Leadership: The Key To Success Of Fitness Culture Programs

Summary:

These points on leadership are primarily directed at the owners or managers of an employer. However, they are applicable to your personal affairs, so you may find them useful for conducting your personal or family fitness culture program.

How does this apply to your fitness culture? What's the difference between leadership and management? Managers train and direct the boat oarsmen to row strong and straight. Captains chart and steer a course for the boat to keep out of harm’s way and to reach its destination safely. Managers can do their jobs perfectly, but if the captain, the leader, fails and the boat crashes on the rocks, everyone gets wet.

Leaders must have a vision of where they want to go, how they want to get there and when they want to arrive. To be effective they must then be able to sell their vision to followers who may or may not want to embrace it. For employers, the success of your fitness culture and assistance programs ultimately depends on the commitment of top executives, the leaders.

Every business survives on its ability to sell its products or services. Selling your fitness culture to your employees may be a tough sale. It involves changing the behavior, habits and attitudes of your workforce members. The rewards can be that both your firm and your employees will survive and thrive. Plus, there can be improved wellness, life quality and longevity for everyone involved.

Leadership and Management Support

This is where you and other top executives of your firm earn your leadership badges. Employees will follow you willingly, or not at all. You must show them a clear vision that will benefit them. You must have and demonstrate total commitment, or you can’t sell the program. You must give evidence to your commitment by your own conduct and participation. And, you must be consistent and constant in your support for the fitness programs until you succeed.

How long will it take to succeed with your fitness culture programs? Probably two years, maybe three, before you see measurable progress beyond reductions in health insurance costs. That may be progress enough for some. But, eventually, you will realize the benefits of not only lower costs but of higher productivity and profitability. These benefits will result from a healthier and more energetic workforce that is not numbed or distracted by the sickness culture.

Invest In Employees:

Simply passing the cost and responsibilities of healthcare to employees will create employee fear and seed resentment. As an employer, you must replace a culture of sickness with a vision of wellness and hope by investing some of the savings from the reduced cost of high deductible health plan (HDHP) insurance that is the core of your comprehensive health, fitness and assistance programs.

Your new fitness programs will give employees a way to succeed . . . .

• In managing their healthcare affairs;

• In improving their quality of life and longevity; and,

• In strengthening their job security.

Accountability And Reward:

Current culture tends to disapprove of personal accountability. Consequently, most employers have not held employees to account for poor health habits. However, health affects workplace attendance and performance, so employers have a vested interest in the good health of their employees.

To successfully engage employees, your comprehensive health program needs to reward employees for achieving targeted results. It also needs to hold them accountable for results. Note that the focus for reward is on achieved results. Rewards must be earned. No credit for intent. No reward for trying, even really hard. To borrow a thought from Star Wars, “There is no try. There is only do, or do not.”

Experience has shown that to get interest, participation and good results from employees, incentive rewards for achievement should amount to at least $35 to $40 per employee per month, or up to $500 per employee per year. Participation is also stimulated by team efforts that invoke subtle peer pressure to succeed. That has worked with the weight loss plans for years.

Time And Return On Investment:

Like an investor, you need to consider the health and wellness of your employees as an investment, not simply a cost of doing business.

If you invest your effort, time and a portion of your savings from better insurance plans, your return on investment will include . . .

• Reduced net costs for employee health benefits;

• Improved employee wellness;

• Better employee work attendance and attention;

• Improved employee morale;

• Improved productivity; and,

• Higher profitability.

How long will it take to realize a significant return on investment? You will probably need to seed this health program and fitness culture for three years. You’ll get some interim return through lower insurance costs during that time. The big, cumulative return on investment will follow.

If you look at this through an investor’s eye, your comprehensive health program offers a significant ROI once it takes hold.

Do you want to stay in the rut of the sickness culture, torn by the dilemma of whether you can or cannot afford to continue employee health insurance? If you look at it as a business manager, this program can help you salvage your workforce and keep you business financially sound. That’s called survival!

If you look at it as a leader, it offers a great opportunity to lead your troops to a better place. A place where many fear to go, because it means change. There’s your challenge. Are you up to it?

For information on Medical Self Care Programs, go to Prevention and to Affairs Management.

For information or answers to your questions, go to Contact Us.

To get a Personal Health and Fitness Assistance Proposal, go to the Health and Fitness Plan Request.

To get instructions for securing a personal or a family health insurance plan, go to the Individual Health Plan Quote Guide or to the Family Health Plan Quote Guide.

To get a Group health plan quote, go to Group Quote Guide.