Creating an effective wellness program is an elusive goal for many employers. Diverse employee populations, lack of data and failure to understand which initiatives drive the most change (and the most savings) are all reasons why some employers fail to deliver with their wellness programs, and even as they have become increasingly popular in the employer space, many critics say that wellness plans don't significantly move the needle in terms of overall employee health and the cost of care.

So when employers win awards for their wellness programs, it's worth asking what they're doing differently and how others can emulate their success.

In May, Interactive Health named its annual “Healthiest Companies in America,” an award that indicates the businesses in the United States that are doing the best job of incorporating preventive health care into the workplace.