Total Rewards and the Future of Wellness

With rampant disruption and a dynamic workforce, companies must constantly evaluate its Employee Value Proposition to ensure that it is offering a highly compelling proposition. Clearly, compensation alone is no longer the main driver. Employees now expect a total package that addresses their needs and values.

Just ahead of the year-end holidays last year, ChapmanCG and a group of top HR professionals gathered to discuss Total Rewards, with a particular focus on Wellness. We’d like to thank our host, Syngenta for the delightful welcome, replete with a Christmas log cake! Special thanks to Sharnjit Gill, APAC Regional Rewards Head and her team, Cindy Lim, Ethan Lee and Taslim Inamdar for graciously hosting the event.

To kick-off, participants learnt about Optum’s digital health platform. It holistically measures wellness across nutrition, physical and lifestyle metrics. An AI (artificial intelligence) coach tracks data live and even offer prompts, like ‘you need to drink more water, or take a walk or go for a run!’ The application facilitates easy tracking with just one single Health score and encourages individual accountability or group activities.

The discussion then went to address 2 key areas: cost and sustainability. The group’s sharing offered many ideas on how to create programs that don’t cost an arm and a leg, and has added benefits. These include:

• Roping in third party partners to offer discounts and health talks;
• Leveraging the Health Promotion Board’s Step Challenge;
• Creating internal interest groups such as the Marathoners;
• Offering videos on cooking, yoga, health and fitness; and
• Before meetings, set aside 3 minutes on stretching or mindful breathing.

Those with a more generous budget could consider spa vouchers for employees to relax. A hugely popular idea is to give top scorers one minute to scoop up whatever they want from a hip and trendy sports store!

The issue of sustainability requires a cultural shift that embeds wellness as an integral value. This is a journey and a collective effort that will deliver the long terms benefits of a healthier, stickier and more productive workforce. CEOs need to recognise and support this and people managers must embrace it and weave this into the DNA of the organisation.

In closing, we’d like to thank all participants who freely shared their views and contributed to the lively discussion. From all of us at ChapmanCG, a big thank you to our friends from American Expfess, Avaya, BAT, Bridgestone, Chubb, Coats, DHL, DSM, eBay, Franklin Templeton, IBM, ING, Jones Lang Lasalle, Linde, Kuehne & Nagel, Maersk, Medtronic, Royal Philips, SAP, SATS, Temasek, ThomsonReuters, UnitedHealth, Visa, Wipro, Zebra Technologies and Zimmer.

Here’s to the start of a happy and healthy 2018!