Group Benefits are offered by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, a member of the Sun Life Financial group of companies.
Erin DickDirector, Client Relationships, Health
and Wellness
Sun Life Financial
Human Resources Professionals Association – London, ON
March 31 2016
Preliminary learnings from the Sun Life – Ivey
Canadian Wellness ROI Study:
Demonstrating the value of wellness programs
in the workplace
Michael RouseAssociate Professor, Strategy and Organization,
and Principal Researcher of the Study
Ivey Business School at Western University
Agenda
1. The opportunity
2. Overview and challenges
3. Study phases and results to date
4. Looking forward
5. Beyond ROI
Establish Canadian benchmarks
on the return on investment (ROI) for
workplace wellness
Opportunity
Contribute to best practice research to help organizations maximize the
value of their wellness strategy
What makes this study unique?
• Ivey managed study
methodology and analysis
• High level of academic rigour
• Multiple health and
organizational measures
• Individual level data analysis
What were the challenges?
• Company participation
• Sample size
• Study duration
• Standard program and communications
• Shifting organizational health and wellness landscape
• Organizational changes
Project Manager: Elisa M. Yaquian, MSc
Data Analyst: Rodney T. Tembo, MSc
MSc student: Shivani Parihar
Student volunteer: Jaymie O. Varenbut
Professors:
Dr. Greg Zaric , Dr. Sisir Sarma, Dr. Michael J. Rouse,
Dr. Shauna Burke Dr. Charlice Hurst
Postdoctoral fellows:
Dr. Adebayo Aderounmu & Dr. Josephine Jacobs
PhD students:
Vivek Astvansh, Ellen Choi, Ken Xiao
Ivey research team
Phase 1 results
Wellness programs save
1.5 – 1.7 days of absenteeism(ROI Study Phase 1, 2012)
Absenteeism ranges from
4.7 to 11.2 days(Statistics Canada, 2011)
Phase 2 overview
A two year in-field study of a comprehensive wellness program
• Implemented in 6 organizations
• Treatment & control groups
• Multiple Sites (28)
• Distinct locations
Participant representation
51% Treatment; 57% Control indicated plan to stay
+8 years or the rest of their careers
12%
14%
18%24%
14%
18%
Industry
Software Development
IT Solutions & Integration
Logistics
IT Communication Technology
Specialized Trades
Government
14%
9%
4%1%
23%10%
38%
1%
Job CategoryAdministrative support
Customer service/Sales
Executive
Fabrication/Machine operation,assembly, or inspection
Manager/Supervisor
Other
Professional/Technical
Transportation or materialmoving
6.5% 6.1%
25.6%
5.4%
-0.2%
6.8%
-5.0%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
Workplace Culture &Engagement
Nutrition Physical Activity Stress Alcohol & Tobacco OrganizationalWellness
Ind
ex %
ch
an
ge
be
gin
nin
g to
en
d
of stu
dy
Overall Wellness Index score % change
(beginning – end of study [treatment only])
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs)
• CVDs significant public health concern
– 31% of all global deaths 2012 (WHO, 2014)
– Yet highly preventable (Buttar et al., 2005)
• 80% of CVD related mortality preventable
– Exercise, healthy dietary habits & body weight, not smoking
• Study: used cross-sectional data comparing CVD risk
factors with biometrics (n=320)
– Logistic regression analysis
(Forthcoming: JOEM)
CVD Analysis Results
• 39.5% of employees did not know at least one of their CVD
risk factors. These individuals were:
– less likely to meet recommended physical activity levels
– less likely to consume three daily servings of fruits and vegetables
– but more likely to report weekly fast food consumption.
