Unicorns, flying pigs, golden eggs, and a money tree. What do these have to do with your company’s Employee Benefits you ask? Absolutely nothing. But now that I have your attention let us talk about the benefits you, as an employer, offer and how you communicate those benefits to your employees.

Whether you are a company of under 50 or a fortune 100, benefits are typically promoted at onboarding for new hires and once a year at open enrollment. That is where it usually stops. Seriously! Outside of Payroll, your second or third greatest expense to be in business is only addressed one to two times per year. Not only are employee benefits expensive for you as the employer, but a big decision for us employees too. So, would you say addressing employee benefits 1-2 times a year is sufficient? I do not think so.

The following webinar session was hosted by the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce featuring speakers from workplace wellness experts Motion Connected and Forsite Benefits.

AUDIENCE: HR professionals, Management, Operations, and others in positions of leadership. 

CONTENT:  If 2020 taught us anything, it is that the workplace is changing. How can organizations adapt to these changing needs, build a more employee-friendly workplace, and achieve long-term business success?  In this session, we discuss ways to increase engagement, boost retention, and create a positive employee experience. 

• Learn best-practice communication methods to reach a diverse workforce.
• Discover engagement strategies to attract and retain employees.
• Better understand the role of well-being in the time of COVID; is worksite wellness a solution?

Adopting and sticking to heart-healthy habits is important for everyone at every age.  With heart disease being the leading cause of death among Americans, educating yourself on heart health is of the utmost importance. There are many ways to practice a lifestyle that contributes to heart health, in turn lowering your risk of cardiovascular disease.

Symptoms of cardiovascular disease may be different between men and women. Men are more likely to have chest pain, whereas women are more likely to have chest discomfort; shortness of breath, nausea, and extreme fatigue. If any of these symptoms occur, call 911 immediately! 

Download this month's Nav Series Newsletter to share with your team.

Even as things start returning to some sort of normalcy in day to day operations, societal indications show that the impact of COVID-19 on “business as usual” will be seen well into 2021.  With the ripples of the Coronavirus continuing to form, Employers are faced with challenges of managing the on-going fluctuation and frustration of their workforce.

Now more than ever, employers are struggling with employee recruitment and retention, and employees are looking to their HR and Leadership teams for organizational evolution that has their best interest at heart.  Businesses who continue with the “we’ve always done it this way” mentality of employee engagement are going to be left scratching their heads wondering why their biggest assets are funneling out the door and they can’t recover from this pandemic.

Why is an employee benefits consulting company talking about employee acquisition and retention challenges?

The answer’s quite simple and straightforward, but often overlooked by organizations: Employee Benefits play a key role in whether people decide to come to work for, or leave, a specific business.  In support, annual data from recruiting experts like Glassdoor and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) continue to show that 60%+ of job seekers report Employee Benefits (Health Benefits ranking #1) and Perks as major factors in considering a job offer.

Check out this article by Jennifer Jones, 'Why Employee Experience Shouldn't Stop Short of Health Benefits'.

Whether we like it or not, times have changed, and the COVID-19 landscape has brought many of the gaps in structure and understanding of traditional employee benefit programs to the surface.  Strategic organizations understand that their team members are the biggest driver of their future growth and success.  Along with that, these businesses understand that the way they assemble and promote their Employee Benefits programs will impact the quality of their Associates.  When correctly aligned, Employee Benefits and recruitment can solidify a company’s position as an Employer of Choice on the cutting edge of the talent war. 

How can your employee benefits program tie into employee engagement and your sustainable growth strategy moving forward? 

To keep it simple, we’ve narrowed our solution down into the 3 pillars for benefit evolution that will improve employee engagement and overall employee experience:

1.  Educate: Let’s face it, the world of employee benefits can be complex and confusing.  As costly as insurance benefits are, it is imperative to ensure your employees understand what they are receiving and have streamlined access to the information they need to be intelligent healthcare consumers whenever they need it and wherever they are. Companies must ensure their employees are educated healthcare consumers and that important information reaches all employees in simple, easy-to-understand terms.  The result of employee benefit education is more informed employees who are engaged and satisfied, become better benefit consumers, and help to mitigate your company’s risk that leads to future claims. 

How can you achieve educated, engaged, satisfied employees?

a.  Offer them direct access to timely benefit experts and resources

b.  Give on-demand mobile access to pertinent benefits materials at a single point of entry

c.  Provide proactive communications for cost saving RX/Medical alternatives

2.  Engage: The days of having one in-person meeting a year at open enrollment are over.  Not only is this method expensive for employers and unsafe in current times, it is ineffective and often does not include all parties involved in benefits decisions. Employers must revamp their open enrollment strategy to guarantee accurate and practical employee benefits information can be easily accessible and absorbed by their team members. It is important that employers utilize technology to communicate with their employees on platforms where they are already spending their time, such as a smartphone, computer, or tablet. 

