How to implement workplace wellbeing programmes with Zevo Health CEO Richard Murphy

Speaker 1

Hello, I’m Aisling and welcome to Zevo Talks, a new podcast where I get to chat to risk takers, thought leaders and great people making change. On today’s episode, we’re diving into the world of wellness.

Speaker 1

In the last few years, we’ve seen a rise in conversations surrounding mental health, wellness, self-care and resilience. We’re always trying to better ourselves by downloading apps to track our movements and keep food dollies.

Speaker 1

This has led to a boom in the wellness industry and seeing more employers taking an interest in their employees’ well-being. We are joined today by Richard Murphy, CEO and founder of Zevo Health. Zevo Health are leading the way in workplace wellness.

Speaker 1

They offer a range of wellness programs and technology to help your employees thrive. Thanks so much for joining us today, Richard. Thanks, Aisling. So to start, can you first ask a bit about Zevo Health?

Speaker 2

Yeah, no problem. So Zivo Health is an employee well-being organization. So what that means is we provide a lot of physical and mental health approaches and techniques for a large, but small and large organizations throughout Ireland and further afield.

Speaker 2

We have a range of health coaches on board with us on a full time capacity. So they’re from psychotherapy, from psychology to nutrition and exercise backgrounds. Everything that we do is very tailor made for the organization itself and for the client.

Speaker 2

And we come from two angles, really is a lot of the consultancy side of things, but also we have two technology products. One is a health kind of diagnostic tool to give employers a snapshot of where their company’s health is at.

Speaker 2

And other side of it is our Zivo Health application, which has three core principles. We look at exercise, we look at nutrition and we look at mental well-being, given a very, very customized program to each individual and each member on our client list as well.

Speaker 1

Great, and so you mentioned well-being and wellness, so to someone who has no idea what that is, what is it to you?

Speaker 2

Yeah, well, being I suppose there’s there’s different opinions out there to myself. What I think I think wellness is the state of being in good health on a consistent basis. So constantly looking at looking at ways to look after your mental and physical health, looking at different as if it’s a part of your everyday routine, you put it as a priority, which I feel everyone should do, whether it is going for going to the gym,

Speaker 2

doing some exercise, going for a walk, getting out in fresh air, looking after and make sure self-care is very important and using that approach as well. And also just being mindful of your mental wellbeing and what state are you in and do you need to, even if you’re in work, do you need to go outside for a walk?

Speaker 2

Do you need to talk to friends? Do you need to be part of a community or a peer support kind of group as well? So it’s just constantly kind of being aware of where you are in the physical and mental health space, both for an individual and people around you as well, and making sure you can openly talk about your own state and also I suppose has been a constant state of good health.

Speaker 1

And how do you personally practice wellness?

Speaker 2

Personally, I suppose a number of ways I would, I like exercise. So I always had, I always grew up doing exercise. So whether it’s Gaelic football, whether it’s Harlan, whether it’s running, whether it’s the gym, swimming or boxing, I love doing that.

Speaker 2

And, and I always kind of, after three or four days of, of not exercising, I always feel myself getting a little bit anxious to get out there and do something. The other part of it, in terms of looking after mental wellbeing and be more aware, I would practice mindfulness initially.

Speaker 2

Um, I find it hard to get into because I don’t have patients sometimes. So I have to learn that, but I did a mindfulness based stress reduction course last year over eight weeks and, and kind of would adapt the principles that I’ve, I’ve used or learned in that program on, on a daily and weekly basis as well.

Speaker 2

Yeah. I think, I think it’s very important from, from that end.

Speaker 1

And why do you think it’s important for a company to practise wellness or for them to have a responsibility for their employees to provide them with kind of wellness?

Speaker 2

Initiatives. Yeah, good question, Aisling. I think the most limiting factor in a workplace is, in order for a workplace to grow, is people’s energy. If you’re going into a workplace and people aren’t maybe laughing or people are just maybe constantly complaining or giving out or just don’t have energy to come into the workplace, I think the employers have responsibility to ensure employees come in and they’re excited to come in to leave work satisfied.

