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INNOVATIVE
excellence ex xc x celle lllence e leading ideas in work-life programs
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About WorldatWork® WorldatWork (www.worldatwork.org) is a global human resources association focused on compensation, benefits, work-life and integrated total rewards to attract, motivate and retain a talented workforce. Founded in 1955, WorldatWork provides a network of more than 30,000 members and professionals in 75 countries with training, certification, research, conferences and community. It has offices in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Washington, D.C. Any laws, regulations or other legal requirements noted in this publication are, to the best of the publisher’s knowledge, accurate and current as of this book’s publishing date. WorldatWork is providing this information with the understanding that WorldatWork is not engaged, directly or by implication, in rendering legal, accounting or other related professional services. You are urged to consult with an attorney, accountant or other qualified professional concerning your own specific situation and any questions that you may have related to that. This book is published by WorldatWork Press. The interpretations, conclusions and recommendations in this book are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of WorldatWork. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in any form without express written permission from WorldatWork.
©2008 WorldatWork Press ISBN 978-1-57963-190-1 By: Christina Fuoco-Karasinski Editor: Angela Gabriel Project Lead: Wendy Anderson, WLCP Design: Melissa Neubauer Production Manager: Rebecca Williams Ficker
www.worldatwork.org
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Table of Contents About the Work-Life Innovative Excellence Awards
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Preface
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Accenture: Future Leave
11
ACI Specialty Benefits’ Get Fit Cell Phone Diet
17
Watchful Eye: Baptist Health’s Hurricane Emergency On-Site Child-Care Program
21
Canyon Ranch’s A-ha Staff Wellness Scholarship Program
27
Arrows with Soul: A Holistic Work-Life Integration Program
31
Domino’s Pizza’s Blueprint for Wellness
37
Ernst & Young Parents Network
41
FAA’s Work-Life Program
47
LB Foster Co.’s Employee Reward and Recognition Program
53
Mather LifeWays’ Work-Life Balance Initiative
59
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Assistance Center Work at Home Program
65
Rockford Memorial Hospital’s PTO Program
71
RSM McGladrey’s Coach-on-Call
79
USAA’s Personal Balance Tool
85
Working Family Resource Center’s Parent Education Program
91
Prior-Year Winners
95
2007 Winners
96
2006 Winners
110
2005 Winners
126
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About the Work-Life Innovative Excellence Awards There always has been lively debate within the relatively closeknit work-life community about where the epicenter of work-life expertise is located. Who is the ultimate authority in deciding what constitutes stellar practice in this highly specialized domain? Should it be the practitioners who do the heavy lifting when it comes to designing work-life strategy and implementing worklife initiatives? Or is it the for-profit magazines that have made a lucrative business out of sponsoring the most public competitions within the HR function — the “best of” lists? Surely this relatively small subset of “employers of choice” represents the sum total of work-life excellence? This book takes a novel, fresh approach. For the first time in print, we are introducing what we at Alliance for Work-Life Progress (AWLP) consider to be innovative excellence in work-life practices, programs and policies. As the highest honor offered by AWLP, the Work-Life Innovative Excellence Award was created at our association’s founding in 1996 to showcase initiatives that demonstrate a double win: excellence in enhancing and promoting work-life effectiveness while achieving organizational goals. A dozen years of recipients have included forward-thinking organizations (even one country’s government) that look beyond their own cultural, demographic and organizational boundaries to continue their work-life efforts. Until now, we have celebrated the two or three winners at our annual conference. But in recent years, we have received many more excellent applications than we can possibly recognize in
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Innovative Excellence
this way. This book provides case studies of the majority of the 2008 applicants, including the three organizations that received the Work-Life Innovative Excellence Award.
