Nowadays, most employers have come to see wellness as an essential part of their company culture, rather than as a benefit.
This is good news for Australia where one in two people is overweight. Obesity rates have been increasing faster than in any other OECD countries in the last 20 years. Employers based in the US cite employee obesity as the single greatest driver of their company’s rising health care costs. So even though companies in Australia don’t have the same direct financial interest on their employees’ health, they can still directly impact on the health and wellbeing of the Australian working population by investing in workplace health promotion programs
In 2010, 91% of American companies with more than 5,000 employees offered a particular workplace health program, reported ShapeUp Health Employer Health Benefits Survey, with over 45% of all firms offering a wellness program.
Also, most employers in the US are increasing their financial commitment to workplace health promotion, despite the fact that there are still no 100% accurate ways to prove or measure ROI and the economical situation is not at its best. Indeed, according to ShapeUp survey, engagement is consistently cited as the number one priority of employers as opposed to ROI, they believed that high participation rate and having good data will lend itself to favourable return on investment.
Here are different ways and ideas to improve your workplace health promotion program:
Focus on Participation rate and Incentives
The same pool of employers surveyed by ShapeUp reported that their average participation rates included 66% for HRA, 52% for biometric screening, 23% for exercise program, and 21% for lifestyle coaching, with an average incentive amount of US$375. And if they had to cut their workplace health budget in half, surveyed employers agreed that they would definitely keep biometric screening, HRA, and fitness activities.
Select the Right Corporate Wellness Provider(s)
When you look for a corporate health provider, there are criteria that are essentials, and others that are not so important. The list of key criteria includes program effectiveness, ease of use and integration, flexibility, innovation, good data reporting, proven experience, quality, and costs. Criteria that are not so critical include number of products, and ability to prove ROI. Research shows that most employers use more than one corporate health provider, with an average of 4.5.
Reduce Your Time Spent on Marketing and Measurement
Robust employer’s tools including simple and effective marketing and communications materials, comprehensive data reports, and the ability to tailor programs to increase localisation and relevancy are essential to your workplace health program success.
For more information on Corporate Health Program, contact Healthworks on 1300 90 10 90 (International: IDD 61-2-9954-1888) or contact us.