Speaker 2

To do that, there’s certain practices I think the employers should take on board and one of them is wellness, to create as a kind of a backbone behind the company ethos and and align it with values. And I think it’s very important whether that’s the kind of community within a workplace that you can kind of devise from an employer’s perspective, whether it’s the culture that you bring in the right people,

Speaker 2

that’s the right cultural fit as well and not take work too seriously because at the end of the day it’s only work. And I’m saying that as a CEO and in honor of a company but it shouldn’t be the most important thing in your life either.

Speaker 2

So you have to have a bit of fun, a bit of crack and making sure everyone enjoys themselves and practicing wellness in your company is very important, whether it’s say some sort of community aspects, looking at lunches every week or just to getting together and not taking things a little bit too seriously because I do find some companies and you behave a lot differently outside the company than you would do in a workplace but you have to bring your whole self to work and making sure that you do you and how you behave outside work should kind of mirror that within work as well and it’s very important for people to be themselves.

Speaker 1

And what led to Zevo Health, so what inspired you to start it?

Speaker 2

What inspired me? I came from a totally different background. I came from the construction industry background, so as a quantity surveyor and project manager, more or less working in Melbourne for five years in that role.

Speaker 2

And what I found is that because you do spend a good bit of time at work, 34% of your life, you have to enjoy it in a part. So I think I wasn’t enjoying where I was in my role in the industry and I wanted to do something a little bit different.

Speaker 2

So I brought in various programs within the construction industry and within my organization in Melbourne and I really enjoyed it because you could see people laugh on there, you could see people being more engaged or getting a little bit healthier or find out little simple steps to get them across the line in their physical and mental well-being.

Speaker 2

So I kind of derived a passion for that and came back and what a re-educated and exercise and nutrition through Melbourne Uni but also here in Dublin and just looked at the market and looked at the corporate well-being market and saw where it’s going.

Speaker 2

The industry and I suppose Ireland as a whole was on the up in terms of employment and for employers to get more staff and attract them in. Wellness was one of the initiatives and initially we got one client and then just kind of moved very quickly from there.

Speaker 1

As a CEO you must be stuck to get some personal time, so what advice would you give if someone who is running their own business is trying to look after their own wellbeing?

Speaker 2

Yeah, I think well, the first three years of of starting Zeebo was probably the most difficult time I ever had in starting the business. And I think probably a lot of owners would be able to resonate with that as well.

Speaker 2

If if you go, if you go beyond three years, then you have made it, I think, in terms of a company, there’s always a there’s always a kind of a thought in the back of your head. Are we going to are we going to continue or do we pack it in or whatever?

Speaker 2

And you get constant knockbacks, I think. And that does affect your well-being without without your mental and physical health. I think for myself or for people around you, I think that the community aspect and the peer support is very important as a company owner because company owners and CEOs is a very lonely job in some aspects because you are the only one who really understand can understand the why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Speaker 2

A lot of people will well, a lot of people will kind of turn their eyes up ahead and when you tell them what you’re doing or because you’re challenging the status quo and and you’re you’re not going from college to a job to a mortgage to a family, you’re going from college to a job to start your own business to being broke.

Speaker 2

So that kind of in a way can affect. Yeah, as I said, your well-being, I think things like I think the community and the peer support is very important, getting to know different entrepreneurs or people that that’s in a business to learn from their struggles and how they got past certain points throughout their kind of journey.

Speaker 2

I think for myself, even from a day to day, I do like exercise and I love walking. I love the gym. I love getting out in fresh air. So so things like that. And and I think business people come up with the best ideas when they’re not sitting in front of a laptop.

Speaker 2

So reminding yourself that if you’re staring in the screen and nothing’s happening, just get up and go for a walk and don’t feel feel guilty about it. You know, it’s part of your role to come up with division and ideas.

Speaker 1

And since you kind of first started within the wellness industry, what trends have you seen emerge?

