If you hate the health-food store down the street that sells whole-grain noodles with farm-fresh vegetables, or if you’d rather get extra wiz than sharp provolone, chances are you aren’t a millennial.
We have a different view when it comes to health–and this isn’t a bad thing. Millennials unabashedly eat healthier and aren’t afraid to let other people know it. According to a Nielson Global Health and Wellness Survey 32% of millennials are willing to pay more for ingredients sustainably sourced, compared to only 21% of the Baby-Boomer Generation.
But food itself isn’t the only change, and as millennials comprise more of the workforce, companies will have to learn to adapt their wellness programs to attract the new generation on the rise.
Millennials differ from prior generations because they are more plugged into the global consciousness. Social media has created an innate desire for them to congregate and share experiences, triumphs, and failures. Combine that with the ability to navigate new technology and stay up on the latest trends, and you have a workforce that does not look at wellness the same way Generation X or the Baby Boomers did. Traditionally, older generations were more concerned with access to the gym, or health screenings.¹ Today, this has shifted to a much more concerted effort to integrate company wellness programs into their company culture.
Accenture is one company that has millennials in mind when approaching its company wellness program. Because the majority of Accenture employees are off-site directly dealing with clients, they have formed a variety of wellness tools online. One of these tools is an online health coach that helps employees with their nutrition and lifestyle while on the road. For millennials this is perfect, as it allows them to connect online so they can take physical action on the road via exercise and nutrition.
The gym experience should no longer be an awkward and anxiety-ridden experience either, as millennials yearn for collaborative environments.² This also applies to wellness programs. Gone are the old days of waiting your turn at the leg press, today is the day we work as a team to become a healthier workplace as a whole.
A leading pioneer in integrating their wellness program into a collaborative experience is the healthcare company Kaiser Permanente located in Oakland, California. There, not only will you get healthier options in the vending machines or company-supported farmers markets, but also programs like Active Transit, which promotes biking and offers reimbursements for biking to work. For collaboration they have their Total Health Incentives Plan which includes 133,000 employees across the United States. The plan measures health improvements and provides rewards for improvement but has no penalties for not meeting health goals. Additionally they participate in the Instant Recess program which allows employees 10 minute breaks to exercise.
Whether or not wellness matters to you personally, the world around us will change with time. Clunky and old wellness programs that don’t integrate new technology or promote a collaborative and social environment will be a thing of the past. As the workforce evolves and more millennials take management positions, so will the the wellness programs that they are accompanied with.
¹ “Millenials Want Healthier Workplaces–10 Things Companies Can Do to Develop a Workplace Wellness Program.” Web. 10 July 2015.http://hr.blr.com/hr-news/benefits-leave/employee-wellness/millenials-want-healthier-workplaces10-things-comp#
² Sipek, Sarah. “Millennial Generation Feasts on Collaboration – and Fitness.” Millennial Generation Feasts on Collaboration. Web. 10 July 2015. http://www.workforce.com/articles/21325-millennial-generation-feasts-on-collaboration-and-fitness
