Building a Culture of Health Across Borders — From Lisbon to London, Dublin, and Zurich

What if I told you that a 50-point improvement in your company's Culture of Health could reduce medical costs by 1% and drive measurable gains in retention?

Across Europe and the United States, organisations are re-evaluating how health, wellbeing, and sustainability intersect. The challenge isn't awareness or intent — it's turning good intentions into measurable, sustained culture change.

In my work with HealthNEXT, and through networks such as the American Club of Lisbon, the British-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (BPCC), and the Ireland-Portugal Business Network (IPBN), one theme recurs: companies want to do the right thing, but need a roadmap that links health to performance.

📊 THE BUSINESS CASE FOR A CULTURE OF HEALTH

Many organisations still treat wellbeing as a side project. Yet research consistently shows that when health, safety, and wellbeing are integrated into business strategy — with leadership accountability and measurable outcomes — the returns are tangible.

HealthNEXT's data from U.S. employer programmes demonstrates that a 50-point improvement in a company's Culture of Health score correlates with a 1% reduction in medical-cost trend and measurable gains in absenteeism and retention.

In Portugal alone, stress-related absence costs exceed €5 billion annually (Eurofound), while more than 40% of employees receive no formal information about occupational risks.

Embedding wellbeing into business performance is no longer optional — it is both an ESG imperative and a financial opportunity.

🌍 HOW INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS ARE SHAPING THE AGENDA

Through collaborations with Brokerslink and MDS, global broker networks are connecting health, performance, and sustainability across borders. Reinsurers such as Swiss Re are quantifying the link between workforce health, resilience, and insured risk, recognising that prevention reduces both claims and volatility.

In Ireland, Arachas Employee Benefits offers wellness and medical-benefit programmes to employers, reflecting the growing strategic importance of workforce wellbeing.

In the UK, Towergate Health & Protection has published research showing that wellbeing support — spanning mental, physical, social, and financial health — is increasingly being managed by employers as a strategic issue. Towergate's 2025 research found that 57% of UK employers now view mental health as the most significant workforce challenge under hybrid-working arrangements.

Together, these examples illustrate a broader trend: employee health, safety, and wellbeing are now discussed alongside finance, climate, and governance in organisations' ESG and risk-management agendas.

📋 ESG, CSRD, AND THE NEW DEFINITION OF RESPONSIBILITY

European regulation is accelerating this shift. Under the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and ESRS S1–S4 standards, employers must now report not only environmental and governance data but also social indicators — including workforce health, safety, diversity, and inclusion.

In the United States, the SEC's enhanced climate and social disclosure rules and frameworks such as ISSB S1/S2 are moving in the same direction, creating a trans-Atlantic alignment where "double materiality" — financial and non-financial impact — becomes standard.

For business leaders, occupational and population health are no longer compliance boxes to tick; they are measurable levers for value, reputation, and investor confidence.

🚀 WHAT COMES NEXT

At HealthNEXT, organisations can measure, mature, and monetise their Culture of Health, linking wellbeing to performance, ESG, and resilience. Our approach blends clinical insight with data intelligence, supporting companies through the same change curve I've observed repeatedly: from intention → to integration → to impact

A next step worth pursuing is to bring this dialogue more visibly into local and international business forums — from chambers of commerce to board discussions — where health is recognised as a true driver of growth and resilience.

Creating a shared platform between business leaders, insurers, and occupational health experts could be transformative for Europe's evolving ESG agenda.

As we look toward 2026, when ESG reporting will become a global baseline, the opportunity is clear: to position workforce health not as a cost centre, but as a competitive advantage.