Initial Participation
When you first introduce a wellness program, employees will have a higher level of interest because it is new and exciting. However, people get busy and the “new” wears off. You may have employees who are already active and eating well, so they will stay engaged from the beginning. Others employees may be more difficult to keep engaged. Below are tips from The Bailey Group on how to keep more of your employees engaged and participating in your wellness program!
How To Maintain Participation
- Set goals: Whether it’s an organizational goal everyone’s participating in, team goals, or individual goals, all can encourage more participation. As a leader, participate in goal setting and help other employees set their goals too. You can also communicate with employees and see if competitions would be motivating!
- Incentives: Offering prizes or perks for participating are always a great idea to help keep employees engaged. Keep in mind all employees are motivated by different things, so communicate with them about what they need as encouragement. Examples include: achievement awards, public recognition, merchandise, gift cards, monetary awards, entertainment events, or even a additional paid time-off. Many employees hesitate to offer time-off as an incentive, but it can actually be the biggest incentive for some employees. Plus, if employees are healthier, then they are more productive and take less sick days, so it is relatively low cost.
- Recognize time periods: Breaking old habits and forming new, healthy habits is what wellness programs are all about. The first six weeks to six months are crucial to forming new habits. They may get bored or distracted, and need additional encouragement. After six months, employees are on their way to making a permanent lifestyle change. They may still need friendly reminders to help them reach the year mark, and continue from there! Pay attention to what stage your employees are in and plan wellness campaigns, events, or healthy work lunches accordingly to help keep them on track!
Using these strategies will not only help keep your employees motivated and participating in your wellness program, but it will help you build a healthy, successful workforce for years to come. Visit The Bailey Group for the full article.
