A successful wellness program is more about how you frame your program whether you’re using disincentives or incentives. You win the toss either way with improved health and wellness, along with reduced health care costs for all because of overall improved employee wellness. What do you need to consider when using carrots and sticks as incentives in your program? The industry culture of an organization may be a contributing factor worth considering. Employees who work in environments where conformity is not valued but creativity is, will mostly likely respond better to carrots and sticks framed as being “good for them” (vs. “do this or else”). Employees who work in bottom-line-focused or highly regulated industries, such as finance, or retail might be used to firm management directives. So, it might be in your organization’s best interest to test a mix of carrots and sticks to see what will work best with your people and change up your message and the delivery.   Distribution and timing of the incentives and disincentives also are important factors. It’s human nature to desire immediate benefits and delayed costs. (Hello, zero-money-down deals!) Sometimes, you may want to consider disguise your carrots as sticks to have the […]

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