The 2009 Business Well-Being Network Annual Conference took place at the Inmarsat Conference Centre in London on 11th November. The event was a resounding success and the feedback from more than 100 delegates who attended was overwhelmingly positive – particuarly in relation to their Keynote speakers, Steve Boorman and Jamie Mitchell, former Managing Director of Innocent Drinks. Steve brought the audience up-to-date with his review of staff well-being in the NHS – the results of which he was delivering to Lord Mandelson on that day. After lunch, Jamie engaged a full house with his perspective on growing and managing a leading well-being brand, including the challenges of aligning people strategy with the market facing brand.

Other highlights included a joint presentation by David Macleod and Ivan Robertson, plus a lively panel session hosted by business guru Rene Carayol. The subject the panel were discussing was how to get beyond simple diagnosis and really make a difference to well-being and engagement levels. The high-powered panel included Professor Cary Cooper, Jamie Mitchell, Professor Chris Clegg from the University of Leeds and Robertson Cooper Director Jill Flint-Taylor. The debate was extremely interactive and delegates found it easy to get involved with proceedings.

Other contributors to the day included Sainsbury’s, ebay, Vielife, Greater Manchester Police, RogenSi and NHS Employers. During the breaks healthy drinks and snacks were offered by Cloud Nine and delegates received free massages from Therapy Solutions. See the full agenda for more details of the specific topics that were discussed at this year’s event.

New Research

The conference also saw the launch of new research by Robertson Cooper that estimated the prevalence of ‘Presenteeism’ in the UK working population to be as high as 25%. Delegates had an opportunity to discuss the issues associated with this emerging area with the researchers throughout the day at the ‘Presenteeism Poster’.

Annual Report 2009/10

The Business Well-Being Network Annual Report, “UK perspectives on employee engagement and well-being”, was also launched at the conference. It features all the latest developments in employee engagement and well-being and among this year’s contributors are David Macleod, Cary Cooper, Vodafone and Transport for London. With chapters on key areas like developing resilience, managing presenteeism and tackling musculo-skeletal problems it’s an invaluable resource for HR professionals.

Conference delegates received a copy of the report as part of their membership of the Network or their day rate, but the report is available to buy online as a PDF or hard copy from just £75.

Click here to buy the PDF Version

Networking

As you would expect at the Business Well-Being Network Annual Conference, delegates had plenty of time to draw on each other’s experience and knowledge. The feedback indicated that this was an aspect of the event that was valued highly.