Five Key Benefits (you may never have thought of) from Planning an Employee Health Fair
Posted on Thursday December 8 2016
HR and benefits professionals - 2018 is in full swing and you're most likely in the middle of implementing your wellness initiatives for your employees because it’s your chance to stand out, show your employees you care, and to create a more healthy culture in your workplace. Agree?
As you look over your plan (or if you're just starting one), a health & wellness fair for your employees is most likely somewhere on the list, or at least we hope so. And feel free to check out this planning step-by-step guide by clicking here.
Now, you might be thinking...
"Ugh! I would like to have a health fair for my employees, but don't have time to plan one."
The good news - You have plenty of time to get the ball rolling, and in a later post, I'll be sure to tell you (and show) how to streamline the planning process.
You might be skeptical, but NOW there is technology that exists out there which will make the planning process a breeze while you get to look like a rockstar in front of your peers ( it’s 180 degrees turn from what you’re used to).
More on that later.
Moving on...keep reading to see the five benefits (you may never have thought of) by planning a health/wellness fair, as well as ways to maximize the effect it has on you and your employees.
1. Employee Awareness - a health/wellness fair is a one-stop shop to wake your employees up and show them the light lol.. but seriously :)
As I’m sure you know, your employees already have enough to worry about like tasks, meetings, deadlines, family obligations, etc.. Rarely are they focused on their health and well-being, and it’s up to you to move the needle here.
A health fair is a subtle and not overbearing way to make your employees more health conscious, as different vendors can share and educate your employees on topics and issues that may have never crossed their mind.
Think of a health/wellness fair as an event that ties it all together, providing health and wellness education to your employees, helping them make connections from different types of local providers if ever needed.
People are searching for unique and quality health/wellness providers - help ‘em out!
Still on the fence? Check this article out from Motley Fool. They give even more reasons as to why HR managers and benefits professionals should plan a health fair & wellness fair.
2. Health insurance questions?? Employees can get answers directly from the horse's mouth
I’ve been at plenty of health fairs, chatting with the HR team, when an employee comes up asking…
“Where is insurance provider “X?” I have a question regarding my coverage.”
How nice will it be when you just have to point that insurance rep out during your health & wellness fair?
Changing insurance carriers, or adding/removing coverages can lead to numerous questions from your employees, some of which you might struggle to answer.
Check out this quote below from Jason Andrew (CEO of Limelight Health) during an interview with Jen Benz (CEO of Benz Communications):
*Check out the full interview with Andrew and Jen by clicking here.
As you can see, you’re not the only one with this problem, but no need to fret, as you can have your insurance carriers attend your health/wellness fair to chat and answer any of those awkward and challenging questions from your employees.
Most carriers have onsite reps that specialize in attending employee health fairs for their clients, so don't hesitate to ask them.
3. Employees will see that you care - this is a benefit to you, right?
This one seems pretty silly, but showing interest in your employees' health can go a long way and possibly make a positive impact on your company’s culture. After all, you have to get the conversation going to make an impact, and this is how you do it!
When implementing your health and wellness initiatives, you don't want to come off as only worried about the CFO breathing down your neck about your company's health insurance cost.
Taking the time to plan an interactive and fun (emphasis on interactive and fun) health/wellness fair for your employees is an effective way to make sure that's not the case.
Not to mention, you’ll get to see a vast majority of your employees face to face, show your personality, and collect direct feedback in regards to your employees’ health and wellbeing.
Health/wellness fairs are a great place to start these conversations and gain amazing insight into what your next initiatives should be related to your employees’ wellness.
4. PREVENTION - catch issues and problems before they occur
If your employees are like me, I don't want to go to the doctor unless I have a broken leg, on the verge of death, or something to that effect.
I'm not saying that's the smartest idea (it’s actually a terrible idea), but my guess, quite a few of your employees, could share my same view.
With an employee health/wellness fair, you can bring the local healthcare providers to your employees (blood pressure screenings, flu shots, cholesterol checks, hearing screenings, etc.), making it more convenient and increasing your employees’ chances of catching a problem before it happens.
Not to mention, your employees save valuable time during their day when the docs come to them.
When implementing these screenings during an interactive and fun (continue to keep the words “fun” and “interactive” in the back of your mind) health/wellness fair, you can expect to see an increase in the number of your employees who will receive these types of screenings in 2017.
5. Open Enrollment - Kill two birds with one stone
I'm sure you all know who much fun it is for HR and benefits professionals during the open enrollment season..I'm obviously joking here.
However, ever thought of knocking out open enrollment during your employee health/wellness fair?
It might seem like a lot of work to execute them both at the same time (remember, we'll discuss how to streamline the health fair planning later), but that's not the case...
Have your benefits broker or medical insurance provider attend your employee health/wellness fair and bring a laptop to set up at their booth (maybe a few laptops depending on your employee size). As employees enter (or before they leave) the health/wellness fair, they’ll stop by your benefits broker’s booth (say that five times fast), and he or she will assist them with completing their OE online.
Having open enrollment implemented during your health/wellness fair allows you to get a HUGE portion of your employee population all squared away in a day!
And there you have it, five key benefits of hosting your annual employee health fair. Still need more reasons, benefits, tips or resources for planning a health fair? Check out this blog post from Lauren Owens from Paycom - 5 Tips For A Successful Wellness Fair
In later posts, I'll also provide tips, ideas, themes, and the actual planning process from my perspective/experience. Until then, thanks for reading, and I hope this helps!
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More About Health Fair Connections (HFC):
Simply put, we offer the only nationwide health fair planning tool that helps HR and benefits professionals automate 95% of the health fair planning process. The coolest part: it's like online shopping for health fair vendors. This tool is completely free to use, and you can get started at any time by clicking here.
- Tim Sackett's (President of HRU Tech) post about HFC: Click Here
- HFC made William Tincup's Recruiting Daily List of 100 HR Technologies worth watching: Click Here
- HFC's Competitive Matrix:
Link to large PDF of Competitive Matrix.
