Health as part of culture. ANASOFT is the Healthy Company of the Year

Last year it was a pleasant surprise. This year it was more of a confirmation. ANASOFT won 1st place in the Healthy Company of the Year competition in the medium and small company category, following on from last year's third place. At first glance, this is a move up the rankings. In fact, it is more of a moment when a company realizes that the things it has been doing for a long time and naturally have a broader meaning.

That is why the application itself for the competition was more than a formality for the HR department.
"When we started filling out the application, we realized how many things we actually do, and that we don't even talk about many of them," says HR manager Katarína Melišová. "We take some of them for granted."

This moment of retrospection was perhaps as important as the award itself. In the process of summarizing, new ideas emerged, things that work and those that can still be improved were named. At the same time, it became clear that what is created in the company is not a coincidence or a set of benefits, but a system that has its own logic.

Health not born on paper

At ANASOFT, health is not only discussed in the context of preventive check-ups. It is a broader framework that includes everything from physical health to relationships, atmosphere, and everyday functioning. Health Day, lectures, screening examinations, ergonomic recommendations, massages, and physical activities are only the visible part. What is more important is how they are created. "For us, it is key to listen to what people really want. Not to do things because they are trendy," explains HR specialist Tamara Hrubá.

This means that employees choose the topics of the lectures, influence the content of the activities and indirectly shape them through feedback or conversations with managers. Some initiatives even arise as a reaction to specific situations, for example, when overload appears in the team, the topic is also opened at the company level.

Thanks to this, wellbeing does not seem like a “program”. Rather, it is something that naturally develops together with the company. And it also has concrete impacts. “We have colleagues who discovered their health problems precisely thanks to these examinations,” states Hrubá. Such moments also give the activities real meaning.

A company built on relationships

At ANASOFT, the health of the work environment does not only depend on individual benefits, but also on the quality of relationships that naturally arise between people. “We try to connect people so that they get to know each other outside of their teams. This has a huge impact on how they feel in the company,” says Melišová.

That is why activities that at first glance are not directly related to health have their place here. Company-wide team building ANApohoda, mini team building events organized by employees themselves, joint lunches, street food events or community initiatives. Some are planned, others are spontaneous.

What is important is that people are not only participants, but also creators. When an employee decides to lead a back-healthy exercise after returning from maternity leave, or when a team prepares its own mini teambuilding with the support of the company, something is created that cannot simply be designed from above.

“Many things work because people naturally engage in them. We rather create space for them,” adds Hrubá. That is also why the company is able to do a lot even without large budgets. Not because it does not invest in wellbeing, but because it relies on people’s engagement and trust.

When culture is transmitted externally

What is created inside the company is also visible outside. And often before the company itself realizes it. Candidates who come for interviews already have an image of ANASOFT. They have seen photos, activities, communication on social networks.
“They often say that they were attracted by the atmosphere. That it doesn’t feel like a company where people just come, do their thing and leave,” Melišová describes.

They are interested in sports opportunities, team activities or the possibility of development directly in the workplace. But they also have an equally strong perception of how the company operates as a whole. Whether relationships are formal or natural. Whether people work side by side or together. In this sense, wellbeing becomes part of the company's identity.