• Conclusion:
– highlights a lack of awareness of cholesterol levels
– demonstrates negative association between CVD awareness &
preventive health behaviours
Source: Jacobs J., Burke S., Rouse MJ., Sarma S., Zaric G., (forthcoming) Cardiovascular disease risk awareness and its
association with preventive health behaviors: Evidence from a sample of Canadian workplaces. Journal of Occupational and
Environmental Medicine
6.5% 6.1%
25.6%
5.4%
-0.2%
3.2%5.4%
3.4% 3.0%
-1.4%
6.8%
2.7%
-5.0%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
Workplace Culture &Engagement
Nutrition Physical Activity Stress Alcohol & Tobacco OrganizationalWellness
Treatment %Change
Control %Change
Treatment %Change
Control %Change
Wellness Index Score % change
(beginning – end of study)
Overall Wellness Score % change:
A comparison of two companies
16.2%
-1.5%
2.3%
0.2%
-4.0%
-2.0%
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
12.0%
14.0%
16.0%
18.0%
Company X Company Y
Treatment % Change
Control % Change
Accomplished health outcomes
23%
22%
53%
51%
59%
23%
16%
14%
15%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Increased energy
Became physically active
Increased my physical activity level
Improved my nutrition
Drank more water
Lost weight (please specify how much weight you lost below)
Managed stress better
Increased amount of restful sleep
Improved communication with others
“What health outcomes did you accomplish during this program? (select all that apply)”
Looking forward
• ROI on a 2 year wellness program• Effectiveness
• Impact on self reported casual absences
• Predicting the ROI for a 5 year wellness program using
a mathematical forecasting model
• “The impact of mindfulness on error reduction in high
reliability organizations”- a randomized control study
• What can employers do to reduce workplace stress
• 70% of return health screening clinic participants reduced their
risk in one or more areas1
• 80% indicated that they have plans to change their lifestyle
habits in order to improve their scores2
• Since 2012 an average of 78% of HRA respondents indicated they
were/are satisfied with the amount of involvement they have in
decisions that affect their work3
• Employees that participate in health challenges indicate higher
levels of perceived productivity levels post challenge4
Beyond the ROI…the value of wellness
1 SLF BOB Clinic analysis 2015:Aug31) – Based on 1857 return clinic participants as of Aug 31, 20152 SLF BOB Clinic analysis 2014) – Based on 9758 respondents3 SLF BOB HRA analysis 2012 – 20154 SLF BOB Health Challenge outcomes analysis 2014 – Based on 7147 challenge pre/post survey respondents
Value to the employee
“The know your numbers program saved my life last year. After visiting my doctor I
found out my liver and kidneys were close to shutting down. I changed my diet and
healed my body over a 5 month period.”
“Really thankful to my employer for having such service available at such a convenient
location such as the workplace, many of us never get the chance to make these
appointments outside by ourselves because of hectic lives. This really helped.”
In house review of 3+ years wellness
program outcomes data*
* Post clinic survey feedback from participants of Sun Life’s 2015 Health Screening Clinics
Best Practices
Leadership Policies &
Practices
Communication Targeted
Programs
Evaluation
Commitment to
organizational and
employee health
Reflect culture of
health
Frequent, focused,
integrated
Areas of greatest
need
Motivate and
engage
Specific and
ongoing
Continuous loop
Research applications for employers
ROI and VOI for wellness support a strategic approach to
workplace health
• Research supports the value of wellness – let’s do more!
• Success requires leadership, communication and a
strategic approach
• Consider culture
• It’s about the business value of health, and employee
impact through reduced health risk
In summary
NEXT STEPS
www.sunlife.ca/wellnessROIstudy
• Final results anticipated by Fall 2016
• Opportunities to learn more:
– Le Rassemblement Conference, Quebec (Apr 6-7, 2016)
– Ivey Idea Forum, Toronto (Jun 7, 2016)
– Sun Life Disability and Mental Health Research Forum, Toronto (October 18, 2016)
– Better Workplace Conference, Vancouver BC (Oct 24-26, 2016)
– HR Reporter Webinar, National (Nov 2016 )
Thank you
Group Health and Wellness Services are offered by Sun Life Assurance Company
of Canada, a member of the Sun Life Financial group of companies.
Michael RouseAssociate Professor, Strategy and Organization,
and Principal Researcher of the Study
Ivey Business School at Western University
www.ivey.ca
sunlife.ca/wellnessROIstudy
Erin DickDirector, Client Relationships, Health and Wellness
Sun Life Financial
ca.linkedin.com/in/michaeljrouse