LEVEL UP YOUR WELLBEING STRATEGY

How do you support your employees at work? Offer free breakfasts, private health insurance or discounted gym memberships?

Or do you favour perks like summer hours, flexi-working and access to meditation apps like Headspace or Calm? 

Or maybe you don’t quite have a strategy in place yet - and that’s ok. Perhaps it’s going through a bit of a revamp post-pandemic, and you’re not quite sure how to best approach it. Now we know as a yoga & fitness agency, we can’t move the needle on things like health insurance and holiday allowance. But we do know a thing or two about workplace wellbeing. 

Over the years, we’ve worked with companies of all types - huge corporations, smaller startups and everything in between. Whether it’s a tech or finance company, food & drink or fashion, we’ve noticed several trends in how wellbeing is approached in the corporate world. We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t, and so we’re going to share with you a few tips to consider.

How do you keep your employees happy and supported at work?

Individuality matters

Long gone are the days of one-size fits all corporate wellness packages. We don’t need to tell you that not everyone will benefit from on-site HIIT classes (although if this is your bag, we can hook you up!) [link to services page] . Not everyone will find value in a discounted gym membership nor will everyone be up for free in-office healthy breakfasts. 

We understand that if you have a team of 100 or more, it’s quite hard to ensure that every single person is getting exactly what they want out of their office perks. But it is key that their voices are heard, and efforts are made to support them in the best ways possible. 

Keep it dynamic & evolving

Feedback constantly to your team and anyone external that provides your wellbeing services. We only have to look back at the past 18 months to see that what used to work might not work forever. 

During the summer months, consider opting for shorter sessions like desk yoga or breathwork + meditation - chances are your team will be taking holiday, darting in and out the office and will probably not have the time/capacity in their schedule to do an hour long yoga class. 

Equally, in the winter months when things are a little more static a longer yin yoga or sound bath could go down a treat. 

Management participation is key

We’ve noticed that well-implemented company wellbeing strategies involve those at managerial level actively getting involved. This makes sense right - if managers are seen to take part in company yoga/meditation/fitness classes, or actively encourage their team to prioritise their wellbeing, it will have far more uptake. The truth is, lots of team members feel like they can’t take part in what’s on offer for fear that their productivity levels will be questioned. 

So, if you’re a manager or team-lead, let’s start to lead by example!

Realistic timeframes

We know that time is a precious commodity, and we don’t always have lots of it free during the working week. This is important to factor into the development of your wellbeing strategy as everyone’s diaries will look a little different, and not everyone will be able to spare an hour to roll out their mat and get their stretch on. Instead, we suggest offering smaller more bite-sized classes (15 minute meditation breaks or 30 min desk yoga sessions). Pepper in a few longer sessions (like a sound bath or yin yoga class) throughout the month to treat the team, and you’ve got yourself a winning strategy!

Don’t scrimp on budget

Your team are investing in your company, so it is vital you invest in them too. All too often we hear companies say they just don’t have the budget for it, but in reality it’s a small investment that can bring back even bigger returns for you. 

If you want to chat to us about how we can help you implement a better corporate wellbeing strategy, please drop us a line at hello@theyehyoga.co