Corporate Wellness Program Ideas

Employee well-being is a crucial factor in the success and growth of organizations. It hasn’t always been a primary focus, but in today’s fast-paced world, businesses must recognize it. Employers are recognizing that they need to go beyond traditional healthcare benefits, but aren’t sure where to start.

Corporate wellness programs emerged as a way to foster a culture of well-being, boost productivity, reduce healthcare costs, and ultimately, create a more positive work environment. 

Remember, a successful corporate wellness program is not a one-size-fits-all solution. It requires understanding the wants and needs of your workforce and a supportive organizational culture. 

Today, we’ll cover 20 ideas you can implement in your workplace. These ideas are sure to encourage your employees along their health and wellness journeys. Let’s get started.

1. Mindfulness and Meditation Sessions

Mindfulness and meditation are critical for creating a positive mindset and well-balanced life. Carve out space during the workday for employees to take a ten-minute “mindfulness break”.  They can tune in to mindfulness and meditation apps for a quick mental relaxation and reset. Take it one step further – cover the cost of these mindfulness and meditation apps for your employees. 

1. Fitness Challenges

Fitness challenges are fun when the whole office gets in on the activity! Make sure that your challenges include scalable options so that everyone can participate. This can be as simple as a step competition, or as complex as an office Crossfit Games-type competition. The winner can take home bragging rights and cool office swag – gift cards are always welcome, too!

1. Offer Support for Alcohol and Substance Abuse

If your employees need help with alcohol and substance abuse, you must play a supportive role. They may appreciate in-office meetings if you can provide them. If that isn’t feasible, allow your employees to take time out of their day, without penalty, to attend meetings. 

1. Nutrition Workshops

The food we consume can significantly impact our immune system and help us fight viruses! Offer workshops on how to create healthy and nutritious meals. Workshops could include topics like establishing healthy eating habits and meal planning. Consider offering a live cooking demonstration to give them the encouragement they need. 

1. Yoga Classes

One of the easiest ways to incorporate corporate wellness programs into your business is by offering yoga or pilates classes on-site. You don’t need a ton of space, either! Clear out the conference room or take the adventure outside to offer an easy yoga flow. Make sure to offer yoga sessions that are accessible for all skill levels. This can be as simple as following a YouTube video online! Alternatively, you can spring for an instructor to come to your office and host a weekly session.

1. Provide Healthy Meals

Even if you can’t provide healthy meals every day, your employees will appreciate you picking up the lunch tab every once in a while. Consider springing for an office lunch when big deadlines are coming up. This is when employees tend to put their effort into overdrive, and eating healthy slips to the wayside.  

1. Stress Management Workshops

We hear it nearly every day: “Manage your stress levels.” But what does that actually mean? Give your employees the chance to learn from a live workshop about managing their stress. Teach them different ways to manage it, including deep breathing exercises and stress reduction strategies. 

1. Wellness Challenges

Wellness challenges can be a great way to create a bit of fun competition in your organization. Challenges can be anything such as sleep improvement, water intake, or healthy snacking. There are many apps available that can make this very easy and fun for employees to participate in. Challenges can run for a week, a month, or however long needed!

1. Lunchtime Walking Groups

Encourage your employees to move their bodies by coordinating a lunchtime walking group. The extra sunshine is great for your mental health. Stepping away from your desk for some fresh air can keep the afternoon crash at bay.  Beyond that, the movement can help them keep an active lifestyle. 

1. Employee Assistance Program

Your corporate employee assistance program (EAP) is a critical piece of the employee wellness puzzle. Access to counseling services and resources can tremendously help employees navigate the stressors of their work and personal lives. 

1. Financial Wellness Workshops

One of the biggest stressors to adults is their financial well-being. An American Psychological Association (APA) study found that 72% of Americans feel stressed about money at least some of the time.  It can significantly and adversely impact your employees in many ways, including their sleep, self-esteem, and energy level. This results in decreased productivity and increased tension in the workplace. 

One way to combat this stressor is to provide financial wellness workshops in the workplace. Led by a professional in the financial space, employees can find a sense of calm and composure after learning how to take charge of their finances. 

1. Health Education Webinars

Webinars are a very approachable way to share information that can positively impact the health and wellness of your employees. These easy-to-digest webinars can include topics such as healthy heart habits, managing chronic conditions, or stress reduction techniques. 

1. On-Site Fitness Classes

Getting your team involved in fitness classes on-site can be a great way to encourage them in their health and wellness journeys. If you have the space, create a dedicated zone for exercise. It can be as simple as transforming a conference room one or two days a week to act as a dedicated fitness space. You could offer equipment-free yoga or strength training classes!

1. Smoking Cessation Programs

According to the CDC, cigarette smoking is responsible for more than 480,000 deaths per year in the United States, including more than 41,000 deaths resulting from secondhand smoke exposure. Despite the efforts of major smoking cessation campaigns, it’s still a large contributor to illness and death around the country. You can help your employees quit smoking by offering smoking cessation programs in-office as a way to encourage them toward a healthy future. 

1. Mental Health Support

Mental health is nothing to joke about – it must be a top priority in the workplace. Strengthening workplace well-being is critical to ensure happy and healthy employees. The growing concerns about stress among Americans can be supported where the majority of adults spend their days: in the office. Ensure your employees have access to robust mental health resources including counseling services and mental health hotlines.

1. Offer Paid Parental Leave

The U.S. is tremendously lacking in this space. New parents are balancing a lack of sleep and being responsible for a new life. Give your employees the time and space to rest and recuperate after this exciting time. Providing paid parental leave can support them in their brief time away without any added stress. This can make their return to work much more enjoyable and significantly less stressful.  Offering paid parental leave can also impact their mental and physical wellness, and will increase company loyalty as a result. 

1. Health And Wellness Newsletter

Get crafty with an engaging health and wellness newsletter! Bring the latest research and updates right to your employee’s fingertips. Health and wellness newsletters don’t have to be complex – they can be as simple as a content round-up of interesting articles with healthy tips, healthy recipes, and upcoming wellness events. Don’t forget to highlight how an iterative mindset can help them see long-term success!

1. Sleep Hygiene Campaign

Reminding employees that they “need to sleep more” isn’t going to make a difference. What will move the needle is supporting employees with actionable and practical tips to support them in developing better sleep habits. Provide support via company-paid wellness app subscriptions that help employees develop healthy sleep habits.

1. Flexible Work Arrangements

Since the pandemic, we’ve seen an increase in the number of employees working from home – it’s nearly tripled.  For employers, this may be a great solution to reducing burnout and supporting employees’ well-being. Employees may be better able to establish a work-life balance that suits their needs if they have flexible work arrangements.    

1. Support Behavior Change

Building healthy habits is a cornerstone of having a healthy workforce. But how do you help your employees get healthy? There are hundreds, if not thousands, of frameworks that promise to help you make or break habits that lead to better health. One of the most successful ways to find long-term wellness is by adopting an iterative mindset – because iterators never fail. Offer the Fresh Tri app to your employees as part of your corporate wellness program. By doing so, you’ll watch them flourish as they “tri” their best and iterate toward health and wellness. 

Fresh Tri for Corporate Wellness Programs

An effective corporate wellness program can flex and adapt to the needs of your employees. A stagnant program that relays the same outdated messages will be quick to lose the interest, and motivation, of your employees. 

Help your employees along the way to better health and wellness by leveraging the Fresh Tri app and the Iterative Mindset MethodTM.Watch your employees Tri their way to success – browse our blog or download the app today.