2. An effective corporate healthy eating
programme will change the atmosphere of
your workplace dramatically
This special guide will explain how healthy
eating solutions will improve employee health,
staff morale and personal effectiveness,
providing a substantial return on investment
Successful Corporate
Healthy Eating Programmes
3.
4. Contents
1 Introduction
2 How Healthy Staff Can Lead to a Healthy Bottom Line
4 THE Approach to Corporate Healthy Eating Programmes
5 How will a Healthy Eating Programme Benefit my
Business?
8 The Business End of Healthy Eating Programmes
9 How to Justify Spending on Corporate Wellbeing when
Money is Tight
11 What to Look For in a Healthy Eating Solutions Provider
12 Our Solutions
13 Conclusion
14 Successful Corporate Healthy Eating Programmes
5.
6. The Healthy Employee
1
Introduction
As anyone who has ever felt under pressure to perform at work will know, it is all too easy
to put work first and slip into bad habits with regards to looking after our personal
wellbeing. Though we may feel tired, stressed or sluggish, many of us struggle to make
changes to our lifestyle.
The demands of work can have a considerable impact on employees’ eating habits. Many
people will skip breakfast or lunch because of a long commute or time constraints at work
and will feel sluggish later in the day as a result. Similarly, drinking excessive amounts of
caffeine and indulging in the usual office snacks of cake, chocolate, crisps and fizzy drinks
is very common to boost energy, but often leads to lethargy and is detrimental to
performance.
A lack of energy, focus and concentration is often blamed on many things. However, our
performance is only as good as our last meal or snack. This is where a corporate healthy
eating solutions company can make a real difference. Whether is involves helping staff to
eat an energised breakfast, encouraging them to choose healthy snacks, educating them
in brain boosting lunches or showing them how to fit healthy eating into their busy work
schedule; our healthy eating initiatives will reassure your staff that making positive lifestyle
changes is simple and easy to do. We demystify healthy eating and educate people in the
practical ‘how-to’, to fit healthy eating seamlessly with their busy working day and family
life.
Unfortunately ill health is a threat to individuals and has a negative impact on your
business. Research proves that healthy eating reduces the risk of ill health and
absenteeism. The health of the business is the sum of the health of the employees –
healthy employees inspire healthy profits.
A successful healthy eating programme will be informative, engaging, enjoyable,
sustainable, and above all – will achieve tangible results for you in your business.
Healthy eating solutions provide the ideal opportunity to make a difference to individuals
on both a personal and professional level, and our unique guide will explain the positive
impact that healthy eating initiatives have both for employees and for the organisation as a
whole.
In the following pages we will look at everything from how low energy, a lack of motivation
and not getting enough sleep can impact negatively on efficiency in the office, to how
healthy eating initiatives can change company culture and increase the attractiveness of
your business to prospective employees.
By the time you finish, you will be left in no doubt that investing in healthy eating solutions
will not only dramatically improve your employees’ health, happiness, engagement, energy
and motivation, but that it also represents and inspired business decision.
Regards,
The Healthy Employee Team
How Healthy Staff Can Lead A Healthy Bottom Line
7. The Healthy Employee
2
When you walk into an office, you can sense whether it is a positive, healthy environment
in minutes.
Within a healthy workplace environment you can judge the energy and vibrancy from the
people that is generated within the room. You can see and feel how people interact with
one another, the team working together, the positive mental attitude towards each other
and the business.
Whereas an unhealthy workplace always had a tangible heaviness, a feeling of deflation, it
can be sluggish, lethargic and tense.
So why should this matter?
The fact is that it does matter. More than ever, businesses are feeling the repercussions of
unhealthy staff on their bottom line, with low levels of engagement and high absenteeism
among the most common consequences.
Is an unhealthy workforce really a problem?
The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) claims that the average level of
sickness absence for 2012 was 6.8 working days per employee, per year, and that the
cost to employers is approximately £600 per employee, per year.
