In 2008 during an informal audit of the overall culture within The Starr Group, it became apparent we were not providing support to those individuals who were attempting to make healthy choices.  As a business that cared about the overall wellbeing of our employees, we needed to make wellness a part of our overall business strategy.

I knew very little about corporate wellness so the first thing I did was to join WELCOA and to read and learn as much as quickly as I could.  In 2010 I received my Certified Wellness Designation from the Spencer Institute and in 2012 I became a WELCOA Faulty Member.  It was the knowledge gained as a WELCOA Faculty Member that provided the most guidance on this journey.

I embraced all 7 benchmarks of a successful wellness program and used them as our guide for best practices.   The core of our programming is built around physical activity and proper nutrition, realizing that these two initiatives alone will lay the groundwork for a healthy employee and a healthy business more than any other.  Our employees have experienced significant improvements in their overall health with examples including a 25 point drop in glucose, a 50 point drop in cholesterol, a 50% drop in insulin, minimizing and eliminating the use of tobacco, 50 pounds lost as well as a $2000 per employee drop in our Corporate Risk Burden (pre-disease, lifestyle and productivity).  Our program has experienced 100% employee participation for the past 4 years. 

The key to our wellness programming is our focus on building a culture of trust along with a shared vision.  This more than anything laid the foundation for our overall success.  We designate the majority of our wellness dollars towards providing education and tools rather than incentives.  In 2013 we rolled out a Healthy Eating Policy, in 2014 we added a Physical Activity Policy and a Stress Management Policy.  In 2015 we plan to implement a Medical Self-Care Policy.  We want healthy choices to be the easy choices and we are willing to put corporate policies in place to support these behaviors.

We discuss our wellness programming during annual employee reviews and during initial interviews with prospective candidates.  A culture of trust and wellbeing took years to create and is therefore one we work very hard to protect.  The greatest confirmation for making wellness an overall business strategy came from the comments of our current and prospective employees.  We have a 20-30% higher employee satisfaction rate compared to our peers with the majority of employees commenting that our wellness initiatives are a primary factor as it shows the level of care and concern we have for their overall wellbeing.  I was amazed when these same comments were echoed by job candidates looking to join our organization.

 I am grateful for the help I have received along the way and am more than willing to share my experience and wisdom in return.  I have been a board member of the Wellness Council, Well City and American Heart Association since 2011.  I am a founding member of the Chamber’s Health and Wellness Council whose purpose is to provide education and opportunities to promote corporate wellness for the two cities the chamber serves.  It is my goal that all of the organizations I serve on work together to promote health and wellbeing among our members and the community as a whole.  I know that by combining our experience and wisdom we can make a difference. Wellness is my passion and my purpose.  I will continue to learn, teach and share for the duration of my being.