Studies show that prioritizing employee wellness can lead to increased productivity and a happier, more engaged workforce. On this note, Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI) has decided to take employee wellness to the next level with a first-of-its-kind program. ABHI is integrating employee health goals into performance metrics. This means employee performance reviews will take into account progress towards personalised health goals, such as weight management, improved sleep patterns, or healthier eating habits. Therefore, “now all employees across the organisation will have a health goal with at least 10% weightage as a part of annual performance goals,” states Mayank Bathwal, CEO, Aditya Birla Health Insurance.
Hence, BW journalist deep delved into seeking the agenda and outcome of ABHI, from Bathwal at great length, measuring what outcomes they plan on achieving by initiating this policy
Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI) introduced the concept health goals being a part of employees' annual performance goals to foster a culture of health and well-being within the organization. This initiative aligns with ABHI's purpose of “Empowering people to lead healthier lives”.
The health goals, which carry a weightage of up to10% in the annual performance review encompass activities like weight loss, regular exercise, yoga, improved nutrition, better sleep management and giving up unhealthy habits like smoking.
By enabling employees to prioritize their health, ABHI reinforces its "Health First" approach thereby ensuring employees are not just working but also thriving in a supportive environment dedicated to holistic well-being.
2. What are the potential benefits for both employers and employees when health goals are included in performance metrics?
The intent of encouraging employees to take health goals is purely driven from ABHI’s purpose of Empowering People to lead healthier lives. ABHI believes good health is very important part of overall wellbeing. The initiative of health goals helps drive the message that good health is as important as delivering good work. The company also believes that healthier employees are often more engaged, motivated, and less prone to stress-related issues.
Over time a healthier workforce leads to higher levels of engagement across the organisation thereby impacting customer satisfaction, culture and better efficiency. The company believes that people who focus on their health bring their best selves to work which in turn enables them to add more value to the organisation.
3. How does the company, plan to measure and evaluate the health goals set by employees? Further, what is the plan on measuring its long-term impact of this initiative on employee wellness and company performance?
ABHI has its inhouse designed Vitalize program which works on the principle of Know your Health, Improve your Health & Get Rewarded.
The first step in this series is to provide employees access to multiple avenues to assess their current health. This ranges from comprehensive health tests, rapid health assessments and even digital health assessments which employees can do from the comfort of their homes. The results of these health assessments are made available to employees on an App that ABHI has built exclusively to drive their wellness initiatives. The app not only helps employees get access to their health reports but also enables them to take action towards improving their health. Through the App employees can track their steps on a daily basis and track their workouts at the gym. The company encourages its employees to either burn 350+ calories in a gym workout or clock atleast 10000 steps a day which is scientifically proven to improve health significantly.
To measure the long-term impact of this initiative the company is encouraging managers to have a discussion with employees on progress made by them on their health goals. The company is also encouraging employees to reassess their health at regular intervals to make sure that their health parameters are improving.
4. How does the company ensure that the health goals are challenging yet achievable for each individual employee?
Aditya Birla Health Insurance (ABHI) ensures that health goals are both challenging and achievable for each individual employee by adopting a personalized and flexible approach. The company recognizes that each employee has unique health needs, fitness levels, and personal circumstances. To accommodate this, ABHI allows employees to set their own health goals within the framework of the organisation's wellness initiatives.
To further support this personalised approach, ABHI provides access to a wellness ecosystem which gives them access to multiple offerings like health coaching, nutritional advice, fitness guidance, and mental health support. Employees can consult with healthcare professionals, including doctors and nutritionists, to set realistic and meaningful health goals that align with their abilities and wellness objectives. By utilising wearable technology and digital platforms, employees can also track their progress, receive feedback, and adjust their goals as needed.
ABHI’s approach ensures that health goals are not only tailored to the individual but also foster a sense of achievement and motivation, ultimately enhancing both personal well-being and organisational performance. This individualised strategy helps maintain engagement and ensures that employees are set up for success.
Besides focussing on health goals, the company is also focussing on building a culture where employees thrive working as a team and support each other in their professional journeys. This led to creation of Hobby circle a unique concept launched company-wide to connect employees across functions and locations on common hobbies like cooking, painting, sculpting, dancing, drama, singing, playing a musical instrument, football, cricket, cycling, running, gardening, photography, stamp collection, badminton, squash, tennis, trekking, fitness, biking and social causes. The company provides each Hobby circle with a fixed amount of startup funding every year so they are able to get started. At present, there are 30+ Hobby circles with more than 5000 employees participating. This is helping ABHI build a workplace which enables people to work passionately while also pursuing what they are passionate about.
5. How does the company plan to balance the focus on health goals with other performance metrics to ensure overall productivity?
Health goals are a complementary component of the overall performance evaluation process. The idea is to ensure that the right amount of focus is given by employees to their health. Health goals are assigned a weightage of 10% in the annual performance review which gives the message that while productivity is important it cannot be achieved at the cost of one’s health. The company believes that if they continue focussing on health, higher productivity and engagement will follow over a period of time.
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