Innovative Professional Offices (www.InnovativeProfessionalOffices.com), a top provider of executive offices and support services, is weighing in on a new trend of employers offering stress-reduction training for their employees.
More businesses have begun using “resilience training” programs to teach their employees how to manage stress, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Using both webinars and in-person coaching, companies are teaching their employees techniques to handle stress both in the workplace and at home. (Source: Landro, L., “Why Resilience Is Good For Your Health and Career,” The Wall Street Journal web site, February 15, 2016; http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-resilience-is-good-for-your-health-and-career-1455560111.)
“More companies are starting to realize the benefits of in-house training for their employees, and this is yet another example,” says Eshai Hirshberg, director of Innovative Professional Offices. “Companies are seeing that training doesn’t just help employees but also ends up helping the company.”
The resilience-training programs give employees the tools to manage their stress. The programs teach employees how to use deep breathing techniques and positive thinking to help increase their performance and prevent burnout.
“Most company training programs focus on teaching skills or industry-specific knowledge, so this is a very different approach,” says Hirshberg. “However, there are plenty of reasons to think that this could have just as big an effect on a company’s bottom line.”
Researchers say that stress-reduction programs can have a number of benefits for organizations. They can help reduce employee turnover, prevent burnout, minimize the number of sick days, and even increase an employee’s on-the-job performance.
“Studies have really shown that employee satisfaction has a big impact on a company’s success,” says Hirshberg. “One surprising thing that has been found is that employees say training is one of the top things they value in the workplace. This is why providing training really is something that every company should be exploring.”
Stress-reduction programs have previously been commonly used with police forces, the military, and in other high-stress industries, as they can help prevent burnout and turnover while improving staff’s mental health. However, until now, training programs have not been common for office jobs.
“It usually takes a while for the wider business world to see the benefits of some of these techniques,” says Hirshberg. “Co-working spaces have been used for years by startups, but it’s only in the last couple years that other companies have realized the benefits they’re missing out on. Something similar might be happening with these training programs.”
Hirshberg says that the growing trend should continue, particularly because many people today suffer from depression, anxiety, and chronic stress. Many companies also struggle to keep employees long-term, and stress-training programs would be a more cost-effective approach than hiring new staff or giving large raises.
“I expect the trend will only continue in the years ahead,” says Hirshberg. “Training rooms and seminar spaces can now be rented at affordable rates, so you will see more companies taking advantage of this type of training.”
Innovative Professional Offices offers virtual office services, office rentals, and administration services, primarily to small- and medium-sized businesses that don’t have a need for an office on a daily basis.
