A successful employee wellness program is one that has strong employee engagement strategies, meeting the wellness requirements of the workforce. Many studies have revealed the 4 most important and emerging wellness trends since the pandemic that can allow organizations to cater to the looming employee health and wellbeing demands.

1. Psychographic analysis – An approach to understand and segment employees based on their psychological traits like – personality, interests, lifestyle habits, and more.
2. Tailored Experiences – Creating a flow by prompting tailored triggers that are sketched based on personalized information from sources like HRA and screenings, to meet specific wellness requirements.
3. Wellness Platforms Over Point Solutions – Unlike Point Solutions, wherein only specific concerns are resolved, a corporate wellness platform offers all the resources like HRA, activity tracking, performance, reward management, and the entire wellness program progress.
4. Musculoskeletal Wellness – With 28% of occupational injuries reported due to musculoskeletal injuries and illnesses, the focus is on offering wellness challenges like exercising, and nutrition that helps employees prevent or overcome them.

Studies anticipate the global corporate wellness market to be valued at $6.5 trillion by 2023. To capitalize on these gains and to ensure the employee wellness program modules are in line with the prerequisites, it is vital to be aware of the latest trends of 2023.

Virtual Technology for Employee Engagement

Despite the initial concerns during the pandemic, the workflow was smooth for many businesses – thanks to advancing technology and other workplace solutions like Zoom, Meet, and Slack. And the same culture seems to be trending since flexible working schedules have become the new normal. According to the Citrix survey, 89% of employees said they were more productive at work by using digital platforms and other workplace solutions while working remotely. Also, 73% agreed that they communicated better virtually with their co-workers and managers. 88% of employees agreed that digital technology tools were important and that they played a major role in employee engagement and retention to reduce turnover rates. 

Supporting a Diverse Workforce

Since the pandemic, it has been difficult for employees on many fronts. In addition to the pandemic-related anxiety and burnout, recent years have also seen difficult conversations about workplace diversity. Employees are now demanding that employers make sincere efforts to bring on board a diverse workforce and initiate a global change. Also, it could help with social wellness. The Citrix survey showed that 86% of employees wanted a diverse workforce, and they felt it would fit in for different roles and skill requirements. Many established organizations like Walmart, Merck, and Bank of America have taken initiatives to bridge the racial gaps in the workplace. Despite these actions, 65% of employees are not sure if their employers would prioritize workplace diversity.

Holistic Wellbeing Benefits

Zywave conducted a Voluntary Benefits Benchmarking Overview survey which revealed the different workplace offerings focusing on holistic health. The commonly offered voluntary benefits include – 

• 33% – critical illness insurance
• 32% – cancer insurance
• 12% – financial counseling

In addition to offering financial and mental wellness, offering these benefits demonstrates the support and willingness of employers to invest in employee wellbeing benefits. A few other benefits and perks being explored by many employers include – 

• 25% – Membership discounts
• 19% – pet insurance
• 15% – financial counseling
• 13% – critical illness
• 11% – student loan repayment assistance

Studies show that even employers who have not offered any holistic health benefits until now are also redefining their employee benefits packages for the future.

Corporate wellness programs are the key to workplace engagement, employee retention, and building a healthy workplace culture. And keeping up with the latest corporate wellness and employee wellness program trends of 2023 will ensure the engagement and outcomes of the wellness program are in line with the company goals and anticipated outcomes, reflecting overall business growth.