How to implement a wellbeing programme

James says: “Have a think about what the desired outcome is for the business. No company introduces a wellbeing programme for purely altruistic reasons because it costs money, however the benefits to the employee can also benefit the business, so it is a win-win. Research shows that wellbeing programmes can improve employee morale, happiness and job satisfaction, and this can result in higher productivity levels and lower absenteeism. Having a wellbeing programme is also increasingly becoming a Unique Selling Point (USP) for businesses to attract new talent, as younger people in particular place as much importance on wellbeing programmes and having a good work-life balance as on having a good salary.”

James says: “Start by assessing what your business is currently doing from a wellness perspective and how well or otherwise that is working - what the uptake rate is and what is the success of any existing measures.”

James says: “Wellness support can be physical, mental or emotional – it is not just about giving people a mindfulness session on a Friday afternoon. We always favour a holistic approach – gut health is also important, for example, as what we nourish ourselves with is going to impact our mood and our energy levels and even our creativity levels. A holistic approach will look at mind, body and emotion and understand how they impact each other.”

James says: “Think about what will be the best way to reach your employees. Busy executives won’t want to take time out to come to an hour-long workshop in person, for example, they will want to do it virtually. Whereas front line workers such as bin collectors are likely to prefer to do a wellness programme in person than via an online webinar.”

James says: “You need to decide what specific outcomes you are trying to achieve – for a senior management team, for example, you might be trying to reduce cases of burnout by focusing on the causes of stress; while for construction workers, you might be trying to reduce injuries and related absences from work by introducing protocols to reduce the likelihood of
injury.”

James says: “Hopefully people will do the wellness programme because they want to have better wellbeing for themselves but sometimes incentives or rewards increase adherence to the programme. This could be offering them an extra coaching session if they attend a certain number of sessions, for example.”

James says: “You need to communicate with your employees and make sure they know that there is a wellness resource that they can use. It is important to ensure that everyone understands what’s going on.”

James says: “Get feedback to see what is working in the programme and what maybe needs changing, and then use that information to continually improve and enhance the offering so that it continues to meet the business and employee needs.”

James Davis is the founder of The Midlife Mentors, an online coaching business.