Can L&D Improve Workplace Wellbeing?

Q: Make signposting part of L&D capability

It is incredibly valuable to know:What support exists internallyHow the EAP worksWhat Occupational Health can and can’t doWho the Mental Health First Aiders areWhat managers should doWhere someone can access external supportWhat to do if they’re concerned about immediate risk

learninginlaw

Oct 9

2 min read

Updated: Oct 12

World Mental Health Day gives us a useful moment to pause and think about wellbeing at work.

L&D sits at an interesting intersection in law firms. We work with people at different stages of their careers, develop managers and leaders, support organisational change and influence the skills and behaviours that shape people’s experience of work.

We have an important role in creating the conditions in which people are better equipped to look after themselves, support others, have healthier conversations and access the right help when they need it.

Here are five ideas for practical actions we can take:

Develop your managers

Train people to have better conversations: noticing changes in others, asking appropriate questions, listening without immediately trying to solve problems, understanding their boundaries, and knowing when and where to signpost for further support.

Build psychological safety into leadership development

What behaviours do our leaders demonstrate that make it safe for people to speak up?
Can someone say they have too much work?
Can someone admit they don’t understand something?
Can someone challenge a deadline?
Can someone say they’re struggling?
What happens when someone makes a mistake?
Are people rewarded, implicitly or explicitly, for working when they’re unwell?

Look at the learning experience itself

How mentally healthy is the learning we design? Think about:

Cognitive load
Back-to-back training
Mandatory e-learning overload
Learning expectations during periods of intense work
Whether people have time to reflect and apply learning
Whether development is genuinely developmental or simply another thing on the to-do list

Sometimes the most wellbeing-conscious learning intervention is ‘not another webinar’!

Use career transitions as opportunities for support

L&D often has visibility at precisely these transition points

Starting a training contract
Qualification
Moving into a new team
Becoming a supervisor/manager
Partnership
Returning from parental leave
Returning after sickness absence
Redundancy/restructure
Moving in-house
Taking on a major leadership role

So ask: What support do people need to be successful and well at this particular stage of their career?

Make signposting part of L&D capability

It is incredibly valuable to know:

What support exists internally
How the EAP works
What Occupational Health can and can’t do
Who the Mental Health First Aiders are
What managers should do
Where someone can access external support
What to do if they’re concerned about immediate risk

We have an opportunity to influence the conversations, behaviours, leadership capability and learning environments around mental health and wellbeing, and that feels like a worthwhile role for L&D - not just on World Mental Health Day, but every day.