2.20.18: The Health of Your Business Depends on the Health of Your Workforce

2.20.18: The Health of Your Business Depends on the Health of Your Workforce

The nation’s “Best Places to Work” use innovative workplace wellness programs like Flashfit to recruit and retain talented employees. Offering health and fitness benefits can not only create a vigorous workplace, but it also begins to positively impact the overall corporate culture.

“Wellness programs can help spread the health across an organization — they’re motivationally contagious,” said Chris Boyce, CEO of Virgin HealthMiles. “More than half of our corporate survey respondents say they’re influenced by their colleagues, so you can see the ripple effect this has on engagement and productivity within the workplace. The positive experience of one employee can create a host of other positive experiences across a business. If a company shows it’s making efforts to create a healthy culture that supports employees’ health and helps improve their total quality of life, it’s a true win-win.”

This positive impact can extend beyond the office. Employees who take part in a wellness program report a healthy influence on family, friends, and kids. Some employers are leveraging this ripple effect by making their programs available to family members of employees.

Colleagues and peers also play a big part in motivating employees, implying that improving intra-office communication might also magnify the benefits of an organization’s wellness program. According to Virgin Pulse, 56% of employees report being supported by their colleagues on the road to health and wellness.

The diversity of offerings also matters, but some employers have reported gaps in interest between what programs they offer and what programs are of interest to employees. The most frequently offered wellness programs (57.6%) involve physical activity – and these are the most popular with employees. 78.1% reporting interest in these programs in the Virgin Pulse survey. Opposed to smoking session programs – which are offered by 50.3% of employers but utilized by only 12.7% of employees. Where you invest your wellness program dollars matters and should be researched and workshopped with your workforce prior to implementation.

Weight management plans, health assessments, and gym memberships are highly popular with employees and increasingly part of successful wellness program offerings. One facet of health that could benefit from increased employer commitment is the availability of healthy food choices on-site. Employee interest in this access is far ahead of what employers are making available – with only 33.2% of employers surveyed offering this benefit.

Employees seem motivated to improve their own health. 78% of employees say overall wellness is the top reason they participate in workplace programs. This can help employers control healthcare coverage costs, and mitigate the impact on productivity due to illness and stress among their workforce. 81% of employees report feeling better and 61.9% of employees say they feel more productive as a result of partaking in employee wellness programs.

Creating a culture of health in your workplace involves fomenting and managing a culture shift that includes everyone and every aspect of lifestyle that impacts an employee’s overall wellness and satisfaction. This also reveals how your organization’s understanding of the important influence of social interaction, particularly family and home life, has in keeping employees motivated to engage with wellness plans.

The Flashfit app can get you there easily. With hundreds of fast and fun one-minute exercises that don’t require any special equipment, your employees can get moving right in your office. And Flashfit will track and measure all employee all activity, so your organization can reach your wellness goals and work healthy. https://www.flash.fit

Sources: SHRM, Business Times, Virgin Pulse