Our Learning & Organizational Excellence (LOE) Consultants have been having lots of client conversations that sound something like this:

Client HR/ Well-Being Leader: “We’re forming a team of Mental Health (or Well-Being) Champions to provide peer support. Do you have any training would you recommend for this group?”

ComPsych LOE Consultant: “Absolutely! We have a number of training programs that could be helpful. Can you tell me a little more about the role you envision these Champions playing?”

Client HR/ Well-Being Leader: “Ugh. Good question! I’ll send you a draft of our role description, but it’s a MAJOR work in progress. We’ve been working on it for 6 months and have gone through many revisions. I’m not sure we’ll ever get it done. Do your other clients have this problem?

ComPsych LOE Consultant: “They sure do! Let me share some of what we’ve been seeing.”

Sometimes conversations like this happen later in the process. The client has already established a team of Mental Health or Well-Being Champions, it’s not working out as well as they had hoped, and they’re looking for training that will improve the situation. We have recently spoken about this topic at the IBI and The Conference Board’s Annual Health and Productivity forum and have heard similar conversations with our clients. In most cases, the challenges usually fit into four categories:

1. Low utilization (or sometimes, none at all). Despite communications and investments to “spread the word” about the advocates throughout the company, employees are often still either unaware that the advocates exist, or unsure about when or how to call upon those advocates for support.
   
2. Confusion vs other resources. Related to the challenge above, employees may be unclear about when to reach out to an internal advocate vs other mental health and well-being benefits the company offers like EAP counseling or well-being coaching. Even the best efforts to create clear guidelines about who to call in what circumstances turn out to be murkier than they initially seem.
   
3. Compliance concerns from internal stakeholders. Legal departments often express concern about liability should an employee experiences negative (or even tragic) consequences after receiving guidance from an internal Mental Health or Well-Being Champion. There may also be recordkeeping concerns related to government regulations like HIPAA, if there’s a perception that employees are guided to discuss personal health information with internal Champions.
   
4. Career/ compensation questions. Among the Champions themselves, some may wonder how they will be rewarded for taking on extra responsibility. Will there be extra pay? Will it position them well for advancement? Or, conversely, might it hold them back because potential hiring managers don’t consider this extra time and effort as value-adding work.

Of course, none of this means that having internal Mental Health or Well-Being Champions is a bad idea. In fact, many of our clients find that these programs do a great job helping to combat stigma and encourage more open workplace dialogue about formerly taboo subjects. Even on that anti-stigma front though, there is risk. Will the creation of a special group of Champions make some employees feel that mental health is not OK to talk about in everyday conversations at work? Some may think, “Can’t I just tell my boss or my coworker what’s happening in my life, or is mental health now so ‘serious’ that the company wants me to go to a special ‘Champion’ instead?” In a company’s well-meaning effort to remove the taboo from these conversations, is it possible that they in fact deepen it?

Where does this leave organizations that are considering the creation of a Mental Health or Well-Being Champion program, or trying to decide what to do with their existing programs?

Here’s the three factors you need to consider

• Must it be a “role” at all? Perhaps you don’t need that “role description” you’ve been trying to write for the last 6 months. Maybe mental health or well-being Champions are anyone who wants to be more confident about the way they support themselves and others through life. The company might offer special skill-building and community-building opportunities for such employees, but decide not to create or communicate any specific set of responsibilities or expectations.

• How do virtual vs in-person work environments impact these decisions? For in person environments, there may be more opportunities for Champions to play more specific roles, such as disseminating information about mental health and well-being benefits. This may be especially true in work environments where employees don’t typically use a computer or email system for communication.

• Who are your internal stakeholders? Before launching a Mental Health or Well-Being Champion program, anticipate the concerns and questions that Legal, HR, or business leaders throughout the company may have, and address those concerns proactively. Who are the influential supporters you’re going to need when those concerns arise? Try to get those supporters on board with the plan early. 

There may not be a one-size-fits-all blueprint to the development of a Mental Health or Well-Being Champion program, but by considering these important questions in advance, companies can give themselves the best chance for success.