I recently met with the Working Well advisory board to garner a sense of the issues affecting those responsible for their organization’s workplace wellness. Not only did I receive some valuable feedback, but we also discussed the magazine’s content, what our team of professionals can improve upon and what we’re doing right.

I have made particular note of the need for articles that relate to those employees who perform shiftwork and those who work for decentralized companies (more to come on that front in future issues). I also learned that many readers find our case studies and real-life examples particularly helpful and that keeping wellness “top of mind” with senior management is a major area of concern—especially in this economy.

There was much more, of course, but I came away from that meeting with the reasserted conviction that workplace wellness is an integral part of an organization’s success—monetary and otherwise—and that those programs and initiatives are needed now, more than ever before. I look forward to discussing all of the topics we spoke about at that meeting—and many more—in the months to come.

In the meantime, I think you’ll find this issue very topical with articles on how to protect your workforce from pandemic infection (Page 15) and a couple of examples of how corporations are “keeping up during a downturn” (our cover story).

I have one last item of business to cover. Our third annual Who’s Who in Workplace Health Awards will be taking place on October 9 at the Windsor Arms Hotel. The awards are designed to honour individuals and organizations that have demonstrated leadership and innovation in workplace health. Nominations close July 3, so, if you know of an individual or organization that fulfills one of the four categories listed below, I urge you to visit www.benefitscanada.com/workingwell/wwiwh and nominate them.

The categories are: Employer, Employee Communication, Strategic Partnership and Provider Leadership. For more information, again, please visit www.benefitscanada.com/workingwell/wwiwh.

I want to hear from you! Letters to the Editor are encouraged and story suggestions are welcome. Please email me at cindy.mark@rci.rogers.com.

For a PDF version of this article, click here.

© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the June/July 2009 edition of WORKING WELL magazine.