The Employee Wellness Dance:
Marrying Individual Pursuits with Organizational Priorities
Suzanna Cooper
MA, LPCC, MS, OTR/L, CWC
Chief Learning Officer
US Corporate Wellness, Inc.
Brad Cooper
MSPT, MBA, MTC, ATC, CWC
Chief Executive Officer
US Corporate Wellness, Inc.
The Individual
 Meaningful
 Lasting
 Personal
 Unique
The Organization
 Bottom Line
 ROI/VOI
 Improve Lives
 Enhance Culture
dance
dans/
verb: dance; 3rd person present: dances; past tense: danced;
past participle: danced; gerund or present participle: dancing
1. move rhythmically to music, typically following a set
sequence of steps.
Customers
The Dance isn’t unique
to wellness
Owners
Employees
Employer
Employees
Ally
Step One: Assess Your
OrganizationalWellness Quotient (OWQ)
Sample Organizational Questions
Rate on 1-10 Scale:
 Consistent (year-round) employee engagement
 Modeled support from leadership
 Budget matches vision
 Integration with broader benefits program
 Time commitment fits w/out negating YOUR wellness
 Flavor of the month (1) or consistent long-term strategy (10)
 One size fits ONE approach
Step One: Assess Your Personal Wellness Quotient (PWQ)
Sample Individual Questions
How satisfied are you w/ your own health & wellness right now?
 Adequate sleep? Do you wake up feeling rested? How is your energy level?
Are you able to focus on the things in life that you find meaningful?
 Comfortable with your current weight? Looking to make any sort of change?
 Find yourself worried/stressed more often? Noticing physical symptoms of stress?
 Healthy foods that help you feel energized & regular activity in your day?
 Any concerns with your health – blood pressure, cholesterol, tobacco use, etc?
 Where would you like to see yourself 1 & 5 years from now?
Anything you would like to start, stop or change in terms of wellness in your life?
Organizational
 Engagement
 Modeled
 Integrated
 Long Term Perspective
 Lasting, Meaningful Change
Individual
Transtheoretical Model of Change
Prochaska and DiClemente
Example: Decreasing caffeine – or starting a wellness program??
Cost of Poor Employee Health
Direct Costs make up 30% of total
 Medical care
 Pharmaceutical costs
Indirect Costs make up 70% of total
 Presenteeism & Absenteeism
 Overtime
 Turnover
 Temporary staffing
 Working slowly
 Late deliveries
 Replacement training
 Customer dissatisfaction
 Variable product quality
Source: Loeppke R, Taitel M, Haufle V, Parry T, Kessler RC,
Jinnett K, ”Health and Productivity as a Business Strategy: A
Multi-Employer Study,” Journal of Occupational Environmental
Medicine, 2009, 51(4):411–428, pp. 140-152.
The Vision
(You choose the theme song)
Clear Vision
Strategic Map
“Sequence of Steps “
Top 14 ROI/VOI Goals for Wellness Program
1. Reduce employee health risks (ROI)
2. Attract or retain talented employees (VOI)
3. Reduce the number of sick days (ROI)
4. Improve employee morale (VOI)
5. Manage/reduce disability claims (ROI)
6. Enhance employee job satisfaction (VOI)
7. Improve employee productivity (VOI)
8. Manage or reduce health care costs (ROI)
9. Improve employee energy levels at work (VOI)
10. Improve employee daily health decisions at work (VOI)
11. Increase on-the-job safety (ROI)
12. Impact business performance metrics and profitability (ROI)
13. Enhance co-worker relationships/build camaraderie (VOI)
14. Reduce presenteeism costs (VOI)
Optum study, 2015
Strategic Organizational Map
 12/24/36 Month Destination?
• What does that mean for 6 months from now… 3
months… 1 month… next week… tomorrow?
• How to move past “Status Quo Bias”
 Who needs to be involved?
• Internally (recruit – don’t assume)
• Externally (who fits your needs and culture)
 How - Does budget match vision? (incentive plans)
(Steps relatively easy once map in place)
Vision… Map… Steps
Individual selects their instrument…
Big Picture Wellness
Smoking
Cessation
Energy
Values
FINANCIAL FITNESS
Goal: Tap into the person’s intrinsic motivation – what matters to them!
• Consider the training of your coaches!
o Why coaching works for the individual
o How coaching influences the culture
The Delicate Dance
• Offering incentives – extrinsic motivation
• Recognizing that lasting behavior change
requires shifting to intrinsic motivation
• This requires advanced dancing skills!!
Organizationally Speaking
(Coaching Impact)
 $586 avg savings/yr for coaching participants
(11.3% of medical costs)
 $261 avg savings/yr for non-coached participants
(5.2% of med costs)
 98% of coaching participants reported coaching was
“beneficial” or “very worthwhile” in helping achieve personal
wellness goals
Data from HealthFitness research study 2017, reported by Business Wire
and US Corporate Wellness participant survey data 2017
The Willpower Instinct
Kelly McGonigal, PhD
The Power of Habit
Charles Duhigg
Keystone
Habits
Maybe a different perspective on wellness program benefits…
Improved Productivity… Decreased Sick Time,
Turnover, Disability & Medical Costs (Employer
Benefits)
The best way to get ahead in your career, your finances
and your life! (Employee Benefits)
Celebrity Dance-off
(examples of how organizations are dancing nationally)
 Regional Hospital in the SE
 Mid-sized National Non-Profit Organization
 Perennial “Best Places to Work” Winner
The Dance!
Organizational
 Engagement
 Modeled
 Integrated
 Long Term Perspective
 Lasting, Meaningful Change
Individual
Please remember us when you’re ready to dance!
[email protected]
800-910-9425
Complimentary WQ Organizational Review for any
organization contacting us in next 7 days