Are you wondering how to improve employee engagement? We believe employee engagement begins with how an organization presents their company sponsored employee benefits program. Take the following steps to modernize your open enrollment approach.

a.  Ensure your employees have access to materials that will make them the best healthcare consumers they can be. Seek a proactive, real-time option for effective healthcare system navigation

b.  Make open enrollment easy, safe, and educational by enrolling in an online, app-based enrollment and benefit election tools

c.  Let your employees know that you care about their wellbeing. Secure innovative health and wellness offerings for your employee population's physical, mental, emotional and financial wellbeing

3.  Empower: As companies look at a roster of team members from millennials to baby boomers, a one-sized fits all approach to benefits won’t cut it.  Employees are yearning to have the autonomy to choose the most effective and affordable program for their unique family dynamics.  The needs of a single 25-year-old, a 45-year-old with a family of four, and a 55-year-old empty nester will be drastically different.  On top of having options, your current and future workforce want a voice in continued changes that will inevitably occur for your employee benefits program to remain relevant.

Gather information on employee benefits services for your employees’ to feel empowered when making benefit decisions that are best for their unique situation.

a.  Explore Forsite’s access to non-traditional healthcare options based on stage of life for member/family that will mitigate financial risk for the employee and the company alike

b.  Ask about Forsite’s creative options to customize coverage and direction of employee investment

c.  Invest in technology and population health solutions to encourage and incentivize healthy behavior change such as a corporate wellness program

It’s no secret that all employers have challenges with talent and, since their inception in the 1940s, company sponsored employee health plans have played a huge role in helping to solve this dilemma.  We believe the problem is that in the last 70+ years, employers have transitioned from looking at this part of total compensation as a “benefit” to employees to simply an “expense” to the employer. 

Over the last 16 years, Forsite Benefits has been on a mission to flip the script and has helped our clients contain costs in their programs with an employee-first approach.  By focusing on Employee Education, Engagement and Empowerment to create the best possible employee benefits scenario for their team members, Forsite clients have seen a ripple effect that comes backwards to impact overall organizational, financial, and cultural health in their business.

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Who Started the Move Challenge?

Forsite Benefits & Wellness launched the annual Move Challenge in 2017 to provide the Greater Green Bay and Fox Valley communities of Northeast Wisconsin a way to come together for a charitable cause. Today, the Move Challenge has welcomed over 100 teams, raised ~$45,000 for local charity, and has expanded participation to organizations throughout all of Wisconsin.

What is the Move Challenge?

Teams of 7+ employees from organizations throughout Wisconsin throw their hat in the ring to compete for the highest daily group step average and title of Move Champion. What does this honor bring your team? Bragging rights, pride, community exposure and recognition, that wonderful feeling when you give back, a personal growth experience, a trophy and so much more. 

Where Does the Move Challenge take place?

Throughout the remote Move Challenge 'race' experience, all challenge progress and team stats are tracked within the Motion Connected corporate wellness app! Team members take initiative to pick those steps up on their own or together. In the office halls, parking lot, or a nice scenic outdoor walk are just some of the places Move competitors got their feet shuffling to get more steps in their day. 

Forsite Benefits’ Facebook & LinkedIn pages also keep participants in the loop of challenge progress, and share details of mini contests and giveaways throughout the challenge duration.

When does the Move Challenge happen?

The ultimate company vs company step challenge fills the entire month of September each year. Registration is open in the summer months leading up to day one of the challenge, September 1. 

Why should anyone register for the Move Challenge?

For so many reasons. The most notable being;

• To raise funds for a local charity partner each year, funding resources that go right back into our community. 100% of the Move Challenge proceeds (registration fees, 10k club pledges, and additional donations) go directly to our beneficiaries. This year, our charity partner is CP.
  
• To introduce healthy lifestyle habits to our neighbors, employees, friends, family, and teammates, impacting overall population health and building healthier lifestyle habits that stick.
• To bring all of Wisconsin together for some community interaction, charitable giving, networking and FUN.

How can anyone join the Move Challenge?

It’s actually pretty simple. Your first step is locating a team captain. That team captain might even be you! No need to form your entire team before registering, simply register under the team captains name and build the rest of your team (7+ coworkers, family or friends) up to September 1. Following registration, you’ll be contacted by our charity partner and invoiced for your $250 team registration fee, AKA your generous donation to the Move Challenge’s cause. 

