Globally, employees spend roughly ⅓ of their entire lifetime at the workplace. That's why promoting a healthy environment —- one conducive to happiness and safety —- ultimately benefits both employees and the company as a whole.
The good news is that there are many different paths to creating an employee wellness program for your dedicated employees. But there are also core components that you'll want to include, such as physical and mental health care, support for healthier lifestyles, and a steady work/life balance.
Minimizing sick leave, reducing disability costs, and boosting morale or overall engagement are just a few benefits of an effective employee wellness program. Keep reading to learn more about the essential steps to success!
The Steps to an Effective Employee Wellness Program
As mentioned previously, there are many components of employee wellness programs to suit the needs of your staff. However, there are still a few factors that make up the foundation of every rewarding program.
Get Management Fully Invested
As with any project, time and resources are needed for everything to come together. By having management on board with your employee wellness program, you can secure valuable funding to get your ideas off the ground. Additionally, you can motivate others to commit to the project with support from respected leadership.
Start a Wellness-Oriented Committee
The next step is to plan out a committee or related group with a wellness focus. Before you begin this process, be sure to go around and ask your employees for their honest input and ideas for an employee wellness program. This will ensure that each individual feels valued — and more importantly, connected to your project as someone who matters.
Once you have this group started, have them openly discuss options for the program. This committee can also contribute to the promotional aspect, as well as planning which activities should be included and communicating this to management. Note that the size of this group will depend on the number of employees available and the general scope of the wellness initiative.
Regardless, try to include members from all departments, shifts, and positions to make sure everyone is fairly represented. Consider having members occasionally rotate for optimal flexibility.
Gather Vital Data
Of course, you'll need to be aware of things like cost, employee demographics, and emerging health trends in your industry. This will ultimately assist you in determining what course of action will benefit team members effectively.
Begin by researching specific areas of concern that you can address. For example, perhaps your employees are the right demographic for substance abuse, high blood pressure, or obesity. Before you move forward, it is vital to also recognize what exactly your employees are interested in learning more about.
Interact with your staff to get a better understanding of not only what their interests are, but how they would like to receive this information. Perhaps they enjoy newsletters or thoughtful emails? Or maybe they would prefer a social activity, such as a seminar with lunch included?
Allow employees to have their say, because when you know what they expect, you can better tailor the employee wellness program to them.
Set SMART Goals
No project would succeed without goals. But the most effective of them all set what is known as SMART goals; these are action plans that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. In defining specific parameters, you ensure that every step of the plan is completely attainable within a certain amount of time.
SMART goals bring clarity to your (and your employees') ideas, all while focusing time, effort, and resources on what is important for the success of the initiative.
Keep in mind that you must remember to be flexible during the planning phase of the project. Things may pop up or intervene with the plan in action, so keep your mind open to alternating your focus throughout this step.
Develop Action Plan
When choosing the actions for your employee wellness program, the key lies in balancing the needs and wants of your staff. No matter what you choose to support your initiative, the activities should reinforce all factors of employee wellness — from the physical to the social to the emotional.
Ideally, you'll create actions that address each facet of health. Say your goal is to promote a healthier diet. Think about what actions you could take that work in favor of that goal. For example, you could work towards offering nutritious foods in the cafeteria, or host an employee health fair on the topic.
Encourgement + Support
For your employee wellness program to work, you'll need to set up some form of support base for the most involvement. The more people feel empowered in their choices, the more active and driven they become.
Throughout the program, remember to acknowledge both the challenges and successes of participants. As employees strive towards their goals, be sure to recognize them in any way feasible. This might be done via company newsletters, verbal congratulations, or even financial assistance.
Encouragement is extremely important for all members of the wellness collective as well as company leaders. Let employees know they have a strong support base on all levels.
Evaluate Program Efficiency
Last but not least, set some time aside for a routine assessment of your employee wellness program (and its progress). A thorough evaluation will help you narrow down what is working and what isn't, allowing for changes to be made where applicable. Always be open to feedback from employees, and your workplace will be better off for it.
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