The Care and Feeding of Employees – Hello Millennials!

March is National Nutrition Month and themed, Bite into a Healthy Lifestyle”. That got me to thinking about the importance of HR professionals supporting employees will wellness. At a recent educational meeting I attended in Tampa, I noticed an uptick in conversations around wellness. Topics ranged from what’s new in wellness plans and corporate challenges using pedometers, to how do we recruit and retain employees focused on wellness.

In particular, the growing Millennial demographic is attracted to and values corporations focused on wellness and work-life balance. This segment, now approaching 25% of the workforce, values connectivity. It’s part of their lifeblood and social media transforms how they share thoughts & influence everything.

So, how do we assess their level of engagement around a variety of topics, including wellness and work-life balance? Perhaps it’s thru measuring attendance and commitment levels in our wellness programs. Perhaps it’s time you dust off that stale employee survey instrument and consider adding a variety of organizational effectiveness measures including wellness. Perhaps it’s time to provide managers with insights into what engages Millenials entering their workforce. Perhaps…

Well, that’s some food for thought during this National Nutrition Month. For me, I’m off to consider these options and run – literally, my pedometer is calling my name!