What Successful Wellness Programs Have You Initiated in Your Company?
CHRO Daily
What Successful Wellness Programs Have You Initiated in Your Company?
To showcase successful wellness programs and their impacts on employee well-being, we asked HR officers and business leaders this question. From flexible work options reducing burnout to on-site events fostering community and health, here are the top eight examples these leaders shared.
- Flexible Work Options Reduce Burnout
- Leadership Promotes Wellness Culture
- Webinars Enhance Mental Health Awareness
- Seven Pillars Ensure Holistic Wellness
- EAP and Lunch-and-Learns Support Well-Being
- Lyra Health Partnership Improves Mental Care
- Lifestyle Spending Accounts Empower Employees
- On-Site Events Foster Community and Health
Flexible Work Options Reduce Burnout
Our wellness benefits have helped employees to maintain a true work-life balance and not feel the unintended pressure to always be “on,” responding to those working. These benefits have significantly enhanced overall employee satisfaction and engagement, focusing on employee well-being.
Our flexible work week, offering both two-days in-office and compressed four-day options, gives employees the ability to balance their work and personal life. Additionally, an annual one-month remote work option provides employees with the opportunity to work from anywhere in the world, fostering a sense of freedom and autonomy. When taking PTO for 2 weeks or more, employees can suspend their email, which helps them to truly disconnect and recharge, preventing burnout. We provide wellness reimbursements up to $100 annually for preventive care, encouraging proactive health management.
These initiatives have empowered employees to disengage from work during their time off, reducing stress and burnout while fostering a healthier and more productive workforce.
Leadership Promotes Wellness Culture
Successful wellness programs come from a wellness-minded culture that stems from the top down. The leadership team should practice what the company preaches, which means doing our best to exercise, eat right, and invest in personal and professional growth. For example, you can have the best on-paper gym perks, but if the company's mindset is rigid and includes long, grueling hours every day, that’s an inherent conflict that will not lend itself to a successful wellness environment.
Webinars Enhance Mental Health Awareness
At Fiverr, we prioritize mental health year-round, with a special focus during Mental Health Month, which takes place every May. As a global organization with employees across several countries, we sought a way to unite everyone and provide valuable resources simultaneously.
To achieve this, we host webinars. We’ve done journaling workshops, virtual sound baths, meditation and yoga classes, and most recently, we produced a webinar titled 'Mind Traps: Overcoming Irrational Thoughts,' led by renowned life coach, author, and researcher Judith Katz. This talk delved into the reasons behind negative thought processes and strategies to overcome them. The webinar was attended by the majority of our employees, and those unable to watch it live still have access to the recording. Utilizing webinars has revolutionized our approach to employee well-being, enabling us to efficiently and effectively reach our global workforce.
Seven Pillars Ensure Holistic Wellness
Wellness as a term is mostly related to physical and now mental well-being as well. But I feel overall wellness has seven pillars: mental, physical, social, financial, spiritual, and occupational well-being.
When we design a wellness program keeping all these pillars in mind, it's bound to be successful. So any activity/initiative I do in the organization is linked to one of the pillars. This helps us balance our activities and also helps the employee grow in overall well-being, leading to a healthy body, a peaceful mind, and a happy life.
Some initiatives under these pillars that I have successfully implemented are EAP through 1to1help.net. Now I am implementing Mantracare in my organization, which will cover both mental as well as physical well-being, providing expert support for yoga, mindfulness, counseling, stress management, and many other programs as per one's needs.
For social well-being: organizing events (any fun activity at the office, strategic meetings, outings), also training programs to elevate one's confidence, communication, body language, etc., to help them be more confident socially and be able to have a healthy social life.
Financial: arranging financial planning sessions by CA or banks who can help our employees understand taxes, savings, and planning for their future.
Spiritual: arranging meditation sessions, gratitude week, gratitude journaling, and many more.
Gratitude has changed my life, and I ensure I implement this in every organization I work in.
EAP and Lunch-and-Learns Support Well-Being
In a prior role, I developed and ran an internal Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for a healthcare facility of approximately 2,700 people. I maintained de-identified data regarding workplace challenges and collaborated with our training and development team to offer lunch-and-learns targeting these common issues. I also co-led our employee wellness committee and strategically collaborated with, for example, a registered dietitian to offer a lifestyle management program for our colleagues. Showing up for employees in various ways gave them a chance to get to know me and my commitment to their well-being, which increased their willingness to use their EAP benefit.
Lyra Health Partnership Improves Mental Care
Inmar's approach to successful wellness programs is to truly enhance employees' well-being through ongoing conversations about mental and physical health, providing real resources and support, and monitoring progress.
Our data revealed that 20% of medical claims are tied to mental health, and the average wait time to see a provider is 21 days through a traditional medical plan network. In 2023, we partnered with Lyra Health to provide 24/7 access to personalized mental health care and a 2-day average wait time. Since partnering, 503 employees have participated, 204 are in active care, and 1,314 sessions have been held.
In addition to Lyra, we teamed up with Olympian Alexi Pappas, a mental health advocate who has used her battle with clinical depression to help others. We began by bringing Alexi to our headquarters for a hybrid event focused on the connection between mental and physical health, and overcoming life's challenges with resilience and grace. We’ve continued the partnership with a series of mental-physical challenges and Q&A sessions with Alexi, encouraging employees to start new healthy habits like walking 10K steps a day, increasing water intake, and trying new forms of movement.
With Lyra's success, the support of Alexi Pappas, and Inmar's Stronger Together Wellness Affinity group, our employees have the resources they need to stay happy, healthy, and productive.
Lifestyle Spending Accounts Empower Employees
At Compt, we've taken a fresh approach to wellness with our Lifestyle Spending Accounts (LSAs), and the results have been incredible. Instead of offering a one-size-fits-all wellness program, we give our employees the freedom to choose what works best for them. Whether it’s yoga classes, mental-health counseling, or even cooking lessons, our team can use their LSAs to invest in activities that truly support their well-being.
The impact has been amazing. We've seen our employees become more engaged and satisfied because they feel truly valued and supported. Giving them control over their benefits has led to less stress and burnout since they can prioritize their health in ways that fit their unique lifestyles. It's not just about ticking a box for wellness; it’s about genuinely improving our team's quality of life.
What’s even better is the culture of openness it’s created. Our employees are talking more about wellness and sharing what works for them (we have a dedicated Slack channel for all the ways we use our Compt lifestyle benefits). It's fostered a positive environment where everyone feels empowered to take charge of their health and happiness. By letting our team choose their own path to well-being, we’re supporting them today and investing in their future. That's the kind of workplace culture we’re proud to have at Compt.
On-Site Events Foster Community and Health
The Capital Group Wellness program has been extremely successful in highlighting the importance of mental and physical well-being with our associates. As we are now regularly back in the office, we’ve brought a focus to prioritizing our well-being when we are together. Our on-site events were popular pre-pandemic, and since the return to office, we’ve re-introduced gatherings, including health screenings and flu shots, but also events that are tailored just to our associates, working with our partners Virgin Pulse and Lyra.
A good example is from our recent Core Values Week, where globally we support our values of Integrity, Client Focus, Diverse Perspectives, Long Term, and Community. We hosted an Olympic-themed challenge to foster healthier habits and the importance of community. We’ve also teamed with our over 24 Employee Resource Groups to sponsor challenges that encourage mental health awareness, including a gratitude journal challenge. By increasing on-site well-being activities, we’re fostering an increased sense of community among our associates, reminding them we are here for them and helping them connect to support each other’s healthy goals.
