Smart Companies Try Virgin Healthmiles
Posted Jun 10, 2010
I’d like to toot the horn of the company I work for here at EBSCO. As an employee (of 5 years), I have been impressed with the new initiative to improve the health and well-being of their workforce. Like most medium to large sized companies, the problem of healthcare becoming outrageously expensive had reached a boiling point, so they decided to try something totally new. Smart companies try Virgin Healthmiles, so EBSCO has joined them. May 5th of this year, EBSCO launched a company wide program called Virgin Healthmiles. And yes, it is an off-shoot of Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. So what exactly is it that has inspired me to rave about it?
I mean, what's the big deal?
Well, first of all, I like that at its core, the company is doing something smart by compensating me to get more active. Yes, they are taking somewhat of what may appear to be a risk (from a business standpoint), but I can appreciate how they have put the trust in me to follow through. It can take a lot “faith” that gains in health through improved active lifestyle will bring down future company insurance payments.
However, therein lies the benefit to EBSCO offered by the Virgin Healthmiles system. As a third party, VH insulates the employee’s privacy, while helping them measure return on their investment. Brilliant! And they do this by giving you a few non-intrusive measuring tools like…a digital pedometer, plus a private on campus electronic scale, body fat monitor, and blood pressure machine.
Okay, but what is in the secret sauce?
Now I will tell you this…the most impressive parts are both the simplicity of the tools/tracking and the well-thought-out incentive system. Personally, I like it because it’s not pushy and offers bonus incentive points at the right time. I also find it top notch because it takes the focus off long term goals (which is why most self help health programs don’t work) and keeps it on your day to day improvement. Virgin Healthmiles has kept it simple, while simultaneously doing an excellent job of offering bonus incentives at times when you might begin to lose interest.
And here is the craziest part!
Oddly enough, EBSCO didn’t tell me to write this! Honestly…I genuinely think it is a great program (dare I say even kind of fun) so far. Like the other 92% of its current participants, I highly recommend that you test drive it with your business if you can afford it. I’d be willing to bet that you pay a lot more in health insurance than you would for this program. You will see results, there are a lot of employee’s here that have already begun to benefit and we have only been using it for little over a month.
But don’t take my word for it…you can also find articles that mention here in Forbes and Bloomberg Businessweek. There is one facet left in the health equation and is an open opportunity for some business to fill…
How can you incentivize people to eat better?
Until a trailblazing entrepreneur tackles that end of things, I guess we will have to continue to rely on healthy eating articles from magazines like Cooking Light or the other Health and Fitness magazines.