Roughly 52 percent of firms in the U.S. have an employee wellness program.
This proves that many employers embrace the need to support their workers’ physical well-being. It reduces absenteeism due to sick leave, enhances employee productivity, and lowers the company’s health care costs, among other benefits.
However, not all wellness programs yield the expected benefits. If your program isn’t working effectively, or you’re a new company looking to implement a wellness program for the first time, it’s essential to know how to make it successful.
In this article, we share handy tips on how to run an effective corporate wellness program. So read on!
1. Understand the Needs of Your Employees
It’s not uncommon to find business owners creating employee wellness programs simply because it’s a hot trend. Such owners also know that employees prefer working for companies with wellness programs.
While having a half-baked wellness program is better than having none, if it isn’t built with your employee’s unique needs, it’s only a matter of time before you realize your investment isn’t working.
A successful program addresses the needs of your employees. For example, a program that’s designed for a sales agency wouldn’t work for a program that’s designed for a manufacturing plant. That’s because each firm’s employees face unique challenges in their day-to-day lives.
Therefore, consider the nature of your business and collect feedback from your employees when developing a wellness program. This way, you’ll give it a greater chance of achieving success right out of the box.
2. Infuse Your Objectives into the Program
A successful workplace wellness program puts the needs of employees first but also takes care of the employer’s goals. After all, the program must contribute to your company’s overall success. It won’t be a wise investment if your wellness program is effective at improving employee health, but the company isn’t seeing an increase in productivity.
When designing your program, list down your company’s objectives. These should be measurable.
For example, one of your objectives might be to lower the company’s healthcare costs by 30 percent. Or perhaps you want to see a 50 percent reduction in sick leave requests.
With your objectives fleshed out and the program built around them, monitoring its performance is easy. Then, after a while, say one year, you can look at the metrics and determine whether your objectives are being achieved. If not, it might be an opportunity to tweak the program.
3. Outsource the Design and Implementation of the Program
As a small business owner, you probably lack the time and expertise to develop a wellness program that works. This is why outsourcing the design and implementation of the program is a savvy move.
Alternatively, you can invest in innovative back posture corrector software to help your employees cope with back pains, eyestrain symptoms, and other common complaints associated with long hours of computer work. Ensuring employee health and well-being is an essential aspect of any successful business.
Get the Most Out of an Employee Wellness Program
An employee wellness program promises a host of tangible benefits to both employees and employers. However, the responsibility to make the program work lies on you, the employer. With this guide, you’re now in a better position to build a program that will be successful.
Read the business section of our blog for more tips.