Here’s Keys’ quick guide to convincing your boss your health is worth the investment

You’ve heard it before: people are an organization’s biggest asset. Every company’s success, from the quality of its products to its office culture depends on whether its employees are well.

While it’s common for benefits packages to include some level of healthcare coverage, employee assistance programs, and vacation/sick leave, workforce studies show that the biggest return on investment is in empowering employees to make healthy lifestyle choices daily.

It certainly pays to care about employees’ physical and mental health, but it pays, even more, to integrate wellness practices into your company’s regular functions. One thing to remember during your pitch for an enhanced corporate wellness program is that investments aren’t always financial. Building a portfolio of impactful wellness strategies actually involves more research, time, and persistence than your boss might think. The good news for them is that with their support and commitment to achieving wellness, the entire team can have a hand in getting the ball rolling.

How Employees Can Take the Lead

Wellness initiatives should reflect a holistic approach to employee well-being and focus on the many ways caring employers can help their staff lead healthier, more productive, and more fulfilling lives. Employers and employees can help facilitate positive changes by:

• Forming a focus group or committee of wellness ambassadors
• Collecting new and used fitness equipment and kitchen appliances for office use
• Creating a suggestion box for potential information sessions and trainings
• Posting share-worthy information and local resources to the office bulletin
• Pitching in to provide water and healthy snacks for the office
• Hosting quarterly employee engagement and team-building activities
• Participating in office challenges and incentive programs

Proof Wellness Really Works

Since the goal is to sell your boss on adopting an effective corporate wellness strategy, we went ahead and created a checklist of common characteristics to include in your ask for support and resources. Every effective corporate wellness program:

• Promotes the trio: physical, mental, and social well-being
• Offers worthwhile incentives for participating
• Focuses heavily on prevention and maintenance
• Is based on the needs and capacity of its employees

A company-wide culture of wellness is the result of many individuals from one team choosing to make healthy choices while also equipping others with the resources, tools, and information they need to lead healthy lives as well. As your company gets good at promoting wellness, you will begin to see the difference a healthy, positive, and caring work environment can make in healthcare costs, recruitment, retention, absenteeism, and even productivity.

Keys is here to help your organization improve your employee’s health and wellness. We have virtual and in-person programming available!