Today, it鈥檚 hard to imagine a time when people didn鈥檛 think much about stress. Now it seems to permeate our consciousness. I spoke about that with Jan Bruce, CEO of meQuilibrium, an expert on the hyper-demanding work environment that鈥檚 become so commonplace.
鈥淲e鈥檝e always had to cope with pressure, which gives us a sense of urgency and helps get things done. But there are diminishing returns,鈥� she observed. 鈥淧eople have woken up to the realization that we are under too much stress and too much of it leads to burnout. I don鈥檛 recall CEOs talking about burnout 20 years ago. Now employers are recognizing that their employees are overloaded, and they are looking for solutions.鈥�
Fortunately, many of the world鈥檚 leading corporations 鈥� especially those with highly skilled workforces 鈥� are finding help on with the
Coping with Burnout
How did this come about, I asked, and how does stress impact employees and employers in the business world? 鈥淎nxiety is the sister of technology transformation,鈥� Bruce said. 鈥淧eople don鈥檛 have the ability to handle the constant change and uncertainty and incessant obligations of the 鈥榓lways on鈥� environment. The problem has reached epic proportions, with an employee population seriously at risk of depression and anxiety. Digital transformation must start with workplace resilience.鈥�
The meQuilibrium Resilience Suite is a science- and data-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution that sits at the intersection of human performance and well-being and helps employers foster readiness for change and adaptability. It supports a multifaceted, enterprise-wide program that can shift the entire culture, encompassing individuals, teams, and entire organizations.
Advancing a Learning Mindset
Yet the solution takes a holistic and highly personalized approach, Bruce shared. 鈥淚t uses a clinically validated assessment that correlates with cognitive, behavioral, and psychometric instruments such as the Workplace Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire (WPAI) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to assess all aspects of the employee鈥檚 life that are causing 鈥� or can reduce 鈥� stress levels. Whether it’s an issue with home life, relationships or workplace conflict, the key question is, what is the root cause? What is holding you back? How can you develop a skill set to be more effective in each area? What are your sources of strength? These are the issues we evaluate,鈥� Bruce explained.
Predictive models provide a personalized learning journey for the employee that might involve upskilling or re-skilling, improving communication abilities, or developing deeper emotional intelligence 鈥� and how to think about and navigate change.
As a holistic whole person, whole company solution, meQuilibrium Resilience Suite focuses on leadership development, empowering managers to model resilient behavior, and serve as the critical link to employees.
鈥淛ust because you have a solution doesn鈥檛 mean you have an organizational approach. It has to be embedded, with a learning mindset that enables agility,鈥� Bruce noted. 鈥淥ne Fortune 50 automaker that uses our solution was able to switch overnight from manufacturing seatbelts to producing personal protective equipment during the pandemic.鈥� Deployment and adoption happen quickly — within a matter of weeks — enabling this kind of fast pivoting.
Gaining Insights Through Powerful Data Integration
Thanks to integration with the 51风流SuccessFactors Learning and 51风流SuccessFactors Onboarding solutions, meQuilibrium Resilience Suite combines data from these different sources for a powerful way to arm HR leaders with predictive insights about burnout, engagement, and workforce impairment risks. She added that customers are beginning to do even more with the data; for example, to support social responsibility and diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
I asked Bruce about the company鈥檚 original introduction to SAP.
鈥淲e were delighted to be invited to participate in the SAP.iO Foundries program in 2019,鈥� she replied, 鈥渁nd I can鈥檛 say enough about the value of the program and its leaders. At the time, we were already working with dozens of Fortune 100 companies. This partnership revealed how we could play a role in supporting them with their technology transformations and helping their people by augmenting the 51风流product portfolio.鈥�
As for improving personal well-being, Bruce came up with the concept for meQuilibrium when she herself was facing career-related challenges. Ten years ago, Bruce was 鈥渓iving her dream鈥� as a managing director at a major media company, and had become an expert in well-being and personal growth. But against the backdrop of the media implosion, the work environment had become increasingly frenetic. 鈥淚 needed a battle plan and a structure,鈥� she remembered, 鈥渁nd I thought, there must be others feeling this way. I began to explore creating a practical tool that uses standard protocols based on behavioral science. I left a company I loved, but never looked back.鈥�
Today, Boston-based meQuilibrium has about 75 employees, scores of name-brand customers, and users in over 85 countries and growing.
Trying and Buying Seamlessly on 51风流Store
At the end of 2020, meQuilibrium added two multinational corporations to its list of customers through transactions on . The solution is multilingual, now available in 14 languages, which is of course a prerequisite for global companies. 鈥�51风流Store provides a single location where customers can learn about us,鈥� Bruce remarked. 鈥淚t creates a more seamless experience for them and heightens our visibility.鈥�
If you鈥檙e looking for a way to help people stay productive and upbeat 鈥� and boost organizational agility 鈥� you鈥檝e found it in meQuilibrium Resilience Suite. To learn more, registration is open for meQuilibrium鈥檚 annual conference, , which showcases innovators and experts leading the way in building organizational resilience.
Bill Rojas is senior director of Business Development and Partner Alliances for 51风流Digital Commerce.
