How to monitor, assess and develop work ability management

Your company’s work ability management is an ongoing process. That is why continuous development is important. Regularly monitor and assess how well you have done. This allows you to track your progress and identify your development needs.

Make continuous improvement a habit

When you monitor work ability management, you should use the continuous improvement approach PDCA (Plan, Do, Check, Act).

The continuous improvement of work ability management requires you to

  • identify the initial situation based on data, in order to monitor the targeted change
  • be sure that the people working in different work ability management roles take care of their assigned tasks
  • continuously collect feedback from different parties on the success and efficiency of the work ability management system
  • assess how far you have come in reaching your targets and goals
  • ensure that you have carried out the appropriate measures supporting and restoring work ability and assessed their results and impact

Take the following into account when assessing work ability management

Take into account work ability management as a whole and adapt the assessment to the size, characteristics, model and maturity of work ability management at your company.

Assess together

1. Interaction with the management

  • Do you report on work ability management to the management as agreed? Does the management provide policies and feedback on work ability management?

2. Realisation of targets

  • Have the work ability key figures developed the way you planned in the assessment of the initial situation? Also ask for feedback on work ability management both in-house and from your work ability management partners, such as occupational health services.

3. Approaches and responsibilities

  • Are the work ability management roles and approaches clear and appropriate? Are communications sufficient and clear?

4. Stages of the employment relationship’s life cycle

  • Do you take the work ability management perspective into consideration at different stages of the employment relationship? Are the related operating models up to date?

How to succeed in assessing work ability management

The assessment is a systematic and documented account of whether the work corresponds with the plans and what the work has achieved.

  1. Carry out the assessment together with both internal and external partners. This way you can form a shared view of the assessment’s purpose, method, period under review and participants.

  2. Develop a work ability management assessment method that suits your company. Many companies use good quality and occupational safety management audits. You can use these as a model for work ability management assessments.

  3. Carry out the assessment at appropriate intervals. Create a summary. The summary will help you communicate with the management.

  4. Identify development needs – both new ones and old ones. Take into consideration the changing operating environment and situations, and deviations and problems in work ability management. Based on the assessment, make suggestions for measures to resolve deviations, problems and development needs.