Many companies these days are offering Corporate Wellness programs to their employees. In order for these programs to be successful, you need to gain “buy-in” from the top. This means that upper management needs to talk the talk and walk the walk. Here at Ovation, they do just that! In a survey, human resources firm Bswift found that the number of companies offering incentives for participation in wellness programs rose from 49% in 2010 to 68% in 2011.
It's better if upper management is on board!
At Ovation, we have used health biometrics as a way to measure the outcome of our wellness program and ensure that employers and workers are seeing results. By measuring cholesterol levels, body mass index, flexibility, endurance etc., the employees have a base line from which to work from and improve on.
Along with a proper diet consisting of plenty of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and legumes, you have to incorporate exercise. At Ovation, not only do we offer healthy snacks, recipes, and cook-off contests, but we have running groups and “Boot Camp” exercise classes on a weekly basis. Although all of these are purely voluntary, the number of employees and management that participate is very impressive.
According to Workforce Management Magazine, a University of Georgia study found that wellness programs that were engaging and supported by managing staff were significantly more effective than a program that was purely informational.
In light of our present weak economic state, your company may be hesitant to invest in a Wellness Program. Please reconsider! Employee wellness programs have shown reduced employee absenteeism, reductions in insurance costs, strengthened employee productivity, and lower turnover rates. Many companies might also agree that a significant amount of their healthcare costs stem from the lifestyle habits of their staff, which suggests that interventions to change unhealthy behavior may be successful in reducing insurance expenditures.
Also, before making any drastic changes, a CEO may wonder what the company’s return on investment (ROI) will be if they decide to implement a Wellness Program. According to an article on the Human Resource Network website, wellness initiatives only need to reduce employee health risk factors by less than 1% in order to start seeing savings on health insurance.
Your employees are very instrumental in helping your bottom line. Isn’t it time to initiate the necessary measures to ensure they are as healthy as they can possibly be?
Great insight Karen. Senior leadership is key to a successful worksite wellness initiative. Once senior leaders allocate resources (staffing, budget, time, etc.), become actively involved in communicating & promoting the message and personally engage in the initiatives themselves, you’ll have that recipe for success! I’ve worked along side many senior leaders and wellness committees in the past 12 + years and those who are truly successful have done just that.
BRAVO! A compelling article, Karen. I am proud to say that I have never seen senior leadership as plugged in to any of the places I have workd as they are at Ovation!