What is the ROI on the corporate wellness programs?
6 steps to a successful implementation
“Passes to fitness clubs and nutrition information in the cafeteria are not enough, as you’ll see.”
Welcome to WE TALK Money — a series where we digest some of the research and studies available on the the financial effects of integrating employee wellness programs.
This week we are looking into the article titled “What’s the Hard Return on Employee Wellness Programs?” by Leonard L. Berry, Ann M. Mirabito, and William B. Baun published in the Harvard Business Review in December 2010.
Cold Facts & Statistics:
- Johnson & Johnson’s wellness programs have cumulatively saved the company $250 million on health care costs from 2002 to 2008: the return was $2.71 for every dollar spent.
- The study by Drs. Richard Milani and Carl Lavie proved that a comprehensive employee wellness program can return $6 in health care savings for each $1 invested.
- After MD Anderson Cancer Center created a workers’ compensation and injury care unit within its employee health and well-being department in 2001, lost work days declined by 80% and modified-duty days by 64%, saving the company $1.5 million over 6 years.
- A study by Towers Watson and the National Business Group on Health shows that organizations with highly effective wellness programs report significantly lower voluntary attrition than do those whose programs have low effectiveness (9% vs. 15%).
“Wellness programs have often been viewed as a nice extra, not a strategic imperative. Newer evidence tells a different story. With tax incentives and grants available under recent federal health care legislation, U.S. companies can use wellness programs to chip away at their enormous health care costs, which are only rising with an aging workforce.”
6 essential pillars of a successful, strategically integrated wellness program according to the Harvard Business Review:
Pillar 1: Multilevel Leadership
Employees might be hesitant to participate. Here are some reasons why:
- they don’t have time
- they see little perceived benefit
- they don’t like to exercise
- they don’t know about the programs available
- they think their health is their own business
- they don’t trust the management’s motives
Here are some ideas:
- If the CEO and the middle management make time for exercise, for instance, employees will feel less self-conscious about taking a fitness break.
- It is important to have a “wellness manager,” who continuously “sells” the wellness program throughout the organization.
- Employees who are enthusiastic about wellness can serve as health ambassadors, providing on-the-ground encouragement, education, and mentoring — in addition to organizing and promoting local health events.
Pillar 2: Alignment
A wellness program should be a natural extension of a firm’s identity and aspirations, especially when the management’s priorities shift.
- Making time to check in with your team on a weekly basis is crucial to the success of the wellness program.
What are some things your employees can bring to the table? Wellness practices they enjoy in their own time? Any new health trends they discover throughout the month?
This conversation also creates an opportunity for cross-team connectiveness.
2. Positive incentives yield better results than fines and penalties.
For example, Lowe’s offers employees a monthly $50 discount on medical insurance if they pledge that they and covered dependents will not use any tobacco products.
Pillar 3: Scope, Relevance, and Quality
Here are some examples of employee wellness services offered by organizations like Biltmore, H-E-R, Johnson & Johnson, MD Anderson, Healthwise, and others:
- 10k a day walking challenge
- Mental health support hotlines
- Complimentary and nutritious breakfast, lunch, and snacks
- Company Happy Hour, cross-department competitions, holiday celebrations, dancing. Having fun together is key.
- Health reimbursement accounts
- Health Fairs: workshops on physical, emotional, spiritual, but also financial wellness
- Working together towards recognition by a high-profile wellness program like CEO Roundtable on Cancer, Global Healthy Workplace, 100 best places to work list by Built, etc.
Pillar 4: Accessibility
A great program is the one that the employees can easily implement. Here are the components that will guide them in the right direction:
- Convenient hours, integrated with their schedule
- On-site or nearby locations
- Easy online access
Pillar 5: Partnerships
Partnering with a workplace wellness provider, local businesses and medical practices, individual fitness and wellness professionals is always a great idea. Again, this is a great opportunity to check in with your team. One of your employees might be a yoga instructor, or know one they love and trust.
Pillar 6: Communications
Effective practices are honed over time. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Here are examples of how companies customize their communication to their company culture:
- H-E-B’s culture, for example, is highly competitive, so the company created internally public wellness scorecards for geographic and other company units.
- Nelnet includes wellness information in its regular corporate e-mail on Wednesdays, features health-related messages on its intranet portal, advertises specific wellness benefits, posts flyers about health in elevators and stairwells, and distributes wellness stickers and magnets.
- Dr. Martin Gabica, the chief medical officer at Healthwise, says “Wellness is a viral thing. When I meet with a new employee, I say, ‘Let’s go for a walking meeting.’”
- MD Anderson provides bicycle racks in parking garages with showers nearby, and it places elliptical trainers in work areas throughout its campus to encourage five-minute stress breaks.
- At Lowe’s headquarters, an arresting spiral staircase in the lobby makes climbing the stairs more appealing than riding the elevator.
Possibilities are endless, but as you can tell building a successful workplace wellness program requires time, energy, commitment, and some financial investments (that we now know pay off quite well). However, not every company (especially smaller businesses), is able to develop and maintain a wellness program on their own.
We are here to take care of you and your team.
WE TAKE FIVE is a dancer-sourced health tech startup creating personalized micro wellness programs for individuals and enterprises.
Our unique 5-minutes-at-a-time approach allows us to build custom plans for daily movement check-ins, based on your company’s needs and priorities, increasing productivity and improving physical and mental health of your employees.
Science Meets the Arts
Decades of research have proven that physical, mental, and financial benefits come with taking 5-minute breaks throughout the day. We create a framework for these breaks, fueling them with mindful movement and an authentic human connection.
WE TAKE FIVE is here for you with a work-from-home friendly, and time-efficient wellness solution that will remind you of those brief water cooler interactions infused with dynamic stretches and other age-old techniques that professional dancers and other athletes — the applied scientists of movement — use to take care of their bodies.
All adapted to your chair, your body, and your schedule.
All 5 minutes at a time — the ultimate recess.
SIGN UP FOR A RISK-FREE CONSULTATION NOW!
Did COVID-19 heavily impact your business?
Your team is always welcome at our live group sessions hosted 3 times a day, Monday-Friday. You can find the full schedule and sign up here.
wetakefive.com | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok
All information shared via wetalkfive.medium.com is subject to the Terms of Service
