five business benefits of corporate health programme

18 Jan

In a tough economy, it’s understandable that businesses want to slash expenditure any way they can. However, cutting or postponing corporate wellness initiatives could cost your business far more than you save.

The pandemic has highlighted how employee wellbeing is intrinsic to organisational success while boosting employee expectations. A third of organisations have increased their budget for wellbeing benefits as a result of the pandemic, the 2022 CIPD Health and Wellbeing at Work Survey reveals.

Here, we outline the key business benefits as well as how to ensure your workplace wellness programme delivers a genuine ROI.

1. Improved Productivity

It’s a no-brainer that employees who feel valued perform better. The trend of quiet quitting – putting no more effort into your job than absolutely necessary – is an act of resistance by workers who do not feel valued or appreciated.

Happy employees are also able to cope with stress better, are more resilient, and are less likely to call in sick. Absenteeism alone costs UK businesses an estimated £100 billion in lost revenue year on year.

Studies indicate that our mental firepower is directly linked to physical exercise and nowhere are the implications more relevant than our work performance, according to award-winning psychologist Ron Friedman. In an article for the Harvard Business Review, he listed the cognitive benefits of regular exercise:

Improved concentration
Sharper memory

Faster learning
Prolonged mental stamina
Enhanced creativity
Lower stress

“Exercise enables us to soak in more information, work more efficiently, and be more productive,” Dr Friedman writes. “Instead of viewing exercise as something we do for ourselves—a personal indulgence that takes us away from our work—it’s time we started considering physical activity as part of the work itself.”

2. Stronger Teams

However, giving every employee a free gym membership won’t achieve much. Many people find gyms an intimidating, unwelcoming environment and, without sufficient support or direction, most will drop out after a month or two.

A popular alternative is Small Group Personal Training (SGPT), which provides similar benefits to one-to-one coaching without the price tag. This style of training increases the sense of community and collaboration between participants, while also encouraging commitment, motivation and improved performance. Whether you focus on physical fitness or incorporate mind-body connection with activities such as yoga or meditation, these type of initiatives are more important than ever for building team bonds considering the widespread adoption of working from home.

3. Talent Attraction and Retention

The chronic skills shortage in the UK labour market is not going to be resolved anytime soon. Regardless of your sector or industry, recruiting and retaining the best talent is key to business growth – and the competition has never been fiercer.

Forward-thinking companies are investing in employee wellbeing programmes that are both inclusive and flexible, with the emphasis on giving every employee the support they need to achieve a long-term healthy lifestyle. For example, a programme has to be flexible enough to motivate people who are new to exercise and those who regularly run 5km races on the weekend.

Offering a weekend wellness retreat or in-office fitness training sends a clear message that your organisation values mental and physical wellbeing.

4. Improved Employer Brand

Media reports focus on how Gen Z and Millennials want to work for companies with strong ethics and a good track record for how they treat their workers. However, in a world where we can all investigate the history of a company from the comfort of our couches, it’s not just younger workers who want to ensure an organisation has a positive public reputation before they apply for a position.

While free exercise classes are not going to magically fix deep-rooted cultural issues, a well-considered wellness programme enhances your organisation’s reputation and employer brand.

5. It’s Profitable!

In an article about workplace wellbeing trends, training provider Haptivate points to an impressive raft of research-backed benefits, such as:

Companies that create a positive employee experience are 21% more profitable and enjoy 37% higher sales than their competitors
FTSE 100 companies that prioritise employee engagement and wellbeing out-perform the rest of the FTSE 100 by 10%.

The CIPD, which represents almost 160,000 HR and people development professionals, says their research shows health and wellbeing shouldn't be treated as an ‘add-on’ or ‘nice-to-have’. “If employers place employee wellbeing at the centre of their business model and view it as the vital source of value creation, the dividends for organisational health can be significant,” the CIPD states in a ‘Wellbeing at Work’ factsheet released in November 2022.

UK fitness experts SweatIT offer competitively priced Small Group Personal Training and corporate health programmes for companies in London and the South-East, including weekend hotel retreats, team-building afternoons and evenings, and in-office fitness training.

To find out more, of how we could help your TEAM’s be more productive by emailling info@sweat-it.co or visit our website.