When implementing workplace wellness programs, organizations have the right intentions; to offer a program that will help their employees live a healthier life and to limit medical costs to the organization.

The problem is that too many organizations are sabotaging their own efforts without even knowing it. And it's no fault of their own.

Most organizations are making critical program design mistakes when starting a wellness program. First, there are too many parties involved in the process of selecting a wellness provider, few of whom are actual wellness experts. Each of these parties has their own idea of which components will be the best for your organization’s wellness initiative.

Internally, there may be HR staff, benefits staff, an internal wellness manager, compensation specialist, safety manager, CFO and CEO – all with different objectives. Then, add in a third-party administrator, broker, consultant, carrier wellness provider, disease management company and employee assistance program. It seems everyone has a different opinion when influencing your wellness purchasing decision. So, with all of this pulling in different directions, how can you make a decision that will enable you to reach your wellness goals?

The following are four mistakes that many organizations make when implementing a wellness program for their employees. Avoid these pitfalls and you'll be well on your way to a wellness program that works effectively for your employees and organization.

1. Not using rigorous evaluation techniques to assess the performance of wellness partners.

Too many companies looking to implement a wellness program use the common sense approach to selecting a wellness provider. The thought process is “it seems like this should work”.

However, this approach has allowed too many startup wellness companies to stake their place in the market without providing any true measure of the success of their programs. Things are not always what they seem.

Therefore, make sure that when selecting a wellness provider, they are able to prove measurable results of the program. More importantly, make sure the results are a measure of your company’s results, not just national averages that may or may not apply to your group.

At the least, a wellness provider should be able to provide year-to-year risk migration of your population. The risks measured should be proven to correlate to cost through proven research, most notably, in peer reviewed journals. Even better than risk migration is the ability to isolate variables and measure the impact a program has on medical claims.

2. Not accounting for portability when selecting a program and partner

As the economy continues to be sluggish and companies look to find ways to save, more and more organizations are turning to their health care provider to supply them with a wellness program. This approach has one fatal flaw; when – not if – you change carrier, you'll have to start the program over from scratch.

Any expert in the wellness field will tell you that you need at least three years of consecutive data to begin to see results. Therefore, hitching your wellness program to the back of your carrier makes this makes this a difficult feat and all the more painful when you do need to switch carriers.

The same applies for wellness providers. You need to allow yourself some flexibility to try different things. If your program is locked into a single vendor to instill behavioral change in your employees, it better work.

Also, when selecting a wellness provider, choose one that is more like a general contractor. This will enable you to substitute in different interventions when there are new advances or if you find that a specific program isn’t working for your group. Even the best wellness intervention programs are not one-size-fits-all. Additionally, check with your wellness provider to make sure they are able to provide historical information to other or new providers.

3. Settling for a low-cost program because it's all that the budget will allow for.

Everyone has heard the phrase “you get what you pay for." This adage is as true with wellness programs as it is in many other walks of life. Most programs that are free or very inexpensive are too good to be true.

The first scenario with a program like this is where the cost is being “hidden”. Remember, nothing is free. Companies could not stay in business if they were providing charitable services and not making any money. The most common example of this is carrier programs that seem too good to be true. In many cases, the carrier is building the cost of the program into your annual renewal, making the actual cost of the program considerably higher than market rates.

The second and more obvious scenario is selecting a wellness provider that “you can afford” and getting a sub-par program. These programs will provide no analytics, results or real value. In the end, they can give a bad name to a wellness program and set a program back years, since management may lose faith in the process of wellness.

To avoid this, find the right provider for the unique health issues that your organization is seeing. In many cases, the program with the best results will be the most expensive. Therefore, invest in a great program that can show you the ROI it has been able to achieve. If the initial budget isn’t there, many companies are subsidizing the program by having employees that are non-compliant in their wellness initiative pay a higher premium for their insurance. Most companies have been able to make their program budget neutral using this tactic.

4. Rewarding employees for activity only, not outcomes

Most people tasked with designing a wellness program come from the HR/Benefits area. And, these individuals are trained to look out for their employees’ best interests. For this reason, many companies are reluctant to implement wellness programs that make non-participants or unhealthy employees pay more for their medical premiums. It is unfathomable, since they see it as a move that is detrimental to this employee.

However, the effect of this is that many programs reward their employees for simply engaging in some activity and do not account for whether the activity actually provides positive results for the participant.

There are a few realities to look at. The first is that we, as a society, want the easy way out. This can explain why there are pills for cholesterol/blood pressure/weight loss, gastric bypass surgery, liposuction and fad diets, but very few people are losing weight naturally? It is easier to take a pill than it is to exercise and watch what you eat every day. This same mentality applies to wellness programs. People will find the easiest way possible to achieve their “participation”, even if that means watching an online course while watching TV or putting their pedometer on their dog for a few hours.

The second thing to look at is that the high-risk employees are the ones driving up costs for the organization and for the other individuals on the plan. If they are unwilling to take the steps to show progress in their health conditions (the “I don’t care” attitude), they should be the ones paying a higher premium to subsidize programs that will keep costs in check for the entire organization.

A recent study by McKinsey & Company showed that more than 30 percent of employers could drop medical coverage for their employees following the year 2014 due to rising cost, much of which is associated with unmanaged conditions. This would be unfair consequence to those employees who are participating in wellness programs and taking steps to keep their health care costs down.

Workplace wellness programs should be a critical component of an organization’s overall business strategy. These programs are a win-win for both organizations and employees to reduce healthcare costs and promote healthy lifestyles. However, these programs need to be measured and done right.

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Four reasons why your wellness program isn&#039;t working

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