Each teammate will need to download the Motion Connected app on their smart phone, slap on their trusty step tracker (Garmin, Fitbit, Apple watch…) in preparation for September 1; the day our Motion Connected app will start counting your steps for a team average.

Forsite Benefits has built countless tangible and intangible benefits into each year’s Move Challenge experience that all participating companies can look forward to.

1.  Complimentary access to our wellness app, Motion Connected.

a.  For the 30 days that the Move Challenge takes place, each participating team will gain complimentary access to our fine-tuned corporate wellness solution.

2.  A month-long challenge, created and mediated for you.

a.  Challenges are a fun and effective way to improve lifestyle habits, but creating a challenge and mediating progress is no small feat. That is why our Forsite Benefits | Motion Connected team does the work for you.

3.  Mini contest and giveaways.

a.  Throughout the month-long challenge, Forsite Benefits will post weekly opportunities on social media to win prizes. Follow us on Facebook & LinkedIn! These prizes could be a pair of wireless earbuds, giftcards, wellness swag or a gift basket for the office.

4.  Additional opportunities to give back! 

a.  Have we mentioned the 10k club? If your team averages 10,000 steps a day or more, an additional $50 donation will be made in your name to this year's charity partner, CP. Plus, we’ll provide you some hardware proof to display in the office for your accomplishment.

5.  An outlet to form healthy lifestyle habits.

a.  6,000 steps a day. That is the needle-moving, magic number we love to see individuals achieve in order to make a noticeable difference in their overall health. 6,000 steps a day fights obesity, chronic disease, fatigue, depression, and so much more. The Move Challenge encourages one month of significant daily movement, to help form habits that lead to a healthier lifestyle. 

So what are you waiting for? It’s time to step up. Register your Move team today. 

(GREEN BAY, WI) June 15, 2020 – All Greater Green Bay and Fox Valley organizations are invited to compete in the 4th annual Move challenge created by Forsite Benefits of Green Bay. This popular company vs. company step challenge offers an outlet for organizations to build camaraderie among employees and the local community all while encouraging an active lifestyle. 100% of the team registration fees and donations will directly benefit this year’s local charity partner, CP.

How it works: The Move challenge is tracked using Forsite Benefits’ corporate wellness mobile app, Motion Connected. Participating individuals should acquire their own activity tracking device such as a Fitbit, Garmin, Apple Watch, or smart phone to sync to the app. Teams then track their average daily steps and compete against others racing to achieve the highest average daily step count.

Companies wishing to participate should register their teams at www.forsitebenefits.com/move beginning June 22 – August 14. The challenge will last the full month of September.

“Last year, we welcomed over 50 teams to participate in our month-long challenge, and raised over $14,000 for local charities. We are hopeful to see an even greater turnout this year,” said Graham Ness, COO & Partner of Forsite Benefits.. “It will be fun to see not only returning competitors aim to reclaim their champion title, but also new organizations join in on the fun and show our community what they are made of.”

Throughout the event, individuals and teams can win prizes by following @Forsitebenefits on Facebook & LinkedIn and entering weekly contests.

As an added bonus, if teams average 10,000+ steps during September, they will be welcomed into the 10k Club and Forsite Benefits will contribute a bonus donation to CP. To conclude the competition, the top 3 teams and the 10k Club members will be publicly recognized and celebrated with a closing ceremony.

“Once again this year, CP is very pleased to partner with Forsite Benefits and be the recipient of the proceeds from this year’s Move Challenge.” says Jon Syndergaard, Executive Director at CP. “The support last year was integral in continuing to provide critical services to the community. This year, given the unique challenges we all face, the financial support is particularly meaningful as we work to maintain our programs for those that are so deserving. Additionally, CP looks forward to competing effectively in the Move challenge itself! “

Alongside its charitable focus, the Move challenge encourages building healthier habits, an active lifestyle, and collaboration in the workplace. A participant of past Move challenges shared, “Things like this just simply motivate a person to stay active!”

Teams can register for the Move Challenge June 22nd through August 14th at www.forsitebenefits.com/move.

About Forsite Benefits: Forsite Benefits is the premier health and wellness employee benefit consulting team in Wisconsin. Our specialized expertise in employee benefit advisement has guided hundreds of clients to a clearer plan for their benefit package. We serve small and midsize businesses with comprehensive and progressive solutions focused on controlling health care costs.

About CP: CP is a non-profit organization, offering services and programming for physical, developmental and sensory conditions. CP reaches more than 2,100 infants, children and adults throughout Northeast Wisconsin every year at its locations Green Bay, Fox Cities and on the Lakeshore. Adult Day Services | Therapy Services | CP Early Education & Care | Aquatic Center.