We've spoken in previous newsletters about the behaviours required of managers to promote wellbeing and manage stress using the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Management Standards approach. But what about actually conducting a stress risk assessment, or 'wellbeing assessment'? I mention that second term, without the 'stress' word in the title, as this may be a more helpful way of undertaking the process, if you're keen to focus on the positives, or your organisation doesn't like the word 'stress', or you want to check on employee wellbeing before stress becomes an issue, or perhaps its more acceptable for your staff member if you call it a 'wellbeing' rather than 'stress' assessment. Whichever, the assessment is a straightforward conversation you have with your staff member, where you're simply checking how they're doing, and if there are any areas of concern that need addressing. As you know, the HSE identified six areas - hazards - that can lead to stress in the workplace: the DEMANDS that are placed on us; the CONTROL we have over what we do; how SUPPORTive the organisation is; the RELATIONSHIPS in/culture of the office; how clear staff are about their ROLE in the office/organisation and how well CHANGE is managed. This gives us the six criteria we need to pay attention to if we are to provide and encourage a healthy environment where wellbeing is encouraged and promoted, stress is less likely to become a problem, and staff feel able to perform to the best of their ability. Furthermore, we know that if the organisation follows this best-practice approach, and has assessed and controlled the risks (the hazards), we have also fulfilled our legal obligations. You can use the HSE 35-question questionnaire as a basis for discussion (download a copy here). If you'd like an example of an individual risk assessment form, email me, and I'll send you a copy.