Strengthening our ties
From June 14 to 18, UM organized a week dedicated to quality of life at work. This year's event focused on the issue of connections: collective intelligence, management, and how to balance professional and personal life when you are a caregiver. These were the topics discussed during the round tables and improv conference organized by the quality of life at work department.
It was a week that the UM wanted to "focus on connections, " says President Philippe Augé. "Connections between managers and their teams, connections and a sense of belonging, connections within the work community to foster collective intelligence and a balance between work and family life." After sixteen months of a health crisis that has profoundly disrupted our lives, it seems essential to reflect on new ways of working together.
"Helping managers take action"
This special week kicked off with an online round table discussion on the theme of management and quality of life at work. Attended byAgnès Fichard-Carroll, UM Vice President for Social Responsibility, and Bénédicte Luporsi, Director of Human Resources, this discussion forum gave teaching, administrative, and technical staff the opportunity to exchange views on their management practices, with two video clips presented by trainer Sylvain Delarue and produced as part of the "Training and Support at all University of Montpellier Sites" (FASIL-UM) project supported by the Interministerial Fund for the Improvement of Working Conditions (FIACT).
The topics covered in these " management" capsules were discussed with staff at remote sites in Montpellier, and their content was tailored to their requests. Objectives: to enhance the managerial training of employees and encourage them to enroll in more in-depth training programs, as well as to raise awareness of the issue of psychosocial risk prevention in managerial practices. "These video clips are part of a range of initiatives led by the human resources department, which works to improve quality of life at work through the integration, support, and training of UM staff," explains Bénédicte Luporsi. "They raise questions that will help managers take action," adds the trainer.
Better balance between work and private life
A second online round table discussion addressed the balance between professional and private life through the prism of caregiving. In France, between 8 and 12 million people try to balance work and caring for a dependent elderly person. Faced with the difficulties regularly encountered, support mechanisms exist. Social service assistants from the UM and CNRS, supported by experts in their field, presented the support systems available to both caregivers and those receiving care. "The role of caregiver can sometimes be frightening, "says Frédéric Pizzo, a psychologist at the UM , "but it can also be an opportunity to be seized in the organization of work if open communication is established between the caregiver, their superiors, and their colleagues."
Collective intelligence
In a more original format, trainer Valérie Weidmann gave a presentation on the collaborative principles of collective intelligence, defined as the ability of " a group of individuals to find appropriate responses to the challenges they encounter in a complex context." This concept was then illustrated during an improvisational theater session that staged questions raised by the audience. The whole event was orchestrated by Montpellier actor Julien Masdoua and his theater company, Le Capitaine.
Replay tools
In addition to this week, the regional interministerial support platform for human resources management is offering webinars available for replay until July 30. "Happiness at work," "team cohesion," "teleworking," "workload" kit,and "how to make your meetings more effective."These videos offer various tools to help everyone improve their quality of life at work.