Workplace Wellbeing

What are workplace wellbeing programmes and why do we need it?

What are workplace wellbeing programmes?

Workplace wellbeing programmes are designed to support and encourage a holistic approach to employee wellbeing by creating an organisational culture of health. Offering a corporate wellbeing solution that extends beyond traditional wellbeing programmes cultivates healthy habits among employee populations and improves health outcomes, all while increasing productivity, optimising human resource investments and boosting employee engagement.

Why are workplace wellbeing programmes important?

Many chronic diseases are preventable and implementing a holistic approach to workplace wellbeing programmes is an influential way to educate employees on the importance of creating healthy habits and the benefits of sticking to wellbeing goals. In turn, employers are expanding their wellbeing programme approach from one size fits all, to a workplace wellbeing programme that is tailored to the individual. To support employees in their wellbeing journey, employers are looking for products and services that operate from this shared orientation. Workplace wellbeing solutions are one. Having difficulty building a business case for your workplace wellbeing solution?

Employees spend a lot of time in the workplace, and correlating wellbeing goals with work-life balance is mission critical to driving business outcomes. Having a workplace wellbeing programme is imperative to the foundation of your business. Building a successful workplace wellbeing programme takes time, and includes a wellbeing solution that is embedded in the culture of the organisation. Employee wellbeing programmes should continually evolve to meet the needs of employees striving to achieve their wellbeing goals, thereby supporting the goals of the business. Having healthier employees helps cut rising healthcare costs to give your bottom line a real boost. Healthier employees will cut rising healthcare costs having a positive impact on the bottom line. Providing a robust workplace wellbeing programme gives your organisation the competitive edge that it’s looking for to attract and retain top talent.

How does Virgin Pulse fit into workplace wellbeing programmes?

Virgin Pulse’s employee benefit solutions feature flexible, culture-first technology designed to meet you where you are on your wellbeing journey, and grow with you as your business and wellbeing needs evolve. Virgin Pulse will work with you to integrate your wellbeing programmes, unifying them through HR programmes, tools, and benefits, and making them accessible through a seamless, dynamic employee communication and benefits portal.

Adding workplace wellbeing programmes

Workplace wellbeing solutions simplify the process of designing, developing, implementing, and managing various aspects of a wellbeing programme. Their task is to bring together much of what employers already offer employees into an easily navigated and digestible platform, individually guiding employees as they make strides to better health.

Too often, employers offer valuable benefits that go unused because employees are overwhelmed by information and want a more personalised benefit experience that presents the options available to them based on their needs, interests and eligibility. Virgin Pulse’s range of wellbeing solutions provides the perfect platform to bring them all together.

What to consider when choosing a workplace wellbeing programme?

Programme impact and proven effectiveness
The primary consideration is whether the workplace wellbeing solution delivers what it says it does. Your focus may be health care cost reduction, employee engagement, retaining and attracting top talent, or organisational culture and morale. Isolate your primary objectives for investing in a wellbeing solution. Then, with each vendor, inquire about the platform’s results and how these results are determined.

Programme features
What does the wellbeing solution support and how does that align with your objectives? Review the platform to see how well it supports all aspects of wellbeing. Then, consider your long-term objectives and evaluate each vendor based on its ability to grow, and counsel, alongside.

Flexibility and customisation
Review how each potential vendor can customise its wellbeing solution, from content and the user interface to services and resources. You want to know whether customisation is limited to adding your logo to the platform, or if it means you can develop new content and new challenges and turn other modules on or off without time-consuming and expensive software coding.

Integration and collaboration
Having a one-stop shop workplace wellbeing solution increases use and exposes employees to more of what’s available to them. Thoroughly review how easy (or difficult) it is to integrate all your third-party services and content. Check also to see how each platform simplifies reporting, pulling data threads together to reveal a bigger, more accurate picture.

Reporting
You’ll want to know on a regular basis how your employees engage with the wellbeing programme. How frequently do they return to the platform, and for what duration? What do they find most appealing? You may also want to peel back the layers and see how certain groups of employees use the platform and what impact that’s having. Get clear on what administrative rights you have so there are no surprises about how you gain access to reporting, or at what cost.

User Experience
The outcomes you desire rely on frequent use by your employees, making a well-designed user interface and user experience a requirement. You’re seeking intuitive navigation, consistent treatment, and a clear visual hierarchy so employees know where to find what they want and can accomplish what they want, efficiently and painlessly.

Engagement
Continuing use of the wellbeing solution is a key marker when evaluating a programme’s performance. What employee percentage regularly interacts with the platform, its available content, and promoted activities and tools? Are current users drawn back and new users drawn in? How broad is each user’s engagement? Ideally, users would return to the platform’s many features and functions on a daily basis so they sustain healthy habits that drive long-term behaviour change.