Employer wellness programs exist for two key reasons: 1) to save on a company's health care costs; and 2) to help keep employees healthier and more productive. Despite their existence since the early 1970s, the truth is that wellness programs, in general, have been ineffective at demonstrating a clear return-on-investment (ROI) for employers. At the same time however, scientific research indicates employers should see a return of $1.50 to $2.00 from each dollar spent on wellness programs. The disconnect between studies and reality stems from the fact that there is no simple way for an organization to realize the same results. Instead, to be successful, an employer must implement wellness programs by first developing a concrete strategy to drive and track employee engagement.

We are not suggesting your clients focus solely on the number of individuals who have signed up for a wellness program or are accessing its services. Rather, these employers should utilize data and analytics to optimize their wellness efforts and create more targeted, meaningful and personalized programs for their employees.

After all, simply providing a generalized wellness program for all employees is not an effective approach. A non-tailored program typically only attracts the healthiest of employees — those who already demonstrate high levels of motivation and do not require employer incentives. While they may regularly utilize the gym, log their number of daily miles and earn rewards, it is not the driving reason behind their conduct, nor does it impact behavioral changes across their organization. Keep in mind, these are not the individuals adding to a company's health care expenditures or reducing overall productivity; in fact, they are likely the least costly and often most efficient employees.

This is where data analytics plays a role for benefits consultants, employers and HR departments, particularly within larger organizations. While the term “big data” has become ubiquitous across all industries, for those looking to build a culture of health and well-being, it serves one primary purpose: to track and trend human behavior. Without accessing any personally identifiable health information, employers can utilize data aggregates from their insurers and service providers to optimize their wellness programs, and in particular, their incentives.

By tracking employee health at the aggregate level, brokers and employers have a clear view of which specific health conditions are most prevalent among employees and their families. For example, if data indicates that a significant segment of an employer's staff struggles with obesity-related health issues, the wellness program should be optimized to include specific guidelines to help employees maintain healthier diets and exercise more (even prior to considering weight management challenges). This common sense approach, based in sound clinical practices, could be applied to any condition or disease, from diabetes and high cholesterol to mental health issues like depression or anxiety. Also, while the evidence for using wearable technology to track activities is still lacking, if such devices motivate a population segment that was not previously active, there is no harm in deploying such strategies.

By making employee health and well-being a priority and optimizing wellness programs to target the most prevalent conditions in their workforces, employers can better engage employees with the program itself. This engagement can then be reinforced by strong support from senior leadership and middle management. This is particularly important as line managers are key to making health and wellness a part of the company's daily work and community activities. In order for any wellness program to be effective, management has to demonstrate this support through their actions and reinforce it each and every day.

This represents a more modern approach to employee health. In lieu of the traditional reactive approach that attempts to manage a health problem after it has already developed, employers can take a proactive approach that looks to stop damaging chronic conditions from developing in the first place. This is playing the long game, and is focused on minimizing health care expenditures and improving productivity well into the future. Thus, the data employers track must be targeted towards specific engagement levels in those targeted activities.

Consider obesity as an example. It is one of the leading risk factors of heart disease in America today, according to the Mayo Clinic. By helping employees better manage this condition prior to it developing into acute heart disease, employers can potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars in health care expenditures, sometimes on as few as one or two employees. And more importantly, it could potentially save the lives of valued employees.

Likewise, encouraging those same individuals to be active on a daily basis will improve their productivity, both in and outside of the office. By encouraging employees to live physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually healthy lives, employers can help employees facilitate their lifelong goals and dreams. For example, research has shown that employees who get at least 75 minutes of high-intensity physical activity per week, miss an average of 4.1 fewer work days per year. This allows them to better focus on being productive at work, and their home lives will often improve once they've left the office with their jobs complete.

Of course, even after an employer's wellness program has been optimized, it's only effective if employees are aware of it, so it is often necessary to educate employees on the company benefits and how to utilize them. While some employees will intuitively utilize their benefits, the vast majority of them require a certain level of education and encouragement beforehand. This means consistently communicating with them on how to access benefits and select ones best suited to their individual needs. This too can be tracked and trended to ensure maximum visibility among employees.

By taking the time to identify which programs and services employees and their families value the most, consultants and their employer clients can create comprehensive, personalized benefits programs that not only improve employee well-being, but also lower overall costs and drive corporate engagement. And, in doing so, employers better position themselves to create a healthier and more productive workforce

Dinesh Sheth is founder and CEO of Green Circle Health, which is dedicated to using innovative technologies to improve health and well-being of employees and their families. Its GCH Platform functions as a single HR benefits app and a communications gateway that facilitates remote monitoring and the exchange of information in real-time driving engagement and lowering costs by ensuring that employees and their families receive timely care and live coaching it eliminates eliminating unnecessary hospital visits and delayed treatment. For more information, follow Green Circle Health on Twitter (@GreenCircleH) and visit www.greencirclehealth.com.

Instant Insights /

Wellness participation: How data drives engagement

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