CEOs, Could The Real Reason Wellness Programs Don’t Work Be....You?

For the last two decades, insurers and employers have touted the benefits of wellness programs that encourage – and in some cases incentivize – employees to quit smoking, eat healthier and exercise.

The wellness industry is estimated to generate more than $446 billion in revenue. But study after study has found that this staggering investment doesn’t even move the needle on our nation’s $3 trillion annual healthcare tab.

Why? Well, if you’re a CEO and you’re reading this while downing a doughnut or taking a cigarette break, you’re to blame. If your idea of exercise is walking to the coffee shop for a 550-calorie Mocha Frappuccino, you’re to blame. If you offer wellness programs but don’t exude wellness yourself, you are squarely and firmly to blame.

According to an oft-quoted 2013 RAND study, wellness programs are only as effective as the leaders who implement them.

“Evidence from case studies suggests that for programs to be a success, senior leadership need to consider wellness an organizational priority to shift the company culture. Buy-in from direct supervisors is crucial to generate excitement and connect employees to available resources.”

In other words, in order for wellness programs to reduce healthcare cost and improve productivity, the entire culture of the organization has to prioritize health – starting from the very top. If you as a CEO ride a bike to work, participate in competitive races and host company fitness events, the culture shifts and wellness programs stick.

I am a zealous cyclist, and I’ve incorporated cycling into my business. We host cycling events at industry conventions, take clients on long bike rides, try to meet on the bike whenever possible, and even get some of our job candidates to interview while out on a ride.

Everyone here is encouraged to find a physical activity that they care about and take the time – real time, work time – to engage in it. As a result, our company is a fit and healthy place filled with fit and healthy people.

Unfortunately, too few CEOs make the connection between sound business decisions and making health decisions. As a business leader, your health is one of your company’s most important assets. If you don’t take it seriously, your employees won’t either.

And they don’t.

The RAND study found that after participating in smoking cessation programs for a year, 71% of would-be quitters were still puffing away. Four years later, even this meager effect seemed to wear off, with 83 percent of participants lighting up. The study also found only miniscule improvements in weight loss and no effect on cholesterol reduction.

Despite the billions spent trying to encourage the lifestyle modifications that can lower the risks of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, Americans’ obesity rate has hit an all-time high of 38 percent.

Of course, I’m not suggesting that corporate leaders are to blame for America’s obesity epidemic. Plenty of factors come into play when it comes to the health of our nation. But almost 80 percent of employers are offering wellness programs and we’re not seeing any meaningful, long-lasting changes as a result.

Leadership is clearly the issue. Somewhere along the way the goal shifted from getting workers to participate in wellness programs to improve their health to getting workers to participate in wellness programs to ensure the health of wellness programs. In fact, for a few years, health risk reduction and lowered medical costs weren’t even the leading metrics for assessing the success of these programs.

As a result, studies commissioned by the wellness industry itself found that while participation was up, employees’ mindsets hadn’t budged. In its “Fifth Annual Wellness in the Workplace Study,” Optum found that 62% of large employers said it is important to “establish a culture of health ownership,” but that only 23% had bothered to do so.

This comes from the top. Bike to work. Put together a charity race team. Hold “Walk and Talk” meetings as often as possible. If you’re a CEO, step on the scale and take a hard look at what it says – that number alone could tip the scale for the health and wellness of your entire company.