Speaker 2

What trends I think the mental health aspect I think employers are definitely coming more aware of Things need to be done in that and that area I think There’s different mindsets coming into the workforce now as as they were previously for instance the younger generation They’re so used to social media Instagram Facebook So on and so forth and to get instant gratification from there So they’re going to think that when they get into a workplace They they’re always going to get a pat on their back.

Speaker 2

They’re always going to similar to mindset of looking at Instagram you get their likes you want to go into Work and get the same thing and an instant kind of gratification that doesn’t really happen In the work life as it does to a personal life.

Speaker 2

So there’s different mindsets coming into work and I think that can focus a lot and that You can look at the area of mental well-being with that Side of it because people are not as resilient as as I believe there were a number of years ago 15 or 20 years ago so the area of resilience and mental well-being is as has become a big focus of employers now is to make sure that Not only the employees are educated In that area of how to look after themselves,

Speaker 2

but also the managers how to correctly speak to individuals how to What’s your manner mannerisms within work how to look after an employee if they may be shown signs of Mental health illness are shown signs of their struggling as well So I think it goes two ways you’re looking after your employees But but definitely I think the manager education is a big thing at the moment I also find in certain companies certain sectors.

Speaker 2

They’re always looking at insights now and data for instance Well-being in a lot of companies five six years ago was a new thing as a tick-to-box exercise now Companies are starting to really realize that this is an effective a piece of work that we’re doing in the wellness So what’s the return of investment here?

Speaker 2

What’s what are we getting back? What’s the quantitative and quantitative feedback in so some companies we have done a lot of research in this space At the moment we’re publishing a paper in this area of resilience And we really want to show the return of investment not only from a monetary side of things, but look an employee engagement Looking at how the company is performing in terms of value is an area aligning with the values and lining it up with with wellness also,

Speaker 2

I think there’s a big kind of trend emerging in terms of a giant in your CSR opportunities with the area of wellness as Well, and we’ve already seen that in a few clients Linking that in So there’s a few few trends I would look at the mental health and resilience pieces is huge at the moment Especially among the younger generation and how to educate them and educate their managers The technology is always going to be there as well.

Speaker 2

How do you how would you look after a company who has? 2,000 employees with 200 locations around Ireland How do you make sure they’re looked after so technology comes into there and also the insights in the return of investment?

Speaker 2

Reporting every month. So I think them things are starting to emerge a lot

Speaker 1

And the startup community is obviously growing within Ireland, so if there’s someone sitting here right now and you were to give them advice for starting their own business, what would it be?

Speaker 2

What I did, and I think it’s the best thing to do, is look for thought leaders or people in the space that you’re trying to get into and message them, email them, ring them whatever you want to do for a coffee or for just to just to pick their brains a bit.

Speaker 2

I suppose when I started, I would sit down with 30, 40 people within six months. And some of the people, I didn’t know why I was going to see him. I just wanted to tell him an idea. I think a lot of startups as well on that, they don’t tell what idea they have.

Speaker 2

And if you don’t say, like I’ve came across work, some startups only recently as well, and I’m not going to tell you that idea, but if you don’t tell a person your idea about your startup, then how are you going to get feedback?

Speaker 2

So I think be very open. And I believe if people are afraid of their competitors coming in or potential competitors coming in, taking their idea, then you have to make sure that your passionate enough to make sure you win out in that end of it.

Speaker 2

And if you are, if you work hard enough, there’s no secret to starting up and and making a successful business. It’s pure hard work. It’s long hours. And yeah, I would I would firstly tell people to sit down with as many people in the industry, business people.

Speaker 2

And what I find a very good thing about Ireland is that big companies like to help out small companies as well. And they like to look after them. And if you’re going to a company and you don’t hide the fact that you’re only in the market a few years and you don’t hide the fact you’re not as established as some of your competitors, they actually like that kind of open, honest, humble approach.

Speaker 2

And they’re there to help you along, to give you advice on your startup, because they might see themselves in your position that they did 20 years ago. And look, you’re trying to make a good go of it.

