Holdfast Training Services Trial Blog

(10 min read)

Please forgive me for straying momentarily from the core engineering discussions on this forum. I recently had a very positive experience at BP which gave me cause for introspection about my own and indeed the army’s approach to promoting positive mental health in the workplace.

Every Thursday afternoon, my department (Projects and Modifications) has an informal, no agenda “virtual coffee” meeting. The conversation usually meanders from COVID, to the dreadful Scottish weather, to Netflix, to weekend plans etc. Perhaps mindful of the fact that some personalities are naturally more dominant in driving the conversation, the P&M manager took the time to ask every single person on the call – “how are you doing XXX? How are things at work? How are things at home? etc”

The frankness of the responses were very surprising to me. Rather than just giving stock “yes all good here boss” responses, people were very open, with some sharing that they were feeling anxious and stressed right now, and explaining the contributing factors to their feelings. These statements were met with warmth and heartfelt support from the rest of the team, with several people going out of their way to offer help in any way that they could.

It’s immediately apparent to me that BP has developed a very inclusive, supportive culture, to the extent that staff feel empowered to be fully open and honest, displaying vulnerability without fear of judgment. Mental health struggles are wholly destigmatised, with an acceptance that periodic struggles are a natural part of modern living, and are no less common than physical ailments. Great emphasis is placed on personal well-being as a significant contributing factor to business success.

After this experience, I took some time to reflect on where we are in the army, and whether we could learn anything culturally from our civilian counterparts. In the broadest sense- I feel that the following comparison sums up the difference between BP and the Army.

At BP, your personal struggles, once shared, become the team’s struggle. The success of the team depends on the collective finding a solution. In the Army, it is generally expected that you deal with your own problems, in order to be able to contribute to the success of the team.

This comparison is, of course, tinged with personal experience and as such is likely to be subject to all associated biases. I’ve expanded on some of my reflections below; I’m very keen to generate some discussion about this and by all means feel free to flat-out disagree with me if you think I’m way off the mark.

• The army, culturally, has arguably not yet made the leap of de-coupling an individual’s periodic/episodic mental struggles from their general strength of character. This is a contentious point, but I would argue that there exists a heightened reluctance to speak up if you’re struggling, for fear of being adjudged to be a weak person/leader compared to your peers, in the eyes of the chain of command. I think this is also exacerbated by the disproportionate emphasis (particularly in the officer corps) placed on promotion, meaning individuals may sacrifice their own mental health for fear of losing a competitive edge.

• The army can sometimes overstate the “warfighting organisation” mentality, to the detriment of team cohesion. What I mean by this is that we ought not to list mental fortitude as an expectation of a soldier on operations, without first creating a culture in barracks that promotes and develops it as a key soldiering skill. I’m not for a second suggesting that we shy away from the harsh realities of what the army exists for, and what it can ultimately be expected to do on operations, but creating circumstances whereby a soldier’s mental health is nutured and developed to the same extent that physical health currently is would arguably contribute to greater operational effectiveness. That starts with enabling an environment where everybody feels empowered to be their raw, honest selves. The hierarchical system that we adhere to doesn’t necessarily marry neatly with this, but it shouldn’t be an insurmountable obstacle.

This blog wasn’t intended to be a slanderous indictment of the army as an employer that doesn’t care about the mental well-being of its people. Of course we all care. Indeed, mental health awareness (most notably with PTSD diagnosis and treatment) has made great strides forwards even in my short time in service. But we can do more. Having seen at BP how effective teams can be in such an inclusive, accepting environment, I feel obligated to personally improve my approach once I get back in my green pyjamas. As shown in the example of our virtual coffee meeting, the culture starts with strong leadership to set the tone. I would urge every one of us, as officers, to do more, listen more and help more, for the good of our people and the army.