While people in India are not losing their jobs because of their body weight (as has been the case in very weight-conscious countries like the US) good health is increasingly being seen as an important criterion while hiring, especially for top leadership roles. “CEOs, VPs…they need to exude a high level of energy and be role models for their teams.
Indian CEOs are taking up fitness, especially running, seriously and in the process are inspiring their teams to do the same. For example, Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani’s love for running is well-known and his team members too dedicatedly sign up for the Mumbai marathon. TCS chief N Chandrasekaran, another marathon enthusiast who has completed the New York and Berlin marathons, has inspired many in TCS to take up running.
Corporate India is investing more in health programs for employees and reaping the benefits
Philips India has tied up with Healthifyme to help its staff lose weight. Around 1,000 employees have already signed up for the program. “We are seeing a hike in the number of corporate executives who are signing up for weight loss,” says Roshni Gilbert a CA-turned-fitness trainer with the app.
Infosys has one such initiative is the health assessment and lifestyle enrichment (HALE). The objective of HALE is to have a “proactive approach to health and life enrichment” aimed at increased awareness, overall wellbeing resulting in good health, reduced stress levels, a safe work environment and improved productivity levels. The HALE initiative focuses on the increasing emotional value-add for employees by optimizing their health, quality of life and work environment.
Kotak Mahindra Bank has launched a Wellness portal and App for employees. “My Wellness” Platform, powered by Ekincare is a one-stop-shop for all healthcare requirements for identified employees. Along with discounted health checkup plans, the following are the key features of the portal:
- Does a Health Risk Assessment based on medical reports.
- Provides Online Doctor Consultation through an in-app feature.
- Gamified Health Goals to encourage employees and their peers to adopt a healthy lifestyle. There are 21-day to a few weeks’ challenges ranging from Walking XX number of steps every day or 21days no smoking or no sugar challenge etc.
- Curated and Customised Health tips & Recommendations.
- Provides Digitised Health Records of employees as well as family members which are accessible to all employees at their convenience.
Here is a dream situation that you may want to prevail in your workplace. Fifty percent of your smoking colleagues have given up the cigarette. Most of your colleagues turned their back on a sedentary lifestyle.
This need not remain a dream. It’s doable, going by a 2015 study. According to this study, over a two-year-period, Johnson and Johnson India met these two objectives. The Deloitte wellness story would encourage you further.
Through constant communication, Deloitte managed a considerable drop in the percentage of employees at risk for lifestyle diseases. Following the corporate initiative, employees at risk started managing their blood pressure better and brought their BMIs within acceptable ranges.
Corporates are increasingly offering wellness programs for their employees, as they are beginning to see what they could do for the bottomline.
