More companies are realising that employees are suffering a heavy toll simply commuting to work, with many in major European cities spending 2-3 hours per day travelling on overcrowded trains, trams and buses. Then there’s the jammed roads. Once at work, it could be nice if there are fitness suites available, plus healthy/allergy free options on the menu for those who want to maintain a particular diet. Insurance Edge isn’t sure about any company promoting what it defines as `sustainable’ living to their staff – that should be every citizne’s free choice – but otherwise there’s some interesting ideas here;
Generali launches the Energy Hub in the Generali Tower in the CityLife district of Milan, an innovative space dedicated to stimulating the physical and mental energy of all employees and promoting a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.
The Energy Hub was designed in line with Ministry of Health guidelines as part of a preventive health approach. Within the hub, a team of medical professionals has developed a series of exercises and programmes aimed at stimulating the energy of the people involved. Generali Group is working with Med-Ex, a company specialising in the promotion of prevention programmes through healthy lifestyles, which for 25 years has been providing medical care and sports training for Ferrari racing team drivers.
What’s more, the development of the Energy Hub leverages the distinctive skills of the innovative platform of Welion, the integrated welfare company which, within Country Italia and the Generali Group, offers companies health and well-being paths for employees and cutting-edge solutions in the field of corporate welfare.
The launch of the Energy Hub is the latest stage in a true welfare journey for Generali Group employees. Starting from the innovative and collaborative spaces that characterise the Hadid-designed tower, including a cafeteria centred on the concept of wellness and a healthy balanced diet, the following have been launched: a smart working project which gives additional flexibility in work-life balance management and an Energy Check-Up programme (a series of medical examinations aimed at assessing the person’s general state of health and cardiovascular risk), for an improved lifestyle and personal and professional performance. (Big HR questions here; are these check-ups mandatory or optional – and who gets to store the personal data? What happens to the health check data if someone leaves the company? – Ed)
The Energy Hub also enhances the Company’s role as Lifetime Partner to its customers and employees, in line with the Generali 2021 three-year strategy.
Maurizia Cecchet, Human Capital Director, Generali Group Investments Asset & Wealth Management, commented, “We believe it is important to give our colleagues the best possible conditions to feel good at work and to find the right motivation and energy to be able to focus on the ambitious goals we set ourselves”. She added, “The well-being of employees is measured not only through the stimulation of physical and mental energies, but also through prevention and knowledge of what it means to lead a healthy life. And so, we’ve planned to implement workshops aimed at addressing issues such as diet, sleep, the ageing population, etc.”
The free courses offered to employees include practical activities, as well as physical and mental exercises such as yoga and pilates. Then, there are more innovative courses that promote the company’s Diversity & Inclusion policies, including self- defence courses, (If everyone is happily embracing diversity then why would you need to learn Kung-Fu? – Ed) courses for new mothers returning to work and rehabilitation courses aimed at specific disabilities.
A Formula 1 simulator has also been installed within the Energy Hub, which recreates the experience of a professional driver on the track, stimulating awareness, motivation and decision-making in challenging contexts.
Insurance Edge comment;
No mention of encouraging cycling to work; shower rooms, kit storage, bike security etc. No clear message on every employee having the right to work flexi-hours, or a set number of home working days per month, so avoiding the grinding Milan commute. Why is there a company workshop on the ageing population – is that somehow seen as a problem in society and the workplace?
Looking after your employees starts by listening to them, not offering top-down solutions which tick all the right virtue-signalling boxes. The sooner the insurance sector grasps that fundamental aspect of human nature, the better.
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