Louise Bennett OBE, Chief Executive of the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of
Commerce and a leader of the Coventry Health Improvement Programme, the Work
and Health Project, which brings different aspects of health, had this to say about Making
a Case for Healthy Eating –
People who do not eat breakfast are less productive than those who do
Healthy employees are up to 3 times more productive…
The average cost of sickness per employee is £78 per day
Providing employees with easier access to a healthy lifestyle makes them feel
valued… The health and profitability of the business can be improved and therefore
an improvement in business prospects too
In brief, the less healthy your employees, the more likely they are to be absent from work,
costing you money and piling the pressure on other employees who are left to cope with
an increased workload.
Although is isn’t possible to stop people getting sick from time to time, it is possible to have
a positive impact on the bottom line of the business by providing a healthy culture, a
healthy environment and a healthy eating education thereby helping you to benefit and
your employees to benefit too - a win, win situation.
A massive proportion of absenteeism can be attributed to bad diets and can be avoided by
providing a healthy eating education.
According to the Aviva Health of the Nation Index Report 2013, GP’s are expecting
to treat 20% more patients with diabetes and almost 15 % more patients with obesity
over the coming year.
8. The Healthy Employee
3
There are a number of ways to address this depending upon the exact needs of your
company. Whatever your business, healthy eating programmes can make a positive
impact. The key is not to ignore the issue but to address it and improve the
business bottom line.
So where do you begin?
THE Approach to Corporate Healthy Eating Programmes
We focus on helping employees get the best out of themselves, improve their energy,
improve their sleep, improve their feeling of wellbeing, improve self confidence and self
9. The Healthy Employee
4
esteem, improve team playing and engagement. We create an environment where we
focus our attention on educating and motivating individuals so that they are willing and
want to change their eating habits.
Whether people want to make serious health improvements or perhaps they eat healthily
but know they would benefit from further knowledge, people who want to lose or even gain
weight or people who wish to integrate healthy eating into their family life. No matter the
challenge we make healthy eating simple and easy whether at work, rest or play.
“I thought that feeling sluggish, lifeless and hungry was just the way it is. Now I feel
incredible, I feel like I have a new lease of life, I feel positive and motivated, just like I
did 20 years ago, brilliant. I have made changes and I shall never look back.” – Diana
Healthy Eating
Food is fuel. For example you would not put two-stroke into a Ferrari and expect it to get
to the end of the road! However, we frequently ask ourselves to run on inappropriate fuel
or indeed on empty.
At The Healthy Employee we recognise that an individual is only as good as their last meal
or snack. As an employer you need your employees to be as productive in the afternoon
as they are in the morning, to remain energised throughout the day, to perform well in
meetings, to stay alert behind the wheel, to engage with the business and with each other.
Our Online Programmes, Buzz Sessions (workshops) and One to One Coaching
Programmes focus on giving advice that makes a real, practical difference to employees
with busy schedules. Instead of talking about dieting or following specific food plans, we
work with people to design a routine that works for them and that gets the results they are
looking for, whether that be increased energy, better focus or improved weight
management.
With our help, not only will employees have their questions answered by a professional,
they will also understand the importance of eating well and be motivated to make a
positive change – something that will benefit them both at work and in their personal lives.
How will a Healthy Eating Programme Benefit my Business?
Improving employees’ eating habits has an undeniably positive impact on a business.
10. The Healthy Employee
5
Imagine your organisation full of people bursting with energy, ideas, motivation and
enthusiasm. The benefits of implementing an effective healthy eating programme are
immense.
Keith Mythen, Head of Corporate Social Responsibility and Standards for SCC says
“The healthy eating Buzz Sessions and Programmes struck a chord with most people.
And we’ve found the benefits go far beyond giving people a practical way to address
their eating, fitness and weight issues. Those taking part in the programme are so much
more motivated at work, with a buoyant and positive attitude. There is nothing faddy
here. They are empowered to make changes through understanding how different foods
affect them physically and mentally. They are eating well and finding it works – being
able to achieve whatever they want to in terms of becoming fitter, having more energy,
losing weight, or even gaining a few pounds. The atmosphere is lighter and brighter too
with enhanced team spirit as the group shares food tips and ideas and support each
other.”
