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Ethan Pang and Chang Chiz Hau, Director and Deputy Director, University Wellbeing Office, share how NTU Singapore leverages the community as a resource for promoting wellbeing.
In a larger community, there is no one-size-fits-all approach for wellbeing. As such, every organisation should understand its unique wellbeing needs to address them specifically.
Recognising this, employees at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Singapore look out for and offer support to one another, as responsible members of a supportive and caring organisation. Its approach therefore shifts from mere intervention to proactive empowerment.
With its various initiatives supporting this philosophy, the team won the silver award for 'Best Employee Wellness Strategy' at the Employee Experience Awards 2024, Singapore.
In an interview with HRO, Ethan Pang and Chang Chiz Hau, Director and Deputy Director, University Wellbeing Office, share how NTU Singapore leverages the community as a resource for promoting wellbeing.
Q How would you describe the pillars of your employee experience strategy, and what are the principles you have taken into account to develop this?
The University Wellbeing Office (UWO) at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) worked with colleagues across the university to develop and implement an employee wellbeing strategy that recognises the influence of organisational systems and culture, as well as individual-focused factors on wellbeing.
Our strategy comprises three key pillars:
- To enhance organisational systems and culture through activating communities for wellbeing,
- To educate and upskill employees to be effective wellbeing change-makers through an evidence-based approach, and
- To ensure that wellbeing efforts remain comprehensive, relevant, and responsive to the diverse needs of a heterogeneous workforce.
At its heart, our strategy is not only evidence-based, but also inspired by one of NTU’s six core values – Care. Through the strategy, encapsulated in UWO’s vision statement, “Everyone a wellbeing change-maker”, UWO aims to reach out to all NTU employees while actively creating a supportive and caring organisation.
Q In a world propelled by rapid change, what measures do you have in place to maintain a people-centric, human approach to your EX as it evolves?
As a leading global university, NTU is home to nearly 8,000 employees. Spread across over 100 units (schools and offices), employees work in a diverse range of vocations (faculty, researchers, and management and support officers) and come from various backgrounds, races and cultures.
This diversity also extends to their wellbeing needs. With such a large community, it is vital to put our people at the heart of what we do, and leverage the community as the primary resource for promoting wellbeing.
This approach shifts from mere intervention to proactive empowerment, mobilising employees who volunteer as members of NTU’s Wellbeing Community of Practice (CoP) to champion their own and their colleagues' wellbeing. By involving employees at a grassroots level, each unit’s specific wellbeing needs can be properly identified, and targeted strategies, interventions and initiatives can be planned and deployed. This keeps our employee wellbeing strategy people-centric and responsive to evolving and diverse needs.
Q What initiatives do you undertake such that the delivery of employee experience is a collective responsibility of all stakeholders in the organisation?
Wellbeing in NTU is a shared responsibility. Employees look out for and offer support to one another, as responsible members of a supportive and caring organisation. There are three initiatives which illustrate this:
Firstly, we have the 'Guardian Angel Initiative', where staff can alert UWO to students or colleagues who appear to be struggling. This allows UWO to trigger support protocols and follow up in appropriate ways to safeguard their wellbeing and safety.
Secondly, we are working towards training 100% of our employees in psychological first aid, so that everyone in NTU has access to someone who is trained to support a colleague or student in distress.
Finally, leaders in NTU are provided a wellbeing toolkit with easy-to-implement practices so that they can promote workplace wellbeing and provide a psychologically safe space. Our leaders also work closely with wellbeing volunteers to enhance unit-level systems for wellbeing.
Q Do you have words of wisdom to share with others in the industry on the best ways to keep your employee experience consistent and beautiful?
We recognise that wellbeing involves a variety of factors and, especially in a large community, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Every organisation needs to understand its unique wellbeing needs and design interventions to address them specifically. This is a continuous effort that must be sustained and measured year-on-year such that its impact can continue to grow.
The key driver behind the success of our wellbeing strategy is our wellbeing CoP. Committed colleagues come together and bond through their shared passion for wellbeing. We train, coach and support them; enabling them to drive wellbeing initiatives across the organisation.
Having volunteers to augment the University’s wellbeing efforts allows UWO, a small office in a large organisation, to significantly expand our reach and ‘punch above our weight’. It also signals that everyone has a part to play in promoting wellbeing and better mental health.
By adopting a broad and inclusive approach, a tipping point can be reached, and a culture of wellbeing based on shared values, beliefs and behaviours will become predominant in the long run.
Read more interviews on why organisations have won trophies for their HR practices - head over to our Winning Secrets section!
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