Speaker 2

And I do see even that example in in in for myself. I know one company that we’re working for it for last two years. And I went in and presented to him. And I didn’t say that I didn’t say that we’re a well established company.

Speaker 2

I said, look, we’re here to learn. We’re here to grow with you. And thankfully, they’re still with us. And they gave us that to show us that loyalty. And we showed them back to him that, look, we can we’re we’re not perfect and we’re never going to be perfect, but we’re here to learn.

Speaker 2

And and we grew with him. And it was a journey with that client. And thankfully, we’re still with him and they’re happy and we’re happy.

Speaker 1

Have you had a moment where you thought, what I’m doing is right, this is a success, I’ve made the right decision, and throughout, kind of see for help?

Speaker 2

In terms of right decision, yes, I think so. I wasn’t good at construction in the industry as a QS. I just didn’t have a passion for it, I didn’t have to drive. When, did you know about Zevo Health as a success?

Speaker 2

I’m not too sure, I should take a sit back a bit more and just think about it. But then you have to define success, what is success really? I think Bob Dylan said before that success was getting up a bit out of bed and getting into bed at night and in between doing what you wanna do.

Speaker 2

So I definitely, in his terms, I think it is a success. I’m not sure, you have to define success really, it’s making sure that the team is happy and if they’re happy, hopefully clients are happy and if we’re constantly growing, I’d really look at, I don’t really set myself clear targets in terms of we wanna get to this revenue every year, I just wanna make sure that we’re on the journey and we’re enjoying the journey and we pivot when we need to pivot.

Speaker 2

And as long as people are coming in, they’re still enjoying Zevo and clients are enjoying this and we’re getting renewals, I suppose that can be defined a success in certain ways.

Speaker 1

Do you have any role models yourself?

Speaker 2

I do have role models. I think all my team knows who one of my role models is, Richard Branson, in Virgin, I think. I think he was fantastic. He was such a, well, he is a fantastic really, he’s such a, he doesn’t see things as a risk.

Speaker 2

He sees as an opportunity. He doesn’t go into disrupt an industry. He doesn’t, he doesn’t just make products. He disrupts industries. He doesn’t pick a certain product that he wants to build. He wants to pick an industry that he wants to tackle.

Speaker 2

And I think that’s inspiring. He comes across very kind of down to earth and very humble and just he wants to change the world for the better. And his priorities may not be revenue. His priorities, he just wants to make people healthier, happier with the best customer service going and have the best experience.

Speaker 2

And that’s pretty inspiring. Yeah, there’s other role models, I think. I think Steve Jobs was good from, I’m not sure from a people management perspective, but he was definitely good in terms of he knew what users wanted before they wanted it.

Speaker 2

So he had a clear eye for design and user experience. I think he was, he was very good. And back home, there’s, there’s always role models don’t need to be well-known people either. There can be people who are just day-to-day people who just sit down and say, how are you?

Speaker 2

And they mean it or sit down and just make people laugh or boost the morale. I definitely do have them type of role models as well.

Speaker 1

And if you could own any business apart from Zevo Health, what would it be and why?

Speaker 2

I like the, I know we’re in the corporate sphere kind of, and looking after workplace at the minute, I think another area that’s to be looked at is the younger adults area in the mental health sphere.

Speaker 2

I think that’s something that there’s definitely a need for. There’s big, what could I say, timeframes on when a younger adult can come go see and have mental health services and they can wait up to 12 weeks, even up to a couple of years for specialist treatment or whatever.

Speaker 2

I think something like that would be fantastic to have. The Virgin, Richard Branson’s version is quite good. I think I was on a Virgin Air a few weeks ago and it was mad, they got in, came in and it was all pop music playing in the background, which is a good customer experience.

Speaker 2

But also when we got out, it was a nine air, 10 air flight and flying into San Francisco. And when we got all the air attendants, we’re all dancing to the music and all, which is good fun as well. So it was a good experience from there.

Speaker 2

So any kind of business that has put a good focus on customer success, but also making sure that the employees are smiling every day and are happy and doing what they want to do as well is kind of what appealed to myself.

