When employees feel their employer cares about their well-being, they are 38 percent more engaged and 18 percent more likely to go the extra mile, according to a 2015 survey.

At Montana University System (MUS), we take this to heart. Our 8,000 employees are passionate about providing a high quality education — but this can also lead to stress, long work hours and limited time for self-care.

We developed a fun, simple and relevant well-being program — MUS Wellness — that inspires our employees to become champions of their personal well-being.

Since launching the program with a well-known vendor's technology four years ago, high-risk MUS employees have reported improvement in sleep by 17 percent, energy levels by 14 percent and there’s been a 20 percent improvement in self-care scores.

But we faced a big challenge: We do not have a centralized email system across our 14 campuses. How would we drive awareness for employees spread across the state?

Here’s a look at how we reached our people — and made our program a success.

1. We set goals.

Leaders at MUS want to create a positive well-being program that’s easy to use, no matter what unique goals our employees want to achieve. Our goal is for MUS Wellness to feel simple, accessible and fun.

And it’s important that the program invests in the whole person, with activities to improve well-being inside and outside of work.

2. We positioned our program managers as well-being celebrities.

We are fortunate to have a licensed nutritionist and a certified fitness instructor running our program. Neal and Cristin not only work hard — but are charismatic, informed and care deeply about our employees.

We positioned them as the face of MUS Wellness through a fun and informative blog, on-site visits, how-to videos and personal relationships with program users.

When employees see them on campus, they know a new program challenge is brewing.

3. We used other forms of communication.

When MUS Wellness launched, Neal and Cristin visited each location to introduce the program and help employees register.

We launched a “Race to the Finish” challenge to encourage word-of-mouth, awarding points to employees who got their colleagues in the door. As a result of the challenge, 13 of 14 campuses reached the registration goal of 60 percent participation.

4. We connected to state pride.

MUS employees love their state. So we launched a “406” (Montana’s area code) challenge series.

For example, the “Trek the 406” step challenge rewards employees for walking the equivalent length of well-known historical routes, such as the Beartooth Highway or the Lewis and Clark Trail.

These popular challenges tap into employees’ personal passions and reward them for soaking up their surroundings.

Using a blog, making wellness advocates 'celebrities' and other tips. (Photo: Getty)

5. We leveraged our blog.

Our blog, Montana Moves & Montana Meals is a popular employee resource with content on exercise, nutrition, event announcements and employee well-being improvement stories.

Blog posts get readers excited about well-being and direct them to MUS Wellness where they earn points for their healthy behavior.

6. We harnessed the power of video.

Using video, we can bring Neal and Cristin’s energy to each employee’s desk. They create simple but engaging cooking demos, exercise “how-to’s” and blooper videos to keep the program light and fun.

The videos are promoted on MUS social media channels like Twitter and Facebook — and always drive employees back to MUS Wellness.

7. We incorporated interactive video.

Neal and Cristin’s videos were such a hit, that we launched a vendor's video and quiz tool that turns bite-size videos and presentations into targeted well-being challenges. With this technology, we can easily share videos and then test users’ comprehension with quizzes, while rewarding employees for watching.

The product also offers analytics so program managers can see what videos are being watched and what people are retaining.

Getting creative

MUS wants its employees to be happy, healthy and engaged. Although we’ve faced barriers along the way, the MUS Wellness program consistently brings new-found motivation to our employees across the state.

By getting creative with different strategies and forms of communication, we’ve been able to successfully drive a powerful and impactful well-being program.

Instant Insights /

How Montana University System engaged employees across the state -- without using email

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