Morale
A lack of engagement is one of the most common reasons why people underperform in the
workplace. Quite simply, if you aren’t in the right frame of mind, you aren’t going to perform
to the best of your abilities.
Healthy eating initiatives can play a large part in tackling this problem. Our healthy eating
programmes are designed to inspire employees to make positive and lasting changes to
their eating habits. By choosing a healthier lifestyle individuals very quickly begin to feel a
real improvement in their health and wellbeing. Their morale will improve dramatically and
they begin to enjoy the physical and mental benefits of leading a healthier life, boosting
their self-confidence and beginning to realise their potential.
Teamwork
Many workplaces are competitive, and healthy eating programmes can provide the perfect
platform for positive teambuilding and engagement. As well as becoming a positive talking
point around the office, a healthy eating programme is able to unite people in a common
cause – improving their day-to-day performance and state of mind.
Creating a great place to work
Many companies now recognise the benefit of having employees who are healthy and
engaged. In the past, the most common way in which businesses encouraged their staff to
lead healthier lives was by offering them health insurance or subsidised gym
memberships. Whilst these initiatives appeal to some, they won’t necessarily appeal to all
current or prospective employees.
With this in mind, the aim of any corporate healthy eating programme should be to
establish a flexible range of initiatives so there is something for everyone. Not only will this
improve the job satisfaction of current employees, reducing the likelihood of your staff
wanting to leave, it will also appeal to prospective employees and enhance public
perception of your brand, sending out the message that your business really cares about
its employees, not just as members of staff or cogs in the wheel, but as individuals.
Understanding and addressing staff concerns
Don’t bury your head in the sand. Never underestimate how important it is for people to
feel good at work. It is vital for people to have wellbeing and contentment - for people to
11. The Healthy Employee
6
feel energised and full of beans not sluggish, lethargic and tired. Often these benefits can
be found by making a healthy diet part of your lifestyle and employees are regularly
confused by good and bad food and the right and wrong foods to eat. When they are
offered healthy eating education they know they will be on the right track to making the
right dietary decisions.
Long-term benefits
Though everyone can benefit from living a healthier lifestyle, healthy eating can fluctuate
as a priority for individuals over time. With this in mind, it’s important to help employees
establish a simple plan that works under all circumstances.
Whatever schedule your healthy eating programme follows, whether the emphasis falls on
Online Programmes, Buzz Sessions (workshops) or 1-2-1 coaching. We provide the
education to help people make practical, healthy and sustainable changes to their diet -
changes that they can implement now and for the rest of their lives.
“I am just as busy with work, nothing has changed there. However, I no longer feel like
my eyes are out on stalks and tired all the time. I now sleep very well, remain alert in
meetings and find coping with long days much easier. I have gained 10lbs, which was
my goal, I eat regularly and I feel great.” - Brian
Education
Education is key to motivating people to make changes to their diets. By making healthy
eating interesting and inspirational, we ensure employees will enjoy learning and look
forward to participating in healthy eating initiatives.
Nowadays, whether it’s via magazines, websites, television or word of mouth, it is virtually
impossible to avoid encountering healthy eating information. However, much of this
information is either incorrect or incomplete and can lead to people developing bad habits.
By providing your staff with a source of knowledge in the form of a strategic healthy eating
programme, not only can previously unresolved issues be fixed, but the tone of office
conversations will become much more positive. Rather than simply sharing how tired or ill
or demotivated they feel, employees will look to share and compare their new found
healthy eating knowledge and will be able to offer each other constructive advice.
Focus on the Individual
Everyone’s attitude towards healthy eating is different. Because of this, in order to help
employees bring about lasting change, it is important to understand their challenges and
offer the appropriate solution.
The greatest return on investment doesn’t come from offering broad incentives, but from
targeting specific ideas at the right people. The best healthy eating initiatives, therefore,
12. The Healthy Employee
7
are those that help employees develop a workable and effective healthy eating plan of
their own.
