Examentrainers

The Economist, 2010

Business

Schumpeter | Mens sana in corporation sano¹

						familiar things such as exercise and
						healthy eating. But it also screens
						people for psychological well-being,
						and offers advice on "optimising
						performance" and "staying positive
						under pressure". Focusing on their
						stars makes sense for companies. The
						stars not only represent huge
						investments. They are also most likely
						to live under stress while maintaining a
1		ANNUAL check-ups and company				stiff upper lip. But focusing on stars
		"wellness programmes" have become a				also makes sense for the mental-
		familiar part of the corporate				wellness movement itself: the best way
		landscape. More than half of America's				to insert yourself into a company's DNA
		larger companies offer advice on stop-				is to seduce its leadership.
		ping smoking and fighting flab. More		6		What should one make of the
		than a third have gyms. Some have				corporate world's new-found interest in
		rechristened their canteens as "nutrition				promoting mental health? For sure,
		centres". IBM is among a growing band				depression and anxiety can take a
		of companies that offer workers				serious toll on productivity, and
		financial incentives (such as cheaper				companies bear their share of the
		medical co-payments) to encourage				blame for promoting stress in the first
		them to lose weight and exercise				place. And catching psychological
		regularly. AstraZeneca has installed				problems early can prevent them from
		treadmills in its offices so workers can				escalating. BT reports that its
		exercise their legs, albeit gently, while				programmes have reduced levels of
		holding meetings.				sickness absence due to mental-health
		PricewaterhouseCoopers provides				problems by 30%. This all sounds
		massage and yoga sessions.				promising. But there are nevertheless
2		Companies are now also starting to				several troubling aspects.
		touch on a potentially troubling area:		7		The first worry is that promoting
		their employees' mental health.				psychological wellness crosses an
		Companies as diverse as BT, Rolls-				important line between the public and
		Royce and Grant Thornton have				the private, raising awkward questions.
		introduced mental-health programmes.				Should companies pry into people's
		These range from training managers to				emotional lives? Can they be trusted
		spot problems to rehabilitating those				with the information they gather? And
		suffering breakdowns. A growing				should psychologically frail workers put
		number of boutique consultancies such				their faith in people who work primarily
		as Corporate Psychology and Mental				for their employers rather than in their
		Fitness are also offering to improve				personal doctors? Workers rightly worry
		workers' mental well-being.				that companies will use psychological
3		The fashion is being driven by				information in their annual appraisals.
		simultaneous developments in two				And that bosses will see the trend as
		usually distinct areas - health care and				an excuse for extending their power
		management theory. Doctors report				over staff - using the veiled threat of
		that more than a third of the physical				somehow being classified as mentally
		problems they encounter have some				impaired to make them obey, and
		psychological basis. Management				conform.
		gurus are also discovering the		8		A second worry is about the [id:96431]
		joys of psychology. Business				of the mental-wellness movement. A
		professors have taken to littering				phrase like "mental fitness" is bound to
		their texts with references to "toxic				attract charlatans and snake-oil
		organisations" and "emotional				salesmen. Warren Bennis of the
		contagion". Several psychologists				University of Southern California has
		have become influential gurus in their				noted that the new "science" of
		own right. Daniel Goleman of Rutgers				neuroleadership is "filled with
		University sings the praises of				banalities". Other people are less
		"emotional intelligence" in the				complimentary.
		workplace. Steven Berglas, a		9		The biggest problem with the
		psychiatrist turned management				movement lies in the assumption that
		professor at UCLA, offers advice on				promoting psychological wellness is as
		how to "reclaim the fire" after burnout.				axiomatically good as encouraging the
		There is even a new business				physical sort. It is one thing to help
		discipline, neuroleadership, that				people deal with serious problems
		promises to use brain science to				when they crop up. It is another to try to
		improve senior management.				promote something that cannot easily
4		Both doctors and gurus can quote				be defined, let alone managed. Few
		some compelling statistics. The				would doubt that good physical health
		Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health				makes for good productivity; but it is
		estimates that a sixth of the British				not self-evident that a positive mental
		workforce suffers from depression or				attitude is good for a worker or his
		stress, and that mental ill-health costs				output: history shows that misfits have
		British employers almost $26 billion a				contributed far more to creativity than
		year. American research suggests that				perky optimists have done. [id:96432] ,
		"presenteeism" (whereby the walking				curmudgeonliness² is a rational way to
		wounded turn up to work without				cope with an imperfect world, rather
		contributing) costs twice as much as				than a sign of mental maladjustment (or
		absenteeism.				so your occasionally curmudgeonly
5		So far this trend has been most				columnist would like to believe).
		marked in the upper ranks of firms.				Companies that chase the will-o'-thewisp
		Grant Thornton sends its partners on a				of "positive attitudes" may end up
		two-day programme put on by Positive				damaging themselves as well as
		Health Strategies, a London company.				sticking their noses where they have no
		Some of this programme deals with				business.

noot 1	“Mens sana in corporation sano” means “a healthy mind in a healthy corporation” and is a pun on the Latin proverb “Mens sana in corpore sano,” which means “a healthy mind in a healthy body”.
noot 2	curmudgeonliness: sikkeneurigheid