by Brianna Crandall — March 18, 2015—In today’s global marketplace, a majority of corporate, healthcare and educational leaders says they see the improvement of quality of life for employees, patients and students as a new lever for performance. According to a new Sodexo/Harris Interactive survey, “How Leaders Value Quality of Life,” 66% of the top managers in corporate, healthcare and educational institutions in developed and emerging countries interviewed say they are totally convinced that improving quality of life is a strategic priority for their institutions.
96% of global leaders think improving quality of life in their organization is important, because it has an impact on the performance of their organization. Click on image to see full infographic.The survey is said to be the first study of its kind examining the impact of quality of life as a factor of performance in organizations around the world. Sodexo, working with Harris Interactive, compiled the report over three months from November 2014 to January 2015, drawing on interviews with 780 leading figures in the fields of business, healthcare and education across six countries (Brazil, China, France, India, U.K. and USA).
“Improving quality of life, which is the heart of Sodexo’s mission, is increasingly recognized as a top priority in organizations in developed and developing markets, and it’s just the beginning. The importance of quality of life will rise as end users grow increasingly powerful, with new technologies amplifying consumers’ voices and new generations taking a greater role in the workforce,” says Michel Landel, CEO of Sodexo.
“This survey is the first international barometer among key decision makers. It is a unique study in that we did not solicit the point of view of end-users or consumers, as has been done previously, but rather those who take the decisions that influence quality of life in their organizations,” says Delphine Martelli-Banégas, head of the Corporate Department at Harris Interactive.
1. Quality of life: a strong and measurable impact on performance
91% of the leaders surveyed said they perceived a link between quality of life and performance in their organization, with 57% saying they “totally agree” with this idea. This conviction is based on direct experience since 86% of leaders have already implemented at least three quality of life initiatives within their organizations. Improving quality of life has diverse impacts on performance: 99% say it has an impact on satisfaction (of employees, patient, and students), 94% on image and reputation, 93% on productivity/efficiency, and 88% on business/economic performance.
2. This is just the start: quality of life is seen growing in importance
The survey also shows that this new management focus is steadily gaining traction throughout the economy as a whole. A full 65% of global business leaders interviewed in the survey forecast that improving the well-being of employees and customers will be a vital consideration in years to come. This shift in attitudes is being driven by the new realities of a changing world. As technological changes put end-users in the driving seat—and the generations that have grown up with this new technology increasingly dominate the labor market—so will the improvement of quality of life become an increasingly important factor in strategic decision-making, leaders say.
3. Healthcare is leading the way
The Sodexo study shows that the healthcare sector is ahead in this new approach. With their human-centered businesses, managers from this field lead their peers from the corporate or university world in terms of initiatives to boost quality of life as well as in their dedicated metrics to measure its performance. Among the healthcare leaders interviewed for the survey, 90% said they give a high level of importance of improving quality of life in their organization, compared with 71% in education and 43% in the corporate world. 83% said they have specific metrics measuring the impact of quality of life on performance compared to 64% in education and 40% in the corporate sector.
Highlights of the Sodexo survey:
- 66% of leaders interviewed said quality of life is already a priority in their organization.
- 86% said they have already implemented at least three specific quality of life initiatives.
- 60% of organizations have a dedicated budget for quality of life.
- 48% have already appointed a dedicated team or officer to oversee quality of life.
- 57% of leaders interviewed are convinced that quality of life has an important impact on their organization’s performance.
- 62% of organizations have instituted specific metrics to gauge quality of life’s impact on performance.
- 65% of leaders believe that improving quality of life will assume greater importance in the future, led by healthcare (79%) and education (68%) and followed by corporations (50%).
Quality of life initiatives can be classified according to six different dimensions:
- Physical environment
- Social interactions
- Ease and efficiency
- Health and nutrition
- Recognition
- Personal growth
An infographic and full survey results are available from the Sodexo Web site.
Sodexo’s forthcoming Quality of Life Conference
As an international leader in quality of life services, Sodexo is committed to deepening its understanding of how the issue is embraced in organizations today, and will host a global conference dedicated to the subject May 5-6, 2015, in New York. The Quality of Life Conference will bring together eminent thinkers and practitioners from all professional walks of life and from around the world. It will be structured around six key aspects of quality of life—space management, local communities, personal recognition, nutrition, technology and gender balance—and will examine issues including how organizations can adapt to improve quality of life, the emergence of the quality of life economic model, and how to ensure the next generation is invested in the process of change.