A tailored healthy eating programme is about encouraging active engagement that in turn,
supports a healthy culture in the office. Employees will then take responsibility for their
own healthy eating and their approach to dealing with everyday challenges.
“I feel amazing, energised and full of life. I no longer suffer from bloating and I have lost
28lbs over the course of my programme.” – Tom
Accountability
By establishing strong relationships with staff during 1-2-1 programmes we are able to
ensure individuals succeed in reaching their goals. In a supportive way, we are able to
hold them accountable in order to help them make the transition to eating a healthy diet
and improving their overall health and wellbeing challenges.
Change your Culture Completely
Healthy eating initiatives are flexible and democratic. They appeal to staff at every level of
a business, primarily because everyone has a vested interest in feeling good.
Senior executives don’t usually have a problem engaging with their professional roles –
after all, they’ve spent a lot of time working themselves into those positions – but what they
do care about is their effectiveness. They want to be as efficient as they can be in order to
move onto the next level of their career. Target this group with healthy eating initiatives
that demonstrate how to manage energy better, stay focused, exercise effectively, sleep
better and eat well in the midst of a busy week or a hectic travel routine and they’ll seize
this opportunity with both hands.
On a wider scale, for many businesses, the challenge is getting people to turn up for work
and give the job their full attention while they are there. Again, healthy eating initiatives can
provide an attractive solution to this problem.
Arranging bite-size Buzz Sessions (workshops) on key themes such as eating well in the
office or how to fit breakfast into your busy schedule, how to improve sleep by eating
healthily, what snacks to eat whilst between meetings, how to boost energy, will provide
staff with information they can act upon while at work and can also use to benefit their
home life. Providing staff with something they weren’t expecting from work but which can
enhance all aspects of their lives is a brilliant way to engender loyalty.
The Business End of Healthy Eating Programmes
Let’s be clear on this:
Workplace healthy eating initiatives are viable business solutions
Healthy eating initiatives help staff give the job their full attention while they are at
work
Employers who enable staff to optimise their health and wellbeing are delivering a
great incentive that helps to retain good people and attract top talent
13. The Healthy Employee
8
Make no mistake, healthy eating initiatives can be used in a variety of ways across all
levels of a business to engage and motivate the whole workforce.
Engagement
When you’ve exhausted traditional methods of engaging staff, and employees have
become immune to all the latest exciting initiatives you’ve introduced to help raise
performance, healthy eating solutions can breathe new life into your organisation. Effective
healthy eating solutions can encourage an inspiring atmosphere of health and high
performance and equip staff with the tools necessary for them to perform to the best of
their abilities.
So how can healthy eating best help businesses achieve the ultimate dream of healthy,
positive, motivated, engaged staff in every department?
Do something for staff they wouldn’t do for themselves
An office that arranges healthy eating education not only gives the staff a great perk but
will also benefit from the positive action staff will take to improve their health and
performance.
Providing the opportunity for staff to consult with a healthy eating expert has been shown
to increase participation in some programmes fivefold. Once again, it’s unlikely that
individuals will seek out this resource in their own time, but if they know there will be a
healthy eating programme provided by the business they will jump at the chance.
Return on Investment
Given the impressive statistics surrounding the effectiveness of wellbeing solutions,
justifying your investment is easy.
20% increase in revenue per employee
57% higher shareholder value
28% less sick leave and 26% less health care costs *(Ceridian)
You will put money in the bank for your business and a smile on the face of your
employees.
How to Justify Spending on Corporate Wellbeing When
Money is Tight
Whatever the financial climate, there is always competition for budgets within any
organisation. When pitching healthy eating initiatives to stakeholders you need to be clear
on why it’s a vital investment – a ‘must have’ rather than a ‘nice to have’. Here’s what
you’re up against…
1) Surely wellbeing isn’t a priority right now?
14. The Healthy Employee
9
Make no mistake, there is no better time to look after your employees than when the
pressure is on and demands on them are at their greatest. If you’re working with teams
who’ve had their numbers cut, they need to be engaged and motivated to focus on the job
and not on insecurities around them. If your initiatives are properly designed, they will have
an immediate impact throughout the business and get great results. A downturn is when
your people need support the most.
2) How do we ensure the wellbeing message is received positively?
Be strategic with your healthy eating programme. You need to know why you’re doing it
and communicate the right information to your staff. If you’re making the effort to create a
positive and energetic culture within your organisation, tell everyone concerned. If you’re
doing it to ease the increased stress and burden staff may be feeling, tell them.
3) Wouldn’t staff just prefer extra cash at the end of the month?
The reason most businesses don’t simply offer more money is that extra pay can be a very
short-lived incentive. Conversely, the right healthy eating initiatives provide staff with
resources that generate personal benefits way beyond a few extra pounds each month.
This is money well spent on building engagement, retention and loyalty as well as
providing added value for employees.
4) How do we justify the extra spend internally and externally?
If you’re concerned that the money you’re planning to invest in wellbeing will come under
scrutiny from your staff or from sources outside the business, particularly the media, make
sure that everyone knows the full story. Be transparent about the positive intentions the
company has for its culture and its people. Sell the benefits.
Make it clear to staff that you’ve done your research and you’re responding to what you
know will improve happiness, motivation and performance levels within your business.
If you need to justify the initiative externally, explain how every pound you’re planning to
invest in this area is designed to generate many more pounds when it comes to increasing
productivity and morale, and reducing absence, turnover and recruitment costs.
5) Is a healthy eating initiative the right place to be spending money?
Yes, if well planned. If you’ve done your homework, you will be in a position to roll out a
programme that doesn’t break the bank while ensuring that it is so well targeted to your
employees’ needs that each initiative generates a tangible return on investment.
6) How do I make the right decision about what to spend the money on?
Fancy initiatives that cost a fortune are no substitute for targeted healthy eating initiatives
that make a real difference. Bear in mind the following guidelines:
Use initiatives that get people excited and involved.
15. The Healthy Employee
10
Recognise and reward those who take part. This needn’t mean extra expense, but
cost-effective tokens of appreciation or even simply publicly acknowledged success
stories that get staff engaged and create a brilliant buzz around your office.
Communicate, be flexible, judge by results and modify your approach as necessary
to ensure you always achieve value for money.
What to Look For in a Healthy Eating Solutions Provider
It goes without saying that I am slightly biased, as I know that our approach works for
many organisations. But looking at this objectively, you may have a specific agenda, so
whatever you want to achieve, whether we can help or not, here’s what you need to look
for in a prospective healthy eating solutions partner…
Do they ask questions? If you’re going to get the most from your healthy eating solutions
company, it is best to look for a team that will take the time to ask questions. The best
healthy eating solutions companies will first look to uncover which initiatives apply to you
and your organisation and will benefit your workforce most effectively.
Are they experienced? When it comes to healthy eating solutions, some people look for
reasons not to make changes to their current diet, so the team you engage needs to be
16. The Healthy Employee
11
professional, confident and convincing. They need to have practical experience of
delivering healthy eating solutions in a variety of organisations.
Do they get results? Do they give the impression that they will be able to motivate your
employees with sound practical ‘how-to’ advice? Ease and simplicity is key to the success
of healthy eating initiatives, especially if they are to benefit your business in the long term.
It is therefore essential to choose a healthy eating solutions company that you think will be
able to understand the personality of your business and inspire your entire audience.
Our Solutions
Healthy eating is key to employee performance, enhancing the bottom line of the business.
We offer three healthy eating solutions of Online programmes with six programmes to
choose from there is a programme that is the right fit for everyone. Buzz Sessions
(workshops), these vary in length from our 30 minute bite-sized lunch ‘n ‘ learn session to
a full day of healthy eating education. We tailor make these sessions, no matter which
length of time, to suit your business requirements exactly. 1-2-1 coaching programmes,
vary in length from 6 weeks to 12 weeks depending upon the needs of the individual.
These programmes provide the most personal level of coaching and supportive
accountability.
17. The Healthy Employee
12
1. Online Programmes
The most cost effective healthy eating education for your employees.
Available to them and at their fingertips 24/7 for three months.
Online by video and PDF, to help your people be the best they can be as quickly and as
easily as possible.
With a choice of six different programmes there is something for everyone:
Fit and Healthy Man
Fit and Healthy Woman
Weight Loss
Weight Gain
Eating for Energy
Family Health
2. Buzz Sessions (Workshops)
From 30 minute bite sized lunch ‘n’ learn sessions, to full day sessions.
Providing a healthy eating education that suits your business requirements.
3. 1-2-1 Programmes
One to one coaching conducted by telephone, email and text message.
Personal healthy eating education that fits with the individual’s requirements
exactly. We have six different programmes that vary from 6 weeks to 12
weeks.
Fit and Healthy Man
Fit and Healthy Woman
Weight Loss
Weight Gain
Eating for Energy
Family Health
Conclusion
I hope you have found this guide interesting and that I’ve helped reinforce the many
benefits that healthy eating solutions can bring to your business.
By employing the services of a healthy eating solutions company to help you implement
this, not only are you providing your employees with a unique opportunity to engage with
an aspect of their lives that they may have been neglecting (something they will relish), but
by helping them to live healthier lives, you are also making an inspired business decision.
We would love to help you achieve your corporate health goals!
18. The Healthy Employee
13
At The Healthy Employee, we are passionate about helping people feel great. If you’re
looking for a positive way to make a real difference to your organisational culture, we are
able to provide your business with the perfect solution.
Having worked with businesses of all sizes and helped thousands of employees over the
last 5 years, we know just how rewarding healthy eating initiatives can be both for
businesses and individuals, and are experts at motivating staff members to make positive
dietary changes to their lifestyles.
We’ll work with you and your staff to establish a bespoke healthy eating solution in order to
ensure you have initiatives that are perfectly suited to your business needs and
requirements.
What’s more, we’ll make sure that you invest wisely in a healthy eating programme that
provides you and your business with dramatic results over the short, medium and long
term.
For more information, just visit our website...
www.thehealthyemployee.co.uk
Thank you for taking the time to read our expert guide to healthy eating solutions. If you
would like to speak to a member of our team please call 0845 533 5302
Successful Corporate Healthy Eating Programmes
As we’re currently in the grip of a double dip recession and, if you pay attention to some
commentators, on the verge of a triple dip recession, this guide has been written with this
tougher climate in mind and takes into account the crucial issue of how to justify spending
on corporate wellbeing when money is tight.
The Healthy Employee enables companies to improve the health, energy and productivity
of their people and provide a highly valued benefit in kind in a cost effective way. Food is
the most powerful drug that most of us will ever take on a regular basis. Understanding
how our body deals with food enables us to avoid the post-lunch, ‘graveyard shift' slump
and keep alert and energised throughout the day. That's the Healthy Employee message
for everyone in the workplace. Working with individuals and groups, we show them how to
manage their physical health, emotional wellbeing and weight by creating their own
19. The Healthy Employee
14
personal eating and exercise blueprint. Whether they spend most of their working day
behind a desk, on the road, or in the boardroom.
1. Our Online Programmes are the most cost effective healthy eating education for your
employees. Available to them and at their fingertips 24/7 for three months. By choosing to
provide a real, practical, and supportive intervention, companies gain healthier,
happier employees – fit and motivated to perform better and achieve more.
2. We have a range of innovative lunch & learn sessions and buzz sessions to raise
awareness, give simple, straightforward advice and provide takeaway action plans so that
people can take control and start to make beneficial changes straightaway.
3. And we have tailored 1-2-1 programmes to enable individuals to address specific issues
with the personal support of a Healthy Employee coach by telephone, text, and email. We
show exactly how to create new, healthy habits that easily fit in with work and individual
lifestyle.
By the time you finish reading our guide you will be left in no doubt that investing in the
services of a healthy eating solutions company will not only dramatically improve your
employees’ health and happiness, but that it also represents an inspired business
decision.
www.thehealthyemployee.co.uk
To speak with a member of our team call 0845 533 5302