Anubis II Case Study: WorkFuture Ltd
Having been awarded £10,000 to invest in technology, all the winning companies took an innovative idea and weaved it into their businesses. Here is a summary of their successes thanks to the ANUBIS funding.
A physiotherapist with an established occupational health service is investing the ANUBIS funding to implement a new computerised evaluation system to help employers manage long term sickness in the workplace.
Catherine Albert is director of WorkFuture Ltd which will use the specialised technology to evaluate workers suffering from sickness and absence problems such as back pain, neck pain, whiplash, repetitive strain injury, shoulder pain, and arthritis.
The Australian born business woman trained as a physiotherapist before gaining a degree in Ergonomics at Nottingham University. Catherine Albert then moved into occupational health and worked for Boots before setting up WorkFuture Ltd.
She predicts the turnover of the business will double and her profitability to increase from approximately 25 per cent to 200 per cent when the technology project starts to deliver.
The computerised system is an assessment tool called Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE). It assesses employees who are either absent from work or who are still working but encountering difficulties performing tasks related to their jobs at work.
FCE provides an accurate measurement of a person’s physical capabilities by using computerised technology which tests the worker’s physical ability to do a job or not.
A chartered physiotherapist with expertise in injury assessment and treatment performs the assessment which can include testing movements, strength, lifting, pushing, pulling and grip function.
Workplace absence costs employers nearly 10 per cent of payroll costs and an employee absent from work for 6 months has less than a 50 per cent chance of returning to work.
Figures like these highlight the burden to businesses who usually have to shoulder the cost of sickness in the workplace -including paying for insurance premiums, litigation and sick pay. Occupational health services such as those offered by WorkFuture can help to reduce these costs and assist employees to return to work. Government figures estimate that companies who invest in occupational health services can expect a return of £6 for every £1 invested.
FCE is commonplace in America and Australia. In the UK, it is mainly used by the insurance industry to assess claimants in litigation cases but Catherine Albert believes more businesses are beginning to tap into the benefits of using FCE.
“Using FCE can aid a faster return to work process, it saves on costs by reducing the work days lost to sickness or absence, it helps resolve the causes of absence and highlights a business’s positive commitment to manage sickness absence.”
Director of WorkFuture Ltd Catherine Albert
She expects to recruit up to three more professionals who can carry out evaluations for businesses and plans to expand the services of WorkFuture into the north of England in 2008.
Commenting on the ANUBIS funding, Catherine Albert said:
“I very nearly didn’t apply for the funding due to time commitments. So I am living proof that it pays to apply.
The ANUBIS funding has given me the freedom to plan my business in terms of the quality of marketing and selling. It has lessened the anxiety of issues such as cashflow knowing I have funding which will now not inhibit the progress of my business. Now I can budget for the software and hardware to help my business develop and this has given me new focus.”
Director of WorkFuture Ltd Catherine Albert
Anubis Winner's Link: visit the WorkFuture website