Selection Process In defining innovation for this award, we seek out initiatives that inspire and push beyond what is commonplace or has become established, regardless of whether those standards are considered “best practice.” We search for promising practices that will soon become the gold standard. Specific criteria include: • Unambiguous support for the organization’s mission, business and work-life strategy. • Responsiveness to employees’ or target population’s expressed work-life needs (collaboration and partnership between the employer and workforce; reciprocity that we call the “exchange relationship” in the WorldatWork total rewards model). • Quality enhancement: What standards of quality and effectiveness are established, and how are ongoing evaluation and continuous improvement achieved? • Innovation: What new ideas or processes have been implemented? What barriers and challenges have arisen and how have they been addressed? What partnerships or collaborations have been created? And, very importantly, how may this initiative be shared with the field? • Effectiveness: Statistics or other measurable indicators are solicited to assess how the initiative has actually contributed to the benefit or well-being of stakeholders. How has it contributed to specific organizational goals, including business outcomes? The annual identification of the most innovative practices is a long, rigorous process that centers on a long-standing Innovative Excellence Award Selection Committee. With oversight from the AWLP Strategy Board and organized by a team of WorldatWork staff, the Selection Committee is comprised of work-life practitioners, consultants and other thought leaders, all of whom are experts in the work-life practice. All of them volunteer their time, expertise, passion and sense of humor. I have been fortunate to participate
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in the selection process for the past five years, and I continue to be impressed with how well the blend of quantitative and qualitative elements operates in the hands of bona fide experts to produce the final result: the best of work-life innovative excellence. My personal gratitude to the members of the committee: Pat Bergman, Upsher-Smith Laboratories Inc. Andrina Buffong, MITRE Corp. Mary Everley, University of Minnesota Kathy Fahnhorst, Work-Life Consultant Rachel Hastings, WFC Resources Inc. Barbara Jaworski, Workplace Institute Kathy Kacher, Career/Life Alliance Services Inc. Kathy Oliver Kadilak, Strategic Work-Life Solutions Kristin McNally, Booz Allen Hamilton Robin Nodsle, Deloitte & Touche LLP Anne Nolan, WFC Resources Inc. Francine Port, Senior Thinking Sarah Rand, The College of St. Catherine Abby Shapiro, WFD Consulting Rose Stanley, WorldatWork Kathleen Tesi, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Also, thanks to WorldatWork staff members Jessica Burrus and Nicole Evans for their support. Enjoy the stories, become as inspired as we are each year anew, and take action to move work-life progress forward one more step, wherever you work. Our collective future depends on it. Kathleen M. Lingle, Executive Director Alliance for Work-Life Progress at WorldatWork
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Preface An innovative practice in one organization’s view may not be innovative to another. Perhaps that organization already has a similar practice in place, or the relevance just isn’t there. Perhaps, even, the “newness” that “innovation” implies has worn off. Over time, the concept might even become standard operating procedure in the company in which it was pioneered, and the notion that it once was “cutting edge” fades from memory. For the countless people who haven’t thought — or heard — of an idea, though, it is as fresh as the day it was conceived. Indeed, the idea might be received as extraordinarily creative and out of the box years after first being introduced elsewhere. It has been said that good ideas have no shelf life. That’s the core concept behind the development of this book. The concepts and case studies contained within these covers might not be thought of as “innovative” to the people and organizations that originally developed them, but for those who have yet to consider these ideas, they may literally bring revolutionary change. Of course, each of the concepts and stories here are unique in their own way. Some were born out of unusual circumstances, industries and companies that may bear little or no resemblance to your organization’s current situation. Other circumstances might sound eerily familiar to you, or align perfectly with the current path of your organization. Either way, it is not our expectation that every single idea in this book will be applicable to you, or even be innovative in your mind. Instead, we hope that you will use this book as a reference; pick it up from time to time and be inspired (as we have been) by the creative problem solving that is depicted in these stories.
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Despite a rich multi-decade history, some companies might still view the entire concept of work-life as new and innovative. But in an environment of rapid globalization and technological advancement, business needs are changing and work-life is becoming more of a main stream — and main street — notion every day. The reality is that the ability for organizations to compete (or perhaps even remain viable) depends heavily on effective work-life design for employees, human capital strategies, and the ability to innovate and adopt innovative ideas. So please use the ideas in this book to push the boundaries of innovation with your own management and workforce. Rose Stanley, CCP, CBP, WLCP, CEBS, Practice Leader WorldatWork
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