Speaker 1

And what is the biggest risk that you’ve taken?

Speaker 2

I don’t really see things as as risk in a way I’m not sure I really yeah but I’ll be under pressure kind of asking that I think maybe maybe coming home from Australia and kind of not knowing what I’m doing at when I was 28 um I always knew that at 28 I was going to change something and that was not go back into the industry but I then I didn’t I didn’t see it as a risk and I don’t really see it as a risk now because I know no kind of big mortgages uh no no kids to look after anything it was just myself so I’m not sure to be honest with you in terms of why I like to look at things as opportunities and not risk if you’re if you’re kind of if you’re trying to be look at all those things at at risk then you’re trying you’re kind of being over you can be overly cautious sometimes and if you’re overly cautious that become become boring I think in a way I think entrepreneurs are they can be different between entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs entrepreneurs the ones that take a risk and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t but if it doesn’t at least you learn a lot from it so um they have to see things in in terms of what’s an opportunity rather than just a risk

Speaker 1

And what are the next steps then for Izevo?

Speaker 2

There’s, we have 12 engineers working on their technology at the moment, uh, which is the most engineers we’ve had. So we’re launching our new, totally new designed application in November of this year for all our members.

Speaker 2

We’re constantly innovating. We’re, we’re looking at our, what different markets we can go into now. We’ve grew very, on the 19th of September, Zevo brand will only be two years old. So we’ve grown, uh, 27, 27 staff at the moment and we’ve grown quite quickly.

Speaker 2

So we’ll probably get up to 30 over the next few months. We’re focusing a lot on the brand and the image at the moment and, and kind of growing internationally as well, which is, which is fantastic. So we’ve been over to San Francisco a few weeks ago and, and with an opportunity there in Singapore and New York.

Speaker 2

So we’re kind of, yeah, we’re, we’re, we’re constantly growing and constantly finding the right people as well and, and trying to sit down with them and see, would be interested in joining. But I’ll look every day as a learning day within Zevo and I’m constantly learning and learning, making mistakes, which, which you have to do to learn from.

Speaker 2

So it’s just constantly growing, building out the brand, building out different features, different products. We’ve Zevo Connect and Zevo Health. We know what industries we’re going into next. It’s probably too early to say that at the moment, but it’s, I know what countries we’re going to as well.

Speaker 2

So 2020 will be a big year. So I’m looking forward to that.

Speaker 1

Great, and then say in the next five years, where would you like to see Zevo?

Speaker 2

I think with Zevo it’s all about I suppose the Zevo brand getting out there. I’m still focused on the health and wellness industry. It’s a huge market and there’s so many different routes you can go down.

Speaker 2

I just want to constantly build out the Zevo brand and I want people worldwide to know who Zevo is and what their stand for, what’s their values, and why they’re here as well. So we’ve done fantastically well in Ireland over the next last couple of years and that’s been validated by multinationals here and organizations bringing us to other countries to work there as well.

Speaker 2

So it’s just building out that Zevo brand work globally and always making sure that we’re getting people from A to B and staying at B in their mental and physical health.

Speaker 1

And if someone’s listening to this and wants to get in contact, what’s the best way for them to find Zevo?

Speaker 2

Yeah so Zevo you can reach out to me personally and just I’m Richard at ZevoHealth.com and I’m glad to have a chat and have a coffee or whatever and we can shoot the breeze from there and go from there.

Speaker 1

Great, well thanks so much for joining us today. Perfect. And best of luck in the future. It all sounds very exciting.

Speaker 2

Cheers. Thanks, Ashley.

Speaker 1

So we wish Cevo Health all the success and we can’t wait to see where they are in 2020. So it’s very clear to C&A that wellness is becoming an important benefit for all employers to offer their employees.

Speaker 1

We all need to focus on work-life balance resilience and we need to have open communication within the workplace which allows employers to listen to the needs of their team. As Richard said, business people come up with their best ideas away from the computer.

Speaker 1

So we’ll leave you on that note. Thanks so much for listening to Cevo Talks and tune in next time.