do managers really matter when it comes to wellbeing? Short answer: A lot.

• Should I stay or should I go? Studies show that retention largely comes down to the manager. According to a 2024 LinkedIn survey, 7 out of 10 U.S. workers said they would leave a job if they had a bad manager. 
• For younger generations, it’s even higher, with 75% of Gen Z workers and 77% of millennials reporting that a bad manager will send them packing, according to the same survey. 
• When it comes to engagement with work—and wellbeing—a long-standing Gallup study shows that the manager accounts for a whopping 70%. 
• This same study shows that when managers help their team members apply their strengths, they are 6x more likely to be engaged in their jobs and 3x more likely to report having an excellent quality of life. 
• The manager has more impact on their team members’ mental health than their therapist or doctor—and it’s equal to the impact of their partner, according to a recent survey conducted by The Workforce Institute at UKG.
• Some employees have only a 1% chance of experiencing high workplace stress! How? A recent study conducted in Japan found that employees at low levels of stress report having a manager who fosters a culture that fuels wellbeing and supports their natural strengths (Gallup). 
• Burnout is 58% lower among employees who have a manager who supports their mental wellbeing (meQuilibrium).
• These employees are also 25% less likely to struggle with somatic symptoms of stress and are 33% less likely to have a hard time getting motivated in the morning, according to this same study.

So, yes, when it comes to meaningfully creating wellbeing at work, managers really do matter—which therefore begs the question:

Might we be setting people up for failure if we don't empower their managers to lead wellbeing?

An organizational blind spot—which I see over and over again—is a widespread failure to recognize the manager's potential in building cultures of wellbeing. It’s time for that to change. 

Here’s what organizations can do instead:

1. Reframe the role of “manager” as a responsibility, not just a reward.

As Cristina Mann, former Gallup Physical Wellbeing Lead,  summed it up in our LinkedIn Live conversation, “Becoming a manager is framed up as a reward, when in fact it is a responsibility.”

Here is the all-too-common scenario, she explains. Someone who is a high performer is “rewarded” for their good work by getting promoted into a management position. But then, suddenly, they’re no longer getting to use the technical skills that got them noticed in the first place. For example, maybe they were a superstar accountant who’s really good at numbers, or maybe they’re a software engineer who’s really good at coding. "You've excelled in your current role and are now being promoted to manager. Congratulations!" 

Suddenly, they’re expected to deliver on a whole new set of skills, namely, managing people. And the very thing that got them there in the first place becomes secondary to the task of running a team. More often than not, they’ve been shortchanged on resources and ill-equipped with too little training. It’s a recipe for disaster. The individual who’s promoted is unsatisfied, the team suffers and the organization now risks losing a high-performing individual.

2. Give managers a template to lead the way: Do, Speak, Create.

Do — Lead by example. For better or for worse, people tend to adopt the behaviors of their manager or, at the very least, see them as “approved” behaviors in the workplace. Too often, managers fail to recognize the impact they have. But recall that as leader of the team, they are the one who interacts with their team members on a daily basis. They are the ones who signal what’s “OK”—and what’s not. They are the ones who gives permission—or they do not give permission—to their team members to engage with their wellbeing. So, even if a manager tells their team that wellbeing is important, but meanwhile sends late-night emails, skips lunch breaks, and is glued to their desk all day, it is these actions that speak louder than words.

Speak — Engage through everyday conversations. In a time when 1 in 3 Americans report feeling lonely, team members are looking to their manager to engage in heart-to-heart conversations. Managers need to be leading the way in talking about wellbeing, and therefore need better strategies for building meaningful relationships.

Watch my recent LinkedIn Live with Carole Robin, Ph.D., in which she shared valuable strategies on how to build more meaningful connections at work. 

Create — Develop a team-based infrastructure to make wellbeing a way of life.
Ultimately, it’s less about the programs and much more about making wellbeing a way of life. Every manager, therefore, needs to find effective ways to integrate wellbeing into the daily workday. With thoughtful rituals, systems, processes, and activities, they can create the conditions for health and wellbeing. An example of a system could be to designate “no-meet” times on everyone’s calendar to allow time to refresh or regroup. Another way would be to schedule a weekly check-in with every team member. This could be a check-in about work: What are you working on? How can I help? It could also be a time to check in about individual passion projects.

3. Launch a “middle-out” movement with a program that works.

Do, Speak, Create is just one of the tools utilized in our Managers on the Move series, a leadership-meets-wellbeing training program.

What’s the difference we’ve seen?

From 2020-2021, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota (BCBSND) brought the Managers on the Move training to all of their managers and leaders.

The challenges they were facing:

• High levels of employee stress
• High levels of employee burnout
• Under-utilized wellness services
• Gaps in reported levels of wellbeing between managers and employees
• Low levels of productivity

The results they generated through Managers on the Move:

• 93% increase in employees reporting that their manager creates activities and systems that support the wellbeing of their team

• 42% increase in employees reporting that their work enables them to be the best version of themselves
• 53% increase in managers reporting that their work enables them to be the best version of themselves
• 24% increase in overall wellbeing reported by employees
• 36% increase in overall wellbeing reported by managers

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“To be honest, I had not really ever thought about incorporating wellness into my leadership style and now that I’ve been involved with Managers on the Move, I can’t imagine not doing so.”

— TRACY FARAHMAND
DIRECTOR OF NETWORK MANAGEMENT AT BCBSND

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What’s happening now?

​BCBSND is continuing the movement outside of their four walls, by delivering a licensed version of Managers on the Move called “Elevate.”

Integrating wellness into leadership may seem like uncharted waters, but it's hard to look back once you’ve experienced the impact of leaders who lead with wellbeing.​

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The time to “do something” is now.

Activate the middle and start a wellbeing movement at work through Managers on the Move.

START A MIDDLE-OUT MOVEMENT

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laura putnam

​​Laura Putnam is a leading catalyst for wellbeing at work, an international public speaker, and author of Workplace Wellness That Works. As CEO of Motion Infusion and creator of the leadership training program Managers on the Move, she infuses wellbeing into the workplace to help employees, teams and organizations thrive. You can follow her on Twitter @MotionInfusion.Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.