With nearly 30 million active users worldwide, most of you have heard of Fitbit. But if you still think of Fitbit as a fitness tracker brand it’s time to re-evaluate, because that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The launch of Fitbit Health Solutions transformed the entire corporate health and wellness landscape, providing businesses with the tools and services they need to improve the wellbeing of their entire workforce.
We all lead busy lives. Just maintaining a healthy work-life balance has its challenges. Throw in family life too, and all that goes with it, and many employees struggle to find the time to get active and stay healthy. This can lead to injuries, illness and even chronic conditions and disease, piling more pressure on the individual and an increased financial burden on their employer.
Recent studies prove that regular physical activity can have a positive impact on a person’s health and wellbeing, dramatically reducing the risk of dementia by 30 per cent, cardiovascular disease by 35 per cent, Type 2 Diabetes by 40 per cent and depression by 30 per cent***.
When you look after an employee's wellbeing, they're less likely to leave, protecting the investment you've made in their training and career development
The list goes on ... but over the past 18 months, as news of our programme and results spread, more and more companies across Ireland discovered that the benefits are just as significant for the employer.
Regular physical activity doesn’t just have a positive impact on an individual’s health and wellbeing, but also leads to a healthier and more productive workplace. Active employees are more resistant to illnesses so are less likely to take time off work. Studies also show that when employees feel happier, their stress levels reduce* and their productivity increases - by up to 31 per cent **. Retention levels also increase. When you look after an employee's wellbeing, they’re less likely to leave, protecting the investment you’ve made in their training and career development.
Fitbit Health Solutions in the workplace
We believe getting employees to be more physically active is the key to reducing cases of serious health problems in the workplace. So, Fitbit Health Solutions combines wearables and free challenge dashboards with personal guidance to deliver health and wellness solutions designed to get people to lead healthier, more active lives.
At the very centre of the programme lies the challenge dashboard; the hub from which businesses can create, with Fitbit’s help, their own wellness programme, monitor staff engagement and participation, and launch team challenges that are designed to get employees moving and keep the programme feeling fresh and exciting.
To help ensure engagement from your employees, businesses are offered partnership rates on Fitbit products and services, plus free Fitbit Premium subscription until July 1st, 2020. The Fitbit Premium service helps employees focus on their health and wellbeing as well as their fitness, giving them more personalised guidance on everything from workouts and sleep to mediation and nutrition.
The more businesses we work with, the greater the results we are seeing – with millions of employees worldwide already experiencing a measurable improvement in their health
To help every business reach its wellness goal, we suggest setting challenges. From a simple step challenge to something more bespoke to your business, challenges work by motivating your employees and getting them to push each other to reach their individual or team goals. Using a suite of tools, you can create tailored challenges of your own in a matter of minutes. Plus, you’ll have customisable communication templates to use to help drive staff participation.
This ‘connect and compete’ strategy is a great way to make everyone feel included, and is perfect for encouraging team spirit and creating a sense of community in the workplace. It works particularly well at bringing remote teams together because, no matter where employees are located, they can stay connected while they work from home and keep updated with their team’s progress, view real-time challenge rankings, and chat or cheer each other on through the Fitbit app.
The more businesses we work with, the greater the results we are seeing – with millions of employees worldwide already experiencing a measurable improvement in their health. One energy company we recently worked with has already reported a 73 per cent increase in activity levels across its workforce with 32 per cent of employees reporting a noticeable increase in energy (no pun intended).
By motivating workforces and inspiring people to be more active, we can help millions more live a healthier, happier life.
Nicola Maxwell is Director of Health Solutions and Services, EMEA
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