IWH Updates - Fall 2019

Published: November 4, 2019

Korn Ferry recognizes IWH for workforce engagement and enablement

The Institute for Work & Health (IWH) has been honoured with a 2019 Korn Ferry Engaged Performance Award. IWH is one of 71 organizations from around the world to receive this third annual award from the global organizational consulting firm. Korn Ferry announced the award winners on October 29, 2019.

The award program recognizes employers with superior levels of performance in two key categories—engagement and enablement—as measured by their recent employee surveys administered by Korn Ferry. IWH was named a winner in both categories. Korn Ferry research shows employee engagement is a consistent leading indicator of organizational health and sustainable performance.

Winning organizations are chosen based on employee survey responses to two sets of statements. One set measures engagement: I feel proud to work for the company and I would recommend the company as a good place to work. The other set measures enablement: My job makes good use of my skills and abilities and Conditions in my job allow me to be as productive as I can be.

The percentage of an organization’s employees who say they strongly agree or agree (on a five-point scale) with these statements is used to create an overall score. This score is then compared to Korn Ferry’s benchmarks to determine if the organization is an award winner. Korn Ferry’s employee engagement database holds opinion survey data from seven million respondents in more than 60 countries.

Congratulations to our 2019 winners, all of whom clearly understand the tremendous business benefits that an engaged and enabled workforce can deliver, said Korn Ferry Senior Principal Mark Royal in a statement. “These awards publicly recognize the great strides organizations have made in building work environments in which people thrive and want to stay.”

We are honoured to win this award because it recognizes companies that have built work environments in which people can succeed, says IWH President Dr. Cam Mustard. And when our people succeed, they are fulfilling our mission of promoting, protecting and improving the safety and health of working people through actionable research. That’s what we’re most proud of.

For the full list of winners, go to: http://engage.kornferry.com/engaged-performance-awards/winners-copy-1054BS-4448K6.html

IWH’s Dr. Monique Gignac recognized for arthritis-related research service work

Institute for Work & Health (IWH) Senior Scientist and Scientific Co-Director Dr. Monique Gignac was named one of this year’s recipients of a merit award from the American College of Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Professions (ARP). At ARP’s 2019 annual conference, held November 8-13 in Atlanta, Ga., Gignac was awarded the ARP Addie Thomas Service Award. The award, named for ARP’s first president, recognizes a member who has been an active volunteer involved with local, regional, national and/or international arthritis-related activities.

The association cited Gignac, previously the co-scientific director of the Canadian Arthritis Network (2008-2014), for her service as chair of the Advisory Board of the Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (from 2011-2016, and from 2017 to the present), and her membership on the Arthritis Society’s Scientific Advisory Committee since 2011.

In response to the award, Gignac said it’s important to her to contribute to a growing movement that has gone beyond studying arthritis and its physical impact to advocating for greater support to help people manage its psychological and social impact, as well as manage the life roles that matter to them—including work.

The most rewarding part of my research career has been opportunities to work with others who share the common goal of wanting to make a difference in the lives of people with arthritis through research and training activities, she said. For more information, go to: https://www.rheumatology.org/Portals/0/Files/ARP-Master-and-Merit-Award-Winners.pdf

IWH makes changes to executive team

With her promotion from manager to director of communications, Cindy Moser has joined the Institute’s executive team. Moser came to the Institute in 2008, after many years as editor of publications specializing in occupational health and safety, disability management, human resources and other workplace issues. Along with Moser’s promotion, announced in October, Dr. Monique Gignac and Dr. Peter Smith, formerly associate scientific directors, were named scientific co-directors. To see their bios, go to: www.iwh.on.ca/executive-team

New website launched on episodic conditions

IWH launched a new website to keep stakeholders up to date on the progress of a five-year partnership project on accommodating episodic disabilities. The project, named Accommodating and Communicating about Episodic Disabilities (ACED), aims to develop evidence-based workplace tools and resources to help employers and workers talk about support needs, while safeguarding worker privacy and ensuring workplace productivity. For more about the project, go to: https://aced.iwh.on.ca