During the past 1.5 years, Quicksearch has had an internal health initiative, which we call QS Wellness, where the employees are monthly introduced to various health themes such as sleep, diet, stress, yoga and meditation as well as a pedometer competition. The employees have also been challenged by testing different physical activities and doing a personal health analysis.
Considering the positive effects the investment had on both well-being and community among the employees, we interviewed the health group's leader Martin Falkfält.
Martin Falkfält is a trained nutrition consultant and personal trainer. Alongside his employment at Quickserach, he works as a personal trainer and leads health groups at a wellness center in Falkenberg. He has experience in football, golf, Thai boxing and crossfit. With his passionate interest in health, Martin became the natural leader of Quicksearch's health initiative.
What was the reason for choosing to invest in an internal health group?
Today, we live and work in a fairly sedentary society where physical activity is in short supply for many.
The Public Health Agency's surveys show that we are living longer compared to before but are generally sicker. Obesity, cardiovascular diseases and sick leave due to mental illness are increasing. Through greater knowledge and a broader health mindset among our employees, we want to contribute to reducing sick leave and increasing well-being among our colleagues.
What was the purpose of the venture?
The aim has been to increase knowledge and raise questions about health, create community and challenge colleagues both mentally and physically.
How did you get the management to invest in and bet on the health of the staff?
I feel that there were many reasons why the management chose to invest in a health project. Physical activity and a healthier lifestyle counteract stress and reduce sickness absence. Increased mental and physical well-being among employees contributes to well-being in the workplace and hence to better work done.
If you understand that, I think it becomes a matter of course to invest in the health of your employees.
How was Quicksearch's health group QS Wellness formed?
At the end of 2016, I received the management's trust to put together a health team among Quicksearch's employees. My basic idea was that we would represent different groups, have slightly different backgrounds, but still some sort of consensus regarding physical and mental health.
How did you kickstart QS Wellness?
At the beginning of 2017, Quicksearch had its kickoff on Bosön outside Stockholm. Bosön is a meeting place for development and growth in sports. It was the perfect place for us to present our plan and get started with the first joint activities.
To begin with, all employees were given the opportunity to carry out a comprehensive health analysis. Next, we wanted to get involved with a team-based pedometer competition that would take us from Stockholm to Dubai within a certain number of days.
During the day, we then had the theme of athletics and competed in our teams. We had to test things like shot put, high jump and long jump. As soon as the pedometer competition started, we noticed how the mood of the employees changed. The teams really competed against each other and internal battles began to be fought. The teams were welded together more and more and towards the end of the ladder competition it was discussed daily.
How did the arrangement look in general?
We wanted to make sure that the employees tried new things and opened their eyes to sports and approaches that they might otherwise have avoided or missed. We used one theme per month. The employees were allowed to come up with suggestions, but it was the wellness group that decided what should be done. What was important was that it should not result in any training frenzy, but rather fun challenges.
We constantly tried to adapt the themes based on how the year looked for our employees. For example, in November when many of us have the highest workload was the month's theme Relaxation and mindfulness while in August, when most people come back after the holidays, we had the theme Getting started with training.
Which theme was most appreciated?
I would probably say that the vegetarian week was very much appreciated and became a talking point. It consisted of challenging all employees to try to eat vegetarian for a whole week. The winner is awarded a prize. To make it as easy as possible for the employees, we had produced vegetarian recipes together with a shopping list.
What has the wellness investment contributed to Quicksearch?
I have experienced that the wellness investment led to a more close-knit company and that the employees talked to each other more, that is to say that employees who usually do not have much contact with each other at work have made contact through the various activities we had.
Thanks to vegetarian week, one of our employees has become a full-time vegetarian. Another lost 12 kilos just by starting to walk to and from work because of the pedometer competition.
What have been your biggest challenges?
The big challenge in the whole project has been to find solutions for how we can get as many people as possible on the various activities. People are different and often have busy schedules, it's not always easy to make time.
What advice would you give to others who are considering making a similar investment within their organization?
Appoint a health group that has different views on what health is and ask the employees what they would like the project to include. There is often a lot of knowledge internally - make use of it! Have a dialogue with the management team and managers. If they are on the train, so are the employees.
Is QS Wellness something you will continue with?
Yes, the health project has had a successful outcome and we see clear benefits from it. Although the group constellation may look different in the future, QS Wellness will live on in one way or another!
