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Network development in workplace health promotion – empirically based insights from a cross-company network promoting physical activity in Germany

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Title: Network development in workplace health promotion – empirically based insights from a cross-company network promoting physical activity in Germany
Authors: Gernert, Madeleine, Fohr, Gabriele, Schaller, Andrea
Source: BMC Public Health
BMC Public Health, Vol 24, Iss 1, Pp 1-16 (2024)
Publisher Information: Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2024.
Publication Year: 2024
Subject Terms: Occupational health promotion, Occupational Health [MeSH], Social network analysis, Humans [MeSH], Interorganizational network, Health promotion, Interviews as Topic [MeSH], Qualitative Research [MeSH], Research, Germany [MeSH], Physical activity, Interorganisational network, Workplace, Focus Groups [MeSH], Network management, Workplace/psychology [MeSH], Health Promotion/methods [MeSH], Exercise [MeSH], 05 social sciences, Health Promotion, Focus Groups, 3. Good health, 0506 political science, Interviews as Topic, 03 medical and health sciences, 0302 clinical medicine, Germany, Humans, Public aspects of medicine, RA1-1270, Exercise, Qualitative Research, Occupational Health
Description: Background In the field of health promotion, interorganisational networks are of growing relevance. However, systematic and target-oriented network management is of utmost importance for network development. The aim of this article is to report on the development of a cross-company network promoting physical activity, and to identify necessary activities and competencies for a systematic network management. Methods The network was systematically planned and implemented in a German technology park comprising different companies. To assess and describe the development of the network, quantitative social network analysis was conducted. To answer the question on the activities and competencies for systematic network development semi-structured interviews with participating stakeholders, and a focus group discussion with health promotion experts were conducted. The interviews were analysed deductively and inductively with the structuring content analysis method and the focus group discussion was analysed deductively by summarising key aspects of the discussion. Results Network metrics showed that the network became larger and denser during the planning phase, and stagnated during the implementation phase. As key facilitators for network development, participation of all stakeholders, a kick-off event, and the driving role of a network manager were identified. Necessary activities of the network manager were related to structural organisation, workplace health promotion offers, and cross-sectional tasks. The results suggested that not only professional and methodological competencies, but also social and self-competencies were required by the manager. Conclusions Our study provides initial guidance regarding the activities and required competencies of an interorganisational network manager. The results are of particular relevance for the context of workplace health promotion, since a network manager can be considered as a driving role for planning and implementing a cross-company network. Trial registration The study is registered in the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS00020956, 18/06/2020).
Document Type: Article
Other literature type
Language: English
ISSN: 1471-2458
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-19025-4
Access URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38858699
https://doaj.org/article/658569039b2d4341a85995680dda6b52
https://repository.publisso.de/resource/frl:6521531
Rights: CC BY
URL: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) . The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) ) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.
Accession Number: edsair.doi.dedup.....10e59c734e795cc241caca106c3257cf
Database: OpenAIRE
Description
Abstract:Background In the field of health promotion, interorganisational networks are of growing relevance. However, systematic and target-oriented network management is of utmost importance for network development. The aim of this article is to report on the development of a cross-company network promoting physical activity, and to identify necessary activities and competencies for a systematic network management. Methods The network was systematically planned and implemented in a German technology park comprising different companies. To assess and describe the development of the network, quantitative social network analysis was conducted. To answer the question on the activities and competencies for systematic network development semi-structured interviews with participating stakeholders, and a focus group discussion with health promotion experts were conducted. The interviews were analysed deductively and inductively with the structuring content analysis method and the focus group discussion was analysed deductively by summarising key aspects of the discussion. Results Network metrics showed that the network became larger and denser during the planning phase, and stagnated during the implementation phase. As key facilitators for network development, participation of all stakeholders, a kick-off event, and the driving role of a network manager were identified. Necessary activities of the network manager were related to structural organisation, workplace health promotion offers, and cross-sectional tasks. The results suggested that not only professional and methodological competencies, but also social and self-competencies were required by the manager. Conclusions Our study provides initial guidance regarding the activities and required competencies of an interorganisational network manager. The results are of particular relevance for the context of workplace health promotion, since a network manager can be considered as a driving role for planning and implementing a cross-company network. Trial registration The study is registered in the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS00020956, 18/06/2020).
ISSN:14712458
DOI:10.1186/s12889-024-19025-4