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The drive to show provable results from workplace wellness programs is always important. As a recent piece in FierceHealthPayer points out:

“There's the CFO who wants proof the cost of the program will drive a financial return on investment (ROI) for the company. The HR director who wants to ensure engagement while also protecting employee privacy. The employees themselves, who want the programs to be useful, rewarding and fair. And everyone wants a program that will produce sustainable results.”

So the publication asked various  health insurance executives how “they're designing wellness programs–and how they're demonstrating their value to customers.”

Keys include:

• Understanding where companies are in their wellness approach.
• Focus on employee engagement. Said Rhonda Toole, vice president and national account executive at Cigna Healthcare: “By focusing on improving engagement, health and the bottom line, companies are saving millions a year by reducing risk factors and getting people to achieve coaching goals to reach long-term behavior change.”
• Go beyond purely physical activity. Said Kristine Mullen, Humana's vice president of wellness leadership: “When we measure outcomes and results, we really think about it in those four dimensions and our solutions support and drive results in those ways [purpose, belonging, security and health].”
• Privacy is incredibly important. The piece states: “From the employee's standpoint, privacy is one of the biggest concerns when it comes to wellness. They want to control who sees their data, and they're wary of vendors who might sell their information or worry that their employers will use their personal health information against them. That can sink a wellness program before it even gets underway.”
• Leadership from the top matters. Said one expert: “If the higher-ups are not on board with employee health and wellness, it will be very difficult to get everyone else inspired as well. Those in charge need to know what motivates their employees, and they need to encourage everyone from the company getting involved.”
• Biometrics can be “necessary in order to put actual numbers with reward benefits.”