“Health Is Wealth” In The Workplace
By: Christopher Ray Coleman
Tags: Culture, Workplace Culture, Mental Health, Corporate Culture, Health

Corporate wellness programs today have become extremely basic and simplistic. It’s a bunch of one-off assessments, “workshops”, and challenges. These are great until the employees don’t get long term results and a bunch of time and energy is wasted. Health effects work and work affects health! Employers are therefore looking for ways to decrease total health-related costs. And one of the strategies is to invest in evidence-based, well-designed, and comprehensive workplace wellness programs.

These well-designed programs aren’t created with short term intentions. It has to be created with the business bottom line in mind pertaining to health care costs, the employees that are participating, the core values of the workplace, and implementing/incorporating programs in a successful way without intervening with the primary business.

There are 10 fundamental steps to designing a workplace wellness programs that actually works and adds value to the employers as well as the employees:

Appetite For Wellness — an employer has to assess the organization to adopt a workplace wellness strategy. Questions to ask to help this process…Are the business plans or benefit plans designed in a way that support or impede behavior change?…Is there a history of workplace wellness programs? If so, what are some lessons we learned?…How can management and rank-and-file workers receive tailored communication? Develop A Multiyear Strategic Plan — organizations need a well-thought-out strategy for implementing a wellness program. Creating a written plan is critical to success. A strategic plan outlines for the organization what it needs to do based on best practices — and why. Create A Culture — this is a journey that requires support from senior leadership as well as from all sectors of middle management to the employee base. Building a strategic multiyear plan helps lay the foundation of an effective program. Develop A Communication Campaign — the common expectation for employers is to see immediate results. And the employees are not inclined to take actions to change behaviors immediately. So targeted and tailored communication plans help build program support for both sides of the organization. Establish Measurement Methodologies — ROI(return on investment) and VOI(value of investment) define a “well-designed program”. ROI is based on medical plan costs and VOI is broader. It covers elements such as improved performance of the workforce, recognition as an employer of choice, and high employee retention. Provide Education Programs — the first step to behavior change is awareness. Next education prepares individuals to take action. Many tools and sources can be used to accomplished. Initiate Interventions — to decrease the risk of progressing or exacerbating chronic conditions such as hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes, businesses may opt to go to the next stage by establishing change-oriented health behavior components. These are “interventions” which are change behavior programs. Engage & Integrate — engagement is one of the most difficult and critical challenges in wellness program design and management research has shown approximately 80% of the population is not ready to change their health behaviors of any given time. With this in mind, a well-designed workplace wellness program should offer programs for the individual in all stages of readiness. Offer Incentives — incentives alone do not constitute a wellness program. Incentives paired with targeted behavior interventions and programs can be a powerful lever to initiate and motive change. Conduct Financial Analysis — across the spectrum of health management programs, employers are more likely to achieve savings and an ROI by appealing to the entire continuum of health within a population.

These steps provide great guidance when it comes to coordinating workplace wellness programs. Employers care about the bottom line of their business. And the best way to take care of that is investing in the lifelines of their people.

If you’re a sales professional, entrepreneur, or small business owner that want to optimize your health while accumulating wealth click here to view my personal website and contact me!

Your #HealthIsWealthGuy

@ChristopherRayColeman