Lindex adopts a new digital platform for occupational healthcare: "We now have a much better picture of how our employees all across Finland are doing”

For Lindex, a fashion company employing hundreds of young adults, supporting occupational wellbeing and work ability has long been a priority. Supervisors have been trained in work ability management, and the company utilizes a model for early intervention.

Lindex has around 60 stores and 500 employees in Finland, but the team responsible for HR matters is small. 

The timing was right when Terveystalo offered Lindex the chance to test out its new digital platform for occupational health.

– My immediate thought was that this would genuinely be useful for us, Henrikson says.

Terveystalo Leo brings work ability-related information together in one place and provides a real-time overview of the organization's overall work ability status. Thanks to the platform's data collection and analytics, work ability risks can be identified as early as possible.

– Everything is now in one place, and I get the full picture at a glance. I'm up to date and can immediately tell if there are any abnormal absences. This helps us respond to work ability risks in a timely and equitable way, Henrikson explains.

– Leo also makes it easy to save and archive documents, such as notes from early intervention discussions or work ability negotiations.

HR can monitor the overall work ability situation for Lindex's Finnish workforce through the platform, but data can also be filtered by store or by region. With Terveystalo Leo, Henrikson can, for example, spot if a specific store’s absence figures are markedly higher than those of others.

Terveystalo Leo also lets users build their own work ability reports and set alert thresholds for employee absences.

If an employee's total sick leave days exceed the thresholds set by Lindex, an alert is triggered. The HR Manager then reviews the alert together with the relevant area manager.

– People get sick and life happens. A large share of absences can be chalked up to ordinary head colds. Nevertheless, the data from the digital platform prompts us to check in with our employees to make sure everything is okay. That way, no one falls through the cracks.

In most cases, it's the employee's immediate supervisor who leads the conversation. According to Henrikson, Lindex aims for a work culture where issues are discussed early, directly, and respectfully.

– If it turns out that an employee is going through a difficult time in life, our next question is: What can we do as your employer to support you? Should we, for example, rearrange your shifts for the time being?

When an employee notices that people care about them and are listening, they may begin to feel better about whatever situation is going on, Henrikson adds.

– Even a minor conversation can make a decisive difference for someone's work ability.

Terveystalo Leo has now been in use at Lindex for a few months. Henrikson says the experience has been positive.

– I've been surprised by how easy the platform is to use. It's logical, and the visual dashboard view is really good – you can see a summary of the organization's work ability at a glance. I've also received excellent support from Terveystalo while learning how to use the platform.

Henrikson notes that collaboration with Terveystalo’s occupational health team was already working well before this. The threshold for reaching out has been low, and work ability issues have often been discussed jointly.

This autumn, Henrikson will also be training Lindex's area managers to use the digital platform. Terveystalo Leo is a highly anticipated addition to their work ability management toolkit.

– Area managers know their store managers and their teams well. Going forward, once they can see the reports the platform generates for their stores, they'll be able to respond immediately, without needing to run things through anyone else. They'll quickly notice who might need additional support.

Henrikson believes that, above all, Terveystalo Leo brings greater equity to work ability management.

– We now have the same practices, guidelines, and processes in place in every store. The responsibility for implementing them no longer falls on individual managers. With Terveystalo Leo, our work ability management can genuinely become proactive.

Henrikson believes that within a few years, Terveystalo Leo will become an essential part of everyday life for Lindex's HR team and area managers. It will be used regularly and will help support real-time work ability management.

– Thanks to Terveystalo Leo, we have an even better picture of how our employees are doing across all our stores in Finland. If someone is going through something, we know why, and we know what we're doing about it. We want our employees to thrive at work and to be able to serve our customers as well as possible.

Henrikson also hopes there will be less and less cause for concern going forward. What she values most about Terveystalo Leo is that it helps identify work ability risks more effectively than before.

– Terveystalo Leo is an excellent supportive tool for work ability management. In terms of features I’d like to see developed in the future, I’d be keen to look into the possibilities of further analyzing sick leave data.

Henrikson says the digital platform adapts flexibly to the kind of work ability culture Lindex wants to build.

– Any system is only as good as what you make of it. What matters most is what you actually do with the data the platform gives you. The real benefit comes from the conversations between employees, supervisors, HR, and, when required, occupational healthcare professionals.

Terveystalo Leo brings the facts to light — but in the end, what matters most is dialogue between people.