10 steps to Well-being program in your company

After a brief introduction, we are finally ready to move to actual 10 tips on how to start well-being in your company. When introducing measures that aim at improving the well-being of employees, it is worth to plan it as a step by step strategy. In order to do so, you only need to plan a few steps, that will allow an efficient introduction of well-being into the company. Those steps include:

1. Involve the board and the managers

Setting an example should be the responsibility of the ones in power - at the early stages of preparing and promoting the program, it is worth to involve the members of the board and the company’s managers, who will mobilize their teams to take care of their health, as well as aid in campaigning well-being within the company. After all, they know their employees best and know how to get through to them. According to Limeade’s report (2016 Well-being & Engagement Report), 76% of employees confirms that their managers support their efforts to take better care of themselves. However, the best way to set an example is to be involved in the program yourself. 

2. Utilize diverse communication tools

E-mailing is a common form of internal communication, however let’s not stop at sending e-mails to everyone involved in the company. Other forms of communication, might be worth considering. Forms that won’t allow the news, about new well-being strategies, slip away. This might include a company chat, through which a message can be sent to the employees, as well as posters hung in strategic locations or leaflets left on desks.

3. Prepare for a start

Most importantly, choose an appropriate program and test whether it is user friendly and easily accessible to employees, for example through easy registration. Once everything is ready, create a guide that will introduce the employees to the well-being program and explain its principles considering gaining points and awards.

4. Reflect on the pace of implementing the program

Consider, how fast you want to introduce the programme. Give up complicated implementation of platforms, that take months. The faster the company starts their well-being initiative, the faster you’ll be able to see its results. Besides, employees will most certainly wait for the strategy to be introduced, so there is no need to delay its development, as their enthusiasm will drop eventually.

5. Adjust the program to the values and organizational culture

Well-being programme has to be an instinctive part of the organizational culture and previous personal strategy. Adjust it to values, that are of greatest importance to the employees - maybe thanks to a well-being programme they will become interested in supporting different charities? Or become more active, practice yoga together or prepare joint breakfast at work? Besides, statistics are clear - programmes incompatible with organizational culture do not work.

6. Choose appealing awards

Tempting awards are an additional motivation to take part in the program. It could be a tablet, a trip or a voucher, depending on what will work best in your company. The opportunity to support different charities, by staying active, would offer additional value. For example, using the points for the number of kilometers done, and trading them for helping out a charity, instead of a tangible award.

7. Prepare a program for everybody

Not everyone is a crossfit or rhythmic gymnastic champion. No doubt, the amount of time employees can dedicate to an additional activity will vary. That is why it is worth planning a well-being program in a way that will be suitable for everybody. Focus on introducing an activity, that is accessible, doesn’t require any professional equipment and favors regular exercise - for example, riding a bike. Another part of the program can be launching a training in organizing the work time better, introducing work hours till 3 pm or consultations with a nutritionist.

8. Choose Ambassadors for the program 

From among your employees, of course! Choose active workers that pass on the positive energy to others. The company’s „influencers” will set a good example for others, as well as campaign the well-being program. 

9. Check what’s working and aim to improve!

So the program is ready? Great! Implement and take action. However, don’t rest on your laurels - it is always worth looking into which elements of the program are the most enjoyable to the employees, and which ones are the most popular among them. In order to do so, surveys can prove to be helpful, as well as well-being tools, which allow for gamification - which makes it easy to verify, whether the workers are active. 

10. Brag about your program outside of the business!

The implemented well-being program is most importantly created for the employees, however it is worth mentioning it outside of the company’s circle. Not only because, but it will also put the company on the map amongst other businesses that promote good professional practice, when it comes to their employees and set an example for other organizations. Well-being can become a part of the employer branding strategy, which will lead to the company being associated with caring about their employees’ well-being, physical activity and work satisfaction. There is a good chance, that candidates will appreciate those efforts and will be more likely to apply for the job, while content workers will recommend working for the company to others. Let’s brag about the awards, acquired by the employees in the well-being programs - it is an additional honor for the participants, and a clear message, that taking care of yourself is worth the effort.

With those 10 steps, it will certainly be easier for you to implement the well-being program and make it successful in your business. Keep in mind that each business is slightly different and you will have to evaluate the results and adjust them to your own company and its environment. The evaluation itself is an important part of the process and helps us to find out the good and bad sides of the project. You can simply ask the participants what did they enjoy the most and what annoyed them during the program - these will be useful tips for your future projects!