1. From your perspective, how does addressing mental health actively benefit business performance, particularly in the high-stress context of financial services?

There are a number of benefits.

1: It’s well known that a significant number of work hours are lost due to people being off work, or performing poorly, due to mental health issues. Having mental health support in place reduces these lost hours, thereby making companies more productive.

2: When they know that their employer takes mental health seriously, employees feel more valued, therefore more engaged, and therefore more productive.

3: When employers show that they are serious about addressing mental health issues, this creates & supports psychological safety; meaning employees feel they can speak up and be open about mental health issues. This, in turn, benefits the employer because it is a place employees want to work at, and have a better sense of belonging and purpose.

2. We've collaborated together on Mental Health First Aid training. What are the advantages to having people in the team who are trained in this?

At a practical level, it means there are people who can assist and support colleagues who need help. This support is invaluable, and can go so far as preventing someone from taking their own life.

Often, people suffering can find it difficult to find the right resources, but a Mental Health First Aider can point them in the right direction. It also means that employees can go to the ‘right’ person to get support, rather than going to someone who isn’t qualified or experienced, which could be counter-productive.

The training also sends out a very positive message in the workplace. It tells people that the employer cares, and is serious about looking after employees from a mental health perspective.

3. If you could challenge the financial services industry on just one aspect of mental health or wellbeing, what would it be—and why?

Don’t put an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) in place just to tick a box.

EAPs are important, and definitely have a role to play in providing support to employees, but they are focussed on the employee. It is important to focus on the workplace itself, too.

Changing and improving the workplace is crucial to employee wellbeing, and can be easily overlooked or ignored.

Companies must be serious about improving mental health – the focus should be on changing the workplace, not just on changing the employee.

4. How can financial services companies shift from a “support” approach to mental health to one of active prevention and wellness? What structural changes or policies do you see as essential?

A few thoughts come to mind.

As I mentioned above, in addition to providing support mechanisms for employees (such as EAPs); employers should look at how to change the company, to make it a better place to be and work in from a mental health perspective.

All leaders and managers should be required to support psychological safety in the workplace, including being required to participate in psychological safety training. And employees themselves should be trained on the benefits of psychological safety and, most importantly, on what their employer is doing to engender and support it.

Companies should also have a policy to ensure that a certain number of employees in each department or area are trained to be Mental Health First Aiders.

Finally, companies should also try to ensure that medical insurance policy providers cover mental health issues beyond just the diagnosis phase, as many do not provide cover for ongoing care.

5. Looking beyond mental health & wellbeing, what do you think are the 3 most important things that business leaders in financial services can do to make their workplaces kinder and fairer?

1: Do everything possible to embed psychological safety in their companies, including being open about their own vulnerabilities.

2: Lead by example. Let employees know that you genuinely care about them and their wellbeing, but be kind to yourself too.

3: Treat employees with kindness by allowing them to be their full self at work. Let them know that it is okay to bring their personal troubles to the workplace, where they will be supported. They don’t need to be left at the door.

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