Understanding how to get leadership involved at all levels.
Are you struggling with ways to get your corporate leaders involved in your workplace wellbeing programs? Lots of HR departments know that getting senior buy-in is critical to the success of employee wellbeing initiatives.
But knowing it is one thing and succeeding at it is another! And you don’t just need senior leadership support, but leadership on all organization levels.
If you’d like to learn how to get management involved and even turn them into health champions you’ll need to use strong, targeted messaging, right?
Here are 10 ways to get there.
1. Remind them how vital it is for your wellness program to align with corporate culture
Study your company’s mission and vision statements and honestly evaluate the underground corporate culture, (you know, the one that nobody talks about but everybody feels).
When you take it upon yourself to remind leadership that culture drives the wellbeing of an organization, it will help them to remember that flourishing employees and flourishing companies go hand in glove.
According to Willis Towers Watson, many employers are now acting urgently to beef up their corporate employee wellness programs.
But that urgency will only make a difference when corporate culture is as healthy as leadership wants their employees to be.
2. Show them the data
Disseminate materials and links to studies that demonstrate the proven benefits of having robust wellness initiatives.
Don’t expect busy managers or executives to read entire web pages or articles though. In your messaging, furnish them with short summaries and bulleted lists of key points, especially those that specifically relate to a manager’s department or sphere of influence.
3. Encourage them to play a role
Leaders and managers can’t read your mind, right? That’s why you need to hold their hand a little. Let them know the role you’d like them to play to help your corporate health and wellness programs succeed.
Be clear and succinct. What do you want from them and when? This could range from “walking the talk” to developing new corporate policies.
4. Praise the great things their peers are doing
With just a minuscule amount of research, you can dig up web pages galore that extol companies and their leaders for building cultures of health (as well as the benefits they’re reaping!) Ever heard of the bandwagon effect?
Leadership is much more likely to climb on board with your wellness plans when they see their peers succeeding.
5. Give kudos and shout-outs for a job well done
There’s nothing wrong with fostering a little healthy competition among management.
Empower managers whose departments are meeting and exceeding wellness goals by offering them a little public recognition. It might just get other managers to jump on board.
6. Know who your allies are
Identify those in leadership who are already vested in the health of your company. You likely already know who these are.
Keep them apprised of any workplace wellness planning you’re doing, and also any successes you’re having so they can help you get the word out.
7. Nurture your executive champions
If you’ve got people in leadership who are already passionate about your company’s health and wellness initiatives and are in a position to support them, keep them pumped up.
The last thing you’d want to do is let that passion fizzle out. Get them involved in any way they’re willing or able.
Ask for their collaboration, opinions, and support and always keep them in the loop about your program’s successes so they can broadcast them to their departments.
8. Make things easy
If you want managers throughout the company to help your program succeed, you’ll want to remove as many barriers to participation as you can. Communicate, communicate, communicate.
Send out personalized invitations to your wellness events. Give managers ideas on how to compete with other departments (think step challenges, biggest losers, random acts of kindness). Employees like to hear things from their managers in person.
Make sure they have plenty to talk about. Send out department-specific emails with items they can share with their teams.
9. Poll managers to take a pulse of their attitudes
You need to know the things about your wellness program that managers know are important to their concerns.
Every department’s needs can vary. Give managers lots of information on how valuable health promotion is and how it can help attract top talent and retain valuable employees or help teams meet pressing deadlines by reducing both presenteeism and absenteeism.
10. Respect the skeptics
Let’s face facts. You’ll never get everyone in leadership to support your workplace wellbeing programs, even when you’ve done your best to promote their benefits.
It’s rare for everyone in leadership to get on board. Don’t let that dampen your enthusiasm.
It may not be possible to change those skeptics’ minds, but if they sense you respect their opinions, it’s less likely that they’ll stand in the way of your efforts. Be strong!
To your health!
