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For many workplace wellness programs, engagement is the name of the game. How do you get employees to take advantage of your wellness program? After all, the goal is to keep employees healthy… hard to do if engagement is low.

One question that frequently arises: What about financial incentives?

EHS Today reports: “New research shows that when employers offered financial incentives, workers were 33 times more likely to participate in telephone health coaching, and did so sooner than employees without incentives.”

Said lead author Jason Block, M.D., a member of the Obesity Society and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School’s Department of Population Medicine: “Our goal was to evaluate what motivates people to participate in these programs and what strategies companies and insurers can use to get everyone involved. Our data show that financial incentives clearly work to motivate participation in a health coach program.”

Indeed, one area that could be affected is the important topic of obesity. But tackling the issue at the workplace provides an important opportunity.

Said Eric Finkelstein, Ph.D., MHA, an associate research professor in the Duke Global Health Institute at Duke University, speaking on behalf of the Obesity Society: “The idea of using employer incentives to participate in health coaching is relatively new. This research gives us a solid foundation to build upon. The next step is to measure changes in these participants' health behaviors, and identify long-term success.”