Your Employees Don’t Need Another Mental Health Initiative, They Need One They’ll Actually Use

Most Programs Launch, Fizzle, and Fail – But Why?

On paper, your employee mental health initiative sounds fantastic, your launch plan is flawless, and staff even seem excited. However, most new corporate wellness solutions that companies launch fail shortly after rollout. But if the intention was good and the benefit was useful, what’s keeping employees disengaged from wellness and well-being initiatives?

First, check your messaging strategy for gaps and opportunities. If you have a diverse workforce, consider the design of their day and how your launch program fits into it. Employees who are desk-based can easily read your intranet posts, but field staff can go an entire shift without visibility.

Next, did you work with your employees to learn about their needs and desires? Oftentimes, a review of your most recent employee satisfaction survey isn’t enough. Deep, meaningful conversations that build over time to develop trust are the best way to get candid feedback.

Another challenge may be the stigma that mental health workplace resources may have surrounding the idea. If your employee culture could use some reframing around the subject, you may need to invest time in education. Back up your launch plan to do this important stage-setting before your program goes live.

Gather your human resources and benefits partners to discuss your observations, data, and ideas for a program reset. Be open to new approaches, hard feedback, and recenter your expectations to align your approach with your shared goals.

Easy Access, Flexibility, and Expert Support Make the Difference

Employees want work-life balance benefits, with 54% reporting that having them is an important component of their compensation. The availability of corporate wellness solutions isn’t enough by itself – aligning benefits with employees’ current behaviors is the key to a successful launch, adoption, and long-term nurturing of your program.

A recent Working Advantage survey uncovered that employees want easier access to benefits, tools, and wellness solutions. To deliver easy access, you need to understand what’s easy for your employees. Gauge their technology and communications preferences to pinpoint where they are on the tech spectrum before you launch new channels.

Survey data indicate that most employers offer messaging through emails, newsletters, intranet content, and breakroom billboards. Using these known, reliable, and predictable channels can reduce the friction between your employees and engagement.

Design your messaging strategy for the recipient and the channel. A breakroom flier is great, but a long URL linking to your mental health benefits isn’t going to gain traction. Instead, shorten the link and include a QR code to make it easy for employees to learn more.

These simple adjustments can help boost program awareness by simply showing up where your folks already are. Assess your workspace for novel locations for messaging, like in the restroom, by the copier, and near the water station. Make messaging unique for the location, season, and infuse fun to get your employees to take note.

Match Employee Habits With Lifestyle-Enhancing Benefits

With any change initiative, friction between the current behavior and that which is desired must be minimized. If you want employees to be healthy, telling them that it’s good to exercise doesn’t do anything to inspire change. Instead, they’re left to figure out when to exercise, what type of workout to do, and where to do it.

With mental health support, the concept is the same. When you’re not feeling your best, you often turn inward and spend more time scrolling. But when your support system is on the same device you use to distract yourself, it’s easier to shift your focus.

Cost-effective wellness initiatives don’t need to reinvent the system – they may just need to put them in a better place. On-demand therapy can be a lifeline for someone struggling. By extending this benefit through your digital platform, you can deliver meaningful support and simple, everyday savings.

When well-being benefits can fit into your employees’ lives, they’re much more likely to use them and maintain utilization. Vetting therapy services can be a daunting enough task for your employees that they abandon the effort. By offering a trusted, reputable resource through your platform, you remove the guesswork between your employee and their mental wellness.

Refresh Your Approach to Employee Wellbeing

Your leadership team brings a wealth of experience to the table, but it’s the end-user they need to consider. Just as a product development team would, design your employee work-life balance benefits with their realities in mind.

Conduct employee interviews, gather qualitative data, and examine your findings in depth to wireframe initial customer journey maps. Test your hypothetical maps with a sample set of real employees, get their feedback, and adjust accordingly. This process will refine and improve your strategies and will earn program champions organically.

Partner with internal communications experts, department heads, and internal thought leaders to develop your launch strategy. This layered approach removes the messaging from rigid, top-down notices to a more familiar and engaged conversation. By designing your employee wellbeing initiative the way your team interacts with the world, they can gain the biggest benefits.