Corporate Wellness Incentive Plans

There is no single right way to approach wellness programs but winning programs share common success factors. These include commitment from management, employee participation, adequate resources, and a health policy that goes hand in hand with the organization’s mission, vision and values.

Corporate Wellness Program: A Range of Approaches

Although the intention is to eventually have a long-term, all-inclusive wellness program, some companies prefer to start with a single program at a basic level. By way of example, the first steps might be as simple as offering lunch-hour sessions on first aid or healthy eating; or they might launch a pilot project to find out how interested workers are to ensure workers needs are being met before taking on anything more ambitious. This approach supports a chance to show the effect on workers and the workplace so senior staff will be more willing to consider a larger and more far-reaching plan.

Other businesses plan a variety of pushes to meet the needs of the different types of people that make up their workforce. And some decide to foster a sound organization case, complete with a health strategy, before beginning any type of program. Organizations want to be sure that a new program is fully integrated with their overall organization vision and mission.

Employee Wellness Program: Success Factors

Whether your organization chooses to think big from the outset or to activate with something smaller, always keep in mind the following key success factors:

• reinforcement and participation from management;
• employee participation in planning;
• programs that meet employee needs;
• a realistic budget; and
• continuous review.

In sports, a game plan is a series of steps that a team must follow to accomplish its goal of winning. Most winning teams plan to win. Businesses also need game plans, even if they don’t call them by that name.

Good planning will help to make sure that your wellness program happens the way you want it to, and that costs can be identified in advance and kept within budget. Good planning prevents small concerns from becoming bigger.

Steps in Creating a Company Wellness Program

Obtain upper management reinforcement. You may need to cultivate a organization case to convince managers that the wellness program is a organization strategy-that employee health and job satisfaction impacts their productivity. workers need to see evidence that upper management believes in and is committed to employee health.

Establish a planning committee. Members have the potential to include representatives from employee groups as well as from human resources(HR), health and safety, and communications.

Accumulate information. To prove that your Employee Health Promotion Program is productive, establish a benchmark before the program begins. You may wish to look at employee satisfaction, absenteeism rates, stress levels, prescription costs or WCB costs. Assess what workplace facilities are available to support employees to make healthy choices such as showers and change areas or a secure place to store a bicycle. Assess employee needs through a survey or questionnaire, suggestion box or focus group. Communicate the results.

Establish the plan to reflect the information gathered. Include program objectives, activities and how you are going to measure whether your objectives were met. Keep the plan flexible. You may have to change direction in response to employee feedback or changes in the company’s structure.

Get management approval. Support for employee time and a budget are required.

Put activities in place. Provide a variety of activities that foster awareness, expand knowledge, cultivate skills, and provide social interaction. (Activities could include walking clubs, participation in national campaigns such as Corporate Wellness Programs Week, SummerActive, WinterActive, corporate challenge, golf days, and newsletters that provide information about area resources.) Workplaces are able to also make it easier for workers to make healthy choices by offering flextime to allow workers to fit exercise in when it is convenient or by subsidizing programs in cooperation with area or private fitness facilities. A policy on catering for meetings can ensure that healthy foods are provided.

Review the plan. Share your successes with others, learn from your mistakes and modify activities.

A wellness program doesn’t have to be complicated or a huge investment. Just do it. Get backing from management, bring a few committed people together to generate some ideas and get started.