The Well-being at Work Conference was held on October 21, 2021. View the recordings to explore the questions that have surfaced in the ranks of faculty and staff, supervisors, and leaders, focusing on how to create and maintain healthier, more productive workplaces and teams. Well-being at work is important. It honors each employee as a complete person both inside and outside of work. It provides shared knowledge about workplace culture and practices that attract people to work at MSU and keep them here.
The Guide Overview
Jaimie Hutchison, MA, LPC, Director of the MSU WorkLife Office, and Megan Lee, MHRLR Candidate, May 2023, Employee Relations & Project Lead at the MSU WorkLife Office
Session Description:
The Well-being at Work guide began as an idea that arose in 2019 after a number of on-campus presentations. The same questions surfaced across the ranks of faculty and staff, supervisors and leaders, focusing on how to create and maintain healthier, happier, workspaces and teams.
The goal of this guide is to provide evidence-based best practices in order to recruit and retain high-quality candidates and create healthier workplaces and teams, as we take care of our well-being and the well-being of each other. Well-being at work is important. It honors each employee as a complete person both inside and outside of work. It provides shared knowledge about workplace culture and practices that attract people to work at MSU and keep them here. It is a tool to use from any position when thinking about strengthening a team or a unit.
This presentation gives an overview of the Well-being guide and provides some background on its creation.
Presented by:
(As of 2021) Jaimie has worked in organizations that have served individuals and families for over 20 years. Jaimie’s diverse work experiences have prepared her for focusing on the wide array of needs that faculty, staff, and families have. As a military spouse, Jaimie worked for several educational, government, and non-profit organizations in California, Montana, Colorado, and Michigan. She is an active volunteer in her community, and has volunteered over 10,000 hours in her communities. Jaimie received her Bachelors degree in Psychology from Michigan State University, her Masters degree in Community Counseling from the University of Northern Colorado, and a post-Masters certificate in School Counseling from Eastern Michigan University. Jaimie is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Michigan. Jaimie and her family are proud Spartans and enjoy all of the diverse events and activities that MSU and the Greater Lansing area have to offer.
Jaimie is serving a three-year term for the College and University Work-Life-Family Association (CUFWA) Board of Directors. Jaimie is co-chairing the Membership Engagement Committee with a work-life representative from the University of Arizona. Jaimie’s participation in these leadership roles will allow the MSU WorkLife Office to help guide national conversations about work-life, as well as provide MSU an opportunity to share and learn from other best practices in these areas from around the country and Canada.
Megan is currently a graduate student at MSU in the Human Resources & Labor Relations Master’s program, graduating in May 2023. She graduated with a B.A. in Human Capital and Society and a minor in Leadership of Organizations in May 2021. Working in the WorkLife Office has helped Megan realize where her passions lie within human resources: the niche area of work-life and the retention strategies and employee empowerment it brings to an organization. She values her contributions to the Well-being at Work guide, which encompasses mental health and work, why breaks are important, different aspects of the work environment, how to support caregivers in the workplace and more, as her light-bulb moment that has allowed her to learn more about all she wants to bring into her career.
Megan is excited to become a double Spartan and continue working in the WorkLife Office throughout her graduate studies. Personally, Megan enjoys spending time with her boyfriend, family, and dog, as well as reading, working out, and baking and creating recipes.
Well-being at Work—what is it?
Nancy Costikyan, MSW, LICSW, Director of the Office of Work/Life at Harvard University and Teaching Associate in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School
Session Description:
Strong work cultures have 14% turnover rate, while poor work cultures have 48% turnover rate. Join us for a Well-being at Work Q&A session addressing how we can individually and collectively change our message and advocate for a well and strong work culture that is more productive, collaborative, and healthy.
Hear an overview of what well-being at work is, its importance, and how having a well workforce leads to success.
Presented by:
Nancy is the Director of the Office of Work/Life at Harvard University, supporting Harvard’s recruitment and retention of a high performing workforce and the wellbeing of a diverse community of staff and scholars. Trained as a clinical social worker, she has worked for 30 years as a psychotherapist, organizational consultant, department director and clinical supervisor. Nancy and her team contribute to the development of Harvard’s policies and special initiatives and administer several University-wide programs focused on mental health, workplace flexibility, dependent care, faculty diversity, behavioral risk, and mindfulness training. Each of these programs serve in some way as a path to sustainability, manager effectiveness, and a psychologically safe, inclusive workplace. In addition to her work/life role, she is a Teaching Associate in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Nancy is the mother of 26 year old twin sons who regularly note that she is a poster child for work/life balance irony. She’s working on that.
Additional information:
Keynote speaker, Nancy Costikyan, MSW, LICSW, Director of the Office of Work/Life at Harvard University and Teaching Associate in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, discussed her work-life manifesto and how work-life can be “badass.” Read her article that inspired the story and Chuck Norris’s article. Find other takeaways from the Wellbeing at Work Conference.
A Nature Boost: Forest Bathing
Maureen Stine, a Certified Forest Therapy Guide
Session Description:
For 5 million years, our ancestors lived outdoors, but with the advent of the Industrial Revolution, humans began to live their lives inside. Today, most of the population of the United States spend less than 5% of their day outside. In our society, constant exposure to artificial light, chemical, electromagnetic and air and noise pollution are directly linked to the epidemic of stress and chronic disease. Forest therapy, also known as shinrin yoku, (Japanese for ‘forest bathing’) improves physical and mental health through awakening the senses by foraging mindfulness in nature. Learn more about forest bathing and how to engage in this therapeutic experience where people encounter and embody the whole of who they are.
Presented by:
Maureen Stine has been a professional park interpreter for 26 years. She holds certifications from the National Association for Interpretation, the National Recreation and Park Association and the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education. Through her small business, Natureology, Maureen specializes in multi-sensory interpretive explorations and professional development opportunities for non-profit organizations and government agencies. In 2021, Maureen completed her coursework to become a certified forest therapy guide through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs (ANFT). Learn more about Maureen’s work by visiting her website: www.natureology.me