Building capacity in the healthcare sector: A strengths-based approach for increasing employees' well-being and organisational resilience

Abstract

This study uses Appreciative Inquiry (AI) as a lens for informing the process for building on employees' existing wellbeing within one Australian organisation, using the ‘discovery, dreaming, designing, and achieving destiny’ process. Using POSH as a theoretical framework, we worked with a large Not-For-Profit healthcare organisation as part of the ‘discovery’ phase to identify elements of what was positive, flourishing, and life-giving in the practices of their employees. During the ‘dreaming’ process, employees' wellbeing was identified as a strength. During the ‘designing’ phase, a training program was co-designed to build on employees' existing levels of wellbeing. This paper reports outcomes as part of the ‘achieving destiny component’ of the AI process. In particular, the outcomes show that employees' knowledge of, and ability to use positive emotions increased, which is a positive first step for increasing employees' wellbeing and organisational resilience.

Comparing the impact of authentic leadership on Italian and UK police officers' discretionary power, well-being and commitment

“…The implication for policing is that the quality of the supervisor-police officer relationship matters in determining their outcomes. Those managing police officers must be upskilled in authentic leadership behaviours so as to support and enhance their well-being and promoted greater commitment to their organization Hence training managers in using authentic leadership behaviours will promote better relationships (Brunetto et al, 2019).…”

Resilience in Times of Global Pandemic: Steering Recovery and Thriving Trajectories

“…In either instance, the combination of personal characteristics and the social and organisational contexts in which individuals are embedded yield distinctive appraisals of a disaster, from evaluations of risk and threat level, to its interpretation as an obstacle to wellbeing or as an opportunity to grow. In essence, the initial appraisal of a stressor—overwhelming threat, manageable challenge, or opportunity—offers a strong indication of individual resilience and provides a starting point for estimating resilience trajectories following exposure to an acute stressor (Brunetto, Dick, Xerri, & Cully, 2019; Liu, Ein, et al, 2019). The next segments describe the suite of personal factors that contribute to individual resilience, stress appraisals following exposure to adversity, and the organisational factors that also influence these appraisals and shape resilient responses.…”

“…The extant research and the interview accounts presented here suggest that balanced strategic and supportive communications facilitate crisis sensemaking and contribute to resilience development through enhanced efficacy beliefs around crisis management, increased sense of control, information‐seeking behaviours, and proactive role behaviours (Degbey & Einola, 2019; Kim, 2020; Maitlis & Sonenshein, 2010). As a starting point, organisations can prompt employee awareness of their unique capabilities, strengths, and capacity to address situational demands, which raises levels of wellbeing and resilience following a disaster to facilitate recovery and thriving trajectories (Brunetto et al, 2019).…”

Positive organisational scholarship in healthcare

“…Taking POSH beyond the public health sector, Brunetto, Dick, Xerri, and Cully (2019) used it to examine – both qualitatively and quantitatively – how an organisational development program can build positive organisational behaviour within a not-for-profit organisation. Specifically, they focused on psychological capital (or PsyCap), which encompasses: hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience.…”

“…Following this world-first special issue on POSH, the articles therein helpfully signpost opportunities to advance it. Specifically, there is now a need for research to clarify when, how and why ‘awareness and control of emotions [can] provide… the initial building blocks for building PsyCap’ (Brunetto et al, 2019), particularly via longitudinal research. Given the challenge of sustaining participant involvement over long periods – especially healthcare personnel – participatory methodologies and research methods might be helpful (Palmer et al, 2019; Stewart et al, 2019).…”