Creating a culture of wellness in the workplace is less about plugging in stock benefits solutions, and more about customized solutions that appeal to a specific population. From flexible workday schedules to walking meetings and free healthy snack options, managers are literally “walking the walk” to create healthy working environments and cultural change within their companies.

Here are a few more offbeat solutions that are seeing high engagement and creating real change in the world of corporate wellness.

Ask employees what they want

Establish employee-led advisory committees. Get buy-in from the top influencers in your organization and let them develop engagement events from the inside. Ask those influencers to take part in a buddy system that fosters extra accountability and motivation for new participants.

Encourage existing healthy behaviors

Many employees feel like wellness programs overlook healthy lifestyle choices that are outside of the normal HR bucket of engagement programs. Consider reimbursing active employees for half or all of their race registration fees, offering matching “hourly wage” donations for hours spent volunteering, or even offering monthly stipends for those who bike to work.

Replace seminars with unique solutions

Health-based learning can be dull and feel like another thing on the “to-do” list. Take nutrition, for example: Instead of webinars for nutrition education, you could designate a gardening spot for growing healthy snacks or invite employees to participate in fruit and veggie delivery or farmer’s market at the office. Even better, invite a local chef or nutritionist to engage employees in a hands-on healthy cooking demonstration during the workday, or offer a discount for an existing off-site class.

Keep it fun

The key to the best wellness program engagement strategies is to keep things light and fun and allow employees to lead the way. Creating