If you're reading this blog, we know that you're ready and willing to devote the time, energy and money that it takes to build a brilliant worksite wellness program. Here's the rub, though: out of all of the companies that have wellness programs, only 24% of employees are participating (according to a Gallup study). Less than a quarter. We know that's not enough; you want your entire workforce to be engaged in their work and enabled to be productive and successful, whether that's physically, financially and/or emotionally. 
Dawn Cacciotti, the former senior vice president of human resources at the Nebraska Restaurant Association, agrees with our vision. She recently took home the 2014 Judges' Choice Benny Award from Employee Benefit News for her three-year revamp of the NRA's HR program. Her efforts resulted in a 45% increase in employee engagement and a 2.2-year drop in the overall health age of their employees, among other successes.
How did she do it? Well, for starters, Dawn did her research. She sent out a confidential employee survey that included more than 100 questions on the topics of benefits, culture, communication, job satisfaction, training and beyond. The survey surpassed all the obvious inquiries, going as far as to ask employees, "If you had three wishes to make any changes in the organization, what would they be?"
From the responses, Dawn recognized that wellness goes well beyond the physical, and the NRA's program would need to address financial and emotional wellness to be successful. To address the physical component, the NRA launched a voluntary biometric screening program that established a baseline for health. Any employee that fell below that baseline was paired up with a wellness expert to set specific fitness and nutrition goals.
For the financial wellness portion, Dawn brought in two companies to offer financial literacy classes and better communicate the benefits of the NRA's 401(k) program.
Most importantly, the NRA also launched a wellness committee made up of employees throughout the company. This involvement not only results in the development of passionate, creative ideas; it also truly gets employees engaged, and thus are far more likely to encourage others to participate. It creates a true wellness culture, rather than just an HR-driven wellness program.
Through her dedication, Cacciotti’s efforts in the first three years of her tenure has helped boost the NRA's overall engagement scores by 45%, and turnover has dropped to below 15%.
How can you easily implement these initiatives in your office? Here are a few ideas:
1.) Go beyond the basic biometric screening. It's not enough to just hand employees their numbers and send them on their way. We offer short counseling sessions for every screening participant, giving them the change to engage with their health, ask questions about the data and set goals for the future.
2.) Communicate your wellness initiatives. Nobody will be willing to participate in a program they know nothing about, or one that is too complicated to understand. Give your employees enough time and information for them to easily align with your efforts.
3.) Get your employees personally involved. Send out surveys. Create wellness champions. Host spirited competitions. Do what it takes to get the managers and motivators in your organization to become personally invested in the company culture. When you're all out of ideas, just ask for more!
Do you have any additional tips/tricks for engaging employees in your worksite wellness program? Share below! 
