Which Comes First – Workplace Wellness Program Participation or Engagement?

As the founder and CEO of Engagement Health Group, I’ve had the pleasure of moderating panel discussions on the topic of a workplace wellness program and employee engagement for experienced worksite wellness professionals for years. It is always a lively discussion among participating panelists and the audience, usually with some common takeaways. 

At Engagement Health Group, we have the invaluable insights and extensive experience to provide your organization with superior workplace wellness programs that will improve employee engagement.

How a Workplace Wellness Program Influences Employee Engagement 

Here are some observations from my last opportunity regarding the ways workplace wellness programs influence employee engagement.

1. Hardly any employers in the group have achieved the 85-95% participation prescribed by Dee Edington to achieve Zero Trends (his book on the subject). 
2. No one in the AWP group is yet tracking a formal business metric for employee engagement (worksite wellness or occupational).
3. There certainly was an awareness of the need to measure employee engagement, and there were several informal measures in use, such as participation in activities and screenings that were not incentivized.
4. A few thought the best measure of employee engagement in wellness was at the bottom line – in reduced employee health risks or reduced health cost.
5. There was a general consensus that worksite wellness participation comes before employee engagement, and that engagement comes organically – as each participant has an “ah-ha” moment when motivation moves from extrinsic to intrinsic.
6. Flipping that switch from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation depends very much on having workplace wellness programs that are meaningful to the spectrum of needs among employees.
7. Lastly, the group felt that an effective workplace wellness program can actually be a tremendous help to increasing employee engagement at work.

Improve Employee Engagement and Performance 

It is intuitive that when an employer provides an effective workplace wellness program for employees, the employer demonstrates its concern for employee health, which in turn increases employees’ concern for their internal and external customers, as well as their performance. A published Forbes article reported:

Just the existence of a workplace wellness program shows positive effects on individual behavior and employee engagement: 60 percent of workers with access to a workplace wellness program feel inspired by their company culture to make healthy choices, our survey shows. Without a workplace program, workers are four times less likely to be inspired by their company culture to make healthy choices, and only 44 percent are engaged.

Enhance Employee Engagement with Engagement Health Group’ Workplace Wellness Program 

My experience is that the more effective the workplace wellness program, the more employee engagement we see. Workplace wellness programs that go through the motions don’t get any better performance than employees that go through the motions.

Engagement Health Group’ premium workplace wellness programs feature comprehensive health coaching that delivers demonstrable results. By partnering with us to prioritize wellness in the workplace, you are guaranteed to increase employee engagement to build a happy, healthy workforce that will improve your profitability. 

Contact us today to learn more about our workplace wellness programs.