WINNING WORKPLACE

WELLBEING
A five-step guide
 CONTENTS
Our experts 2

The diagnosis 3

Step 1 – Aim high  4

Step 2 – Address your core audience  5

Step 3 – Embrace VOI 6

Step 4 – Be authentic 7

Step 5 – Make to measure 8

About Virgin Pulse 9

1
 OUR DR DAVID BATMAN

EXPERTS Dr David Batman is the International Occupational Health

Adviser for Virgin Pulse, and a member of the Science
Advisory Board at Virgin Pulse Institute. He has been
a medical practitioner for more than 40 years and a
registered Specialist Occupational Health Consultant for
the last 30 years.

Before joining Virgin Pulse, he was GCC’s Chief Medical

Officer. And previously, Head of Occupational Health and
Safety for Nestlé in the UK and Ireland.

His expertise covers risk assessments, health surveillance,

return to work and rehabilitation procedures; he has
a particular interest in mental health issues in the
workplace.

DR RON GOETZEL
Dr Ron Goetzel, a member of the Virgin Pulse Science
Advisory Board, is Senior Scientist and Director of the
Institute for Health and Productivity Studies (IHPS) at the
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He is
also Vice President of Consulting and Applied Research
for IBM Watson Health.

DR BJ FOGG

Dr BJ Fogg is a leading behavior change expert, Director of

Stanford University’s Persuasive Tech Lab, one of Fortune
Magazine’s “10 New Gurus You Should Know”, and a
member of the Virgin Pulse Science Advisory Board.

2 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com

 THE
DIAGNOSIS
1. Gallup. The worldwide employee engagement
crisis. 2016. Available here.
2. Harvard Health. Too much sitting linked to
heart disease, diabetes, premature death.2015.
Available here.
3. CDC Foundation. Worker illness and injury costs
US employers $225 billion annually. 2015.
Available here.
4. Harvard Business Review. Presenteeism:
at work – but out of it. 2014. Available here.
3 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com
“As a practicing specialist in occupational
medicine for more than 30 years, I have seen
increasing declines in employee health. This
decline is related to two significant health
issues – obesity and its associated health
conditions, and an ever-increasing rise in
psychological ill health.
“It’s now time to build business success based
on a fit, healthy and resilient workforce.”
– Dr. David Batman, International
Occupational Health Adviser for
Virgin Pulse
As Dr. Batman says, the modern workforce is in a critical
state, and the health and wellbeing of employees are
suffering. 87% of the world’s workers are disengaged1. And
sedentary office culture is being linked to lifestyle-related
conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.2
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
estimate that illness costs employers $225 billion
annually in the US alone3. Up to 60% of this cost is due to
presenteeism4 – employees showing up to work when they
aren’t physically or psychologically fit to be there.
Expectations on HR and Benefits leaders have never been
higher. Yet it can be difficult to know where to
start in such a complex climate.
This five-step checklist can guide you, providing a blueprint
for more effective workplace wellbeing. Use it to enhance
your strategy, then create the kind of healthy, resilient
culture that drives every successful business.
 STEP 1
AIM HIGH
The first step in creating a successful wellbeing strategy is
getting buy-in from executives and senior management.
CEOs and boards will be more willing to grant funding for
a program that connects back to their overall business
objectives – whether that’s reducing healthcare costs and
absenteeism, or increasing employee engagement –
so define what the pain points are.
Buy-in also requires a solid business case, so build health
and wellbeing momentum across departments and
business functions, not just in HR.
Talk to your CFO about the costs of not investing in
wellbeing. Approach legal and discuss the health and
safety risks. More importantly, talk to the employees
whose very livelihood and productivity depends on the
right program.
4 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com
¢¢ CASE STUDY
In 2016, Virgin Pulse partnered with Community
Housing Limited, a non-profit providing affordable
housing. They wanted to find a way to get their global
workforce – spread across 25 offices in inter-state
Australia, Timor and Chile – healthy and engaged.
Converting that desire into business outcomes
wasn’t without challenges, however. “One of the
biggest hurdles we faced was getting buy-in from
leadership and from those who really stood to benefit
from the program,” said Lee-Anne Walsh, Business
Transformation Manager at Community Housing.
“There was some resistance initially, but this was
overcome by creating other wellbeing champions.
“When the board and senior management also
participated in the program, they lead by example
rather than simply endorsing the initiative.
“If there’s one piece of advice I would give,
it’s this: buy-in is essential. If you don’t have it,
you can’t do it.”
 STEP 2
ADDRESS YOUR CORE AUDIENCE
It’s easy – and tempting – to enroll healthy, active, engaged
employees in a wellbeing initiative then, at the end, point
out how successful they’ve been.
But this approach leaves out high-risk employees,
who need your support most.
To overcome this common blind spot, it’s critical that your
program is designed to attract and engage everybody, and
that it is particularly concerned with those employees who
will provide the most return on the health and performance
metrics that matter to your organization.
Be inclusive in the communication of health and wellbeing,
but specific in its design. Remember that no two people
have the same attitude, physical strength, self-discipline
or motivation.
Likewise, not all employees need the same help at the
same time. Some may need assistance with nutrition
and physical activity. Others might need help with
engagement, or to change their habits and behaviors
around stress and sleep.

¢TIP
¢
“Dramatic changes can be hard to sustain. Instead, focus people on making small changes that
are meaningful to employees. Help your people feel successful on their journey. And then trust
the process: Change leads to change.”
Dr. BJ Fogg,
member of the Virgin Pulse Science Advisory Board, leading expert on behavioral change

5 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com

 STEP 3
EMBRACE VOI
Traditionally, the success of health and wellbeing
has been measured solely in dollars.
¢TAKEOUT
¢
But value on investment (VOI) models allow businesses “Let’s expand our view of what’s important
to understand how wellbeing impacts a wider range and measurable. My new rule of thumb is
of non-financial metrics that are also important. Like
that an ROI of 1:1 is good enough if you can
engagement, productivity, resilience, and the ability
demonstrate significant improvements in
to attract and retain talent.
VOI measures important to the business.”
Carefully define which of these metrics you want Dr. Ron Goetzel,
to report on.
member of the Virgin Pulse Science
Then measure value on investment by focusing Advisory Board, leading researcher
on the following areas: in support of VOI

• Population health improvement – Aim to improve

the health and wellbeing of all your employees by getting
them engaged and committed to improving their habits.

• On-the-job performance – Measure engagement,

presenteeism, and the extent to which health and
wellbeing may affect performance at work.

• Your reputation – Consider where you are on the list

of businesses that prospective employees most admire.
In a knowledge economy, that may affect the type of
talent you attract and retain.

6 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com

 STEP 4
BE AUTHENTIC
A successful wellbeing strategy looks and feels authentic –
something that’s easier said than done. ¢¢ AUTHENTICITY CHECK
Currently, the visual language of workplace wellbeing • Watch your visual language
is often clichéd and clinical. Even though inauthentic,
• Create local champions and let their feedback
medical images don’t inspire employees into the already
inform your strategy
difficult task of habit change.
• Engage with current and cultural affairs to make
To cut through, treat employees as your prospects your content locally relevant
in wellbeing, much like marketing would treat your
• Use translators that engage and inspire action
prospective customers.

Like marketers, talk to employees in a tone that’s

personal and trusting and you’re already dealing with
an engaged audience.

Also, if your strategy is being rolled out to an international

workforce, use translated content that engages
and inspires action. Don’t opt for safe messaging
in standard English.

Country champions can help you build a better picture

of what the local issue is (reducing healthcare costs?
Increasing morale in a tough economy?) and allow you
to weave that insight into your messaging.

7 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com

 STEP 5
MAKE TO MEASURE
In business, there’s no place for ‘nice-to-have’ expenses, And for this, you’ll need software. A single operating
so health and wellbeing needs hard numbers behind it. system that creates efficiency, history and data.

And the only way to position wellbeing as an investment, By harnessing the power of platforms and technology,
rather than an expense, is to show that you are making you can measure VOI, ROI and also see longer-term
quantifiable improvements across all the factors outlined trends that inform future planning and investment in
by your VOI model. the health and wellbeing of your people.

Was it engagement? Health scores? Reduced Find out how our solutions can help you
absenteeism? Whatever the challenge, make sure you connect health and wellbeing to business
tie its solution back to the overall business strategy.
outcomes – and get results like these.

¢THE
¢ VIRGIN PULSE DIFFERENCE5

44% 46% 28% 51% 64%

of employees feel of employees are of employees who use of employees say of employees credit
more productive more engaged Virgin Pulse take less they are more Virgin Pulse with
sick days energetic at work making their company
a better place to work

5. Virgin Pulse Member Survey 2016.

8 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com

 ABOUT
VIRGIN PULSE

Virgin Pulse, part of Sir Richard Branson’s famed
Virgin Group, helps employers create workforces that
are happier, healthier and ultimately more productive
in all aspects of their personal and professional lives.
The company’s modern, mobile-first platform delivers
a personalized user experience that utilizes gamification
to engage users in building habits that inspire meaningful
and measurable change across individuals and businesses.
By helping employees thrive at work and in all aspects of
life, Virgin Pulse is helping change lives and businesses
for good.
Unlike narrowly focused employee health solutions,
Virgin Pulse’s solutions span the full wellbeing spectrum –
from traditional wellness to strategic wellbeing – providing
organizations with solutions that are appropriate for them
today and tomorrow.
More than 2,500 organizations representing many of
the Fortune 500 and Best Places to Work have selected
Virgin Pulse’s solutions to engage their workforces and
drive their businesses forward.

FIND OUT MORE AT:

virginpulse.com
globalchallenge.virginpulse.com

9 © Virgin Pulse 2017 • virginpulse.com