3 Things to Remember When Building Your Workplace Wellness Culture
3 Things to Remember When Building Your Workplace Wellness Culture So there is the average Corporate Wellness program, and then there is Google’s. Remember when corporate wellness meant weight-loss coaching and tobacco-cessation programs? It was often represented by a poster of the food pyramid hung above the office microwave. But Google and Facebook changed the name of the game, and corporate wellness received a multi-million dollar makeover. Today, workplace wellness can involve anything from treadmill desks to indoor rock climbing. Bike racks encourage employees to exercise and practice ‘Green’ habits, while free yoga classes help employees destress. The fact is, Wellness is no longer about bettering one’s health; it’s about boosting company morale and employee loyalty. And you don’t have to have Google or Facebook’s billions to achieve a healthy and effective Wellness Program for your employees. Below are some helpful tips to keep in mind when creating your own Corporate Wellness Culture:
1.Your Employees Are the Center of the Wellness Universe …or they should feel like they are. Try to emulate your parents when they had to come up with creative ways to make you to eat your vegetables as a child. Effective corporate wellness programs reduce healthcare costs for the employer –$3.27 for every $1 invested in wellness – but your employees won’t care if their healthy habits are saving you money. More importantly, it won’t make them feel good to have a bunch of dollar signs stuck to their foreheads. Your employees should feel supported and encouraged. Offer tools to help them lead a healthy, balanced lifestyle, while respecting their abilities to manage their own workout schedules, diets, and work-life balance. Simple things you can start doing today: - Treat your office to the occasional catered, healthy lunch (or make it regular) - Encourage your employees to take short naps when they’re tired - Let employees hit the gym during the day to get the creative juices flowing
3 Things to Remember When Building Your Workplace Wellness Culture
- Do any of your employees have special diets? Incorporate some healthy snack options for them to nosh on in the kitchen - Designate one room as the ‘Quiet Room’ – great for deep thinking, sleeping or just taking a breather
2.The Goal is Team Wellness, So Build That Team Spirit There are two types of wellness initiatives. The first is reflected by the average corporate wellness program, centered around health assessments, corporate gym discounts, and private nutrition sessions. The company points its employees in the right direction – making them aware of their eating and exercising habits – then leaves them to pursue healthy living independently. Not much teamwork involved, right? So let’s call this Phase 1 Wellness. Phase 2 Wellness encourages employees to start healthy living there and then, and brings the team together in the process. Activities that fall under this category include in-office yoga classes, company sports teams, off-site meditation retreats, spontaneous planking sessions in the office lounge, catered lunch, and group cooking classes. Phase 2 Wellness encourages collaboration, innovation and creativity to better your company. This is exactly what you want. After all, aren’t challenges easier to face when you’re not alone? A tight-knit team that’s motivated by passion and committed to healthy living will attract future talent and keep your current employees sticking around.
3. Tie It To Your Unique Company Culture What would set your wellness initiative apart from another company’s? Chances are, what you think is unique may not actually be. So ask yourself: what does your company stand for? If your team is passionate about the environment, create a campaign to encourage walking or biking to work. Is your team especially competitive? Consider offering special memberships to crossfit gyms or organizing a monthly relay. If philanthropy is popular, have your company participate in the March of Dimes, AIDS Walk, Avon Walk or other fundraisers. Google has done an incredible job at tying their corporate wellness culture to their existing brand. In the same way, you want to build a wellness culture that defines your company: whether than means Fun, Creative, Competitive or Unique. You’ll see your team’s morale go way, way up.
3 Things to Remember When Building Your Workplace Wellness Culture
Investing in a Healthy & Happy Team to Stay Ahead Your company thrives when your employees thrive. Done right, a positive wellness culture has the power to boost employee productivity, increase retention and talent recruitment, and save thousands of dollars on health insurance. Without mental and physical wellness, employee cannot reach their full potentials. So remember when your parents would expect you to product excellent work for school? But once bedtime rolled around... Lights out. No excused. Your health and well-being come before work. And isn't that true love? Show your employees that you loev them. They'll love you back and bring you success.
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