Corporate wellness has become the booming trend, especially since the pandemic. Many studies have reported the association of employee wellbeing on workplace engagement, productivity, and business growth.

Shortlister surveyed more than 125 top benefits consultants in the USA to understand the latest corporate wellness trends. These consultants represent thousands of top businesses in the US that covered millions of lives.

This survey gave an insight into the evolving and changing corporate wellness trends. Right from the specific wellness areas invested by workplaces, areas to focus on in the upcoming years, and wellness technology changes to the wellness platforms. In addition to the changing employee wellness spaces, the survey also studied the impact of the pandemic on the corporate wellness market, including the holistic wellness dimensions, and the DEI efforts put by the workplaces.

Here are a few outcomes of Shortlister’s Workplace Wellness Trends report for 2020-2021.

Workplace Wellness Programs Components

27 wellness solutions that are typically included in the well-being strategies were identified. The survey respondents were asked to choose any 3 solutions each for – “Must Haves”, “Growing Demand”, and “Declining Demand” categories. The outcomes were compared for the years 2018, 2019, and 2020 to understand the changing employee wellbeing trends and evolving needs.

• Must Have Category: In 2018, wellness challenges were voted as a top must-have well-being strategy in the corporate wellness programs, followed by biometrics and health risk assessments. However, in 2020, the requirements changed with Wellness Platform being conferred the highest with 58% votes, followed by mental wellbeing resources with 40%, and behavioral health programs with 21%.

• Growing Demand Category: In 2018, financial wellness programs got the top votes as a growing demand well-being strategy in the corporate wellness programs, followed by mental wellbeing programs, and clinics. In 2020, the required employee wellness solutions remained almost the same as in 2018 – Financial wellness programs being conferred the highest with 40% votes, followed by mental wellbeing resources with 32%, and caregiving services (elder care/child care) with 32% votes.

• Declining Demand Category: In 2018, Health risk assessments were the most voted declining demand wellbeing strategy in the corporate wellness programs, followed by biometrics, and onsite exercise networks. In 2020 also, the required employee wellness solutions remained almost the same as in 2018 – health risk assessments being conferred the highest declining demand solutions with 42% votes, followed by biometric screenings with 40%, and onsite fitness and gym networks with 30% votes.

The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the shifts and changes in the corporate wellness market. While the health risk assessments and biometric screenings were considered a must-have wellbeing strategy in 2018, they remained consistently in the top 3 declining demand solutions in 2018, 2019, and 2020. The current social isolation and remote working situations have reduced the demand for these services, and so they have been voted the highest in the declining demand programs. This trend has clearly indicated a diversity and change in the corporate wellbeing requirements over the years.

Even before the pandemic, financial and mental wellbeing programs were listed in the growing demand programs category. The pandemic and its aftermath have increased the demand for these programs since 2020.

2020 has been a very turbulent year for everyone across the globe. With the new changes came new obstacles, and with time, new solutions came up to overcome the issues. As employee health and wellbeing needs are changing, corporate wellness programs must also be supported by the latest wellness technology to make sure they are in line with the evolving health and wellbeing trends. When employees get what they are looking for from their workplaces, it boosts employee engagement, productivity, and overall business growth.