For over a decade, WebMD Health Services has partnered with Illinois Tool Works (ITW) to enhance employee well-being. What’s behind their impressive results? A dedicated and loyal Wellness Champion Network that has inspired ITW employees to get involved and get healthy. Read more about how the power of people can make a real difference in well-being program engagement.
Wellness Champions bring passion to a well-being program and deliver real value by increasing the program’s visibility, getting peers engaged and helping to create a true culture of well-being.
What is a Wellness Champion?
Wellness Champions are health-minded employees who serve as positive role models and provide the support, encouragement and motivation to peers to engage with a well-being program.
Wellness Champions are often called upon to:
- Promote health assessments, health coaching, screenings and special events.
- Advocate with local leadership to support and promote the well-being program at their worksite.
- Plan and participate in on-site and/or virtual activities, like wellness challenges and webinars.
- Solicit feedback from co-workers about what they want to see in their well-being program and communicate this to their HR benefits team and local leadership.
When employee wellness advocates from different parts of the organization come together, they create a Wellness Champion Network. The Network meets regularly to discuss program initiatives, employee engagement strategies and share best practices to support a culture of health across all the company’s locations, as well as those working remotely.
At ITW, Wellness Champions work together to create and elevate a culture grounded in well-being.
The Wellness Champion Network is extensive, with Wellness Champions in over 98% of business units. Because of their wide reach, the Network has been able to increase engagement with the well-being program yielding impressive results like these:
- Wellness Champions have offered over 500 events to employees.
- Employees have completed more than 9,000 onsite activities sponsored by Wellness Champions.
- Wellness Champion webinars attendance was over 2,000.
As one ITW employee shared, “Our Wellness Champions are dedicated and loyal—they do this work because they love it and there‘s no reward more meaningful than the intrinsic reward they get from being a Champion.” How’s that for peer-powered well-being?
Wondering how to create a Wellness Champion Network in your organization? Read more about ITW here, download our Wellness Champion e-book, or contact us at connect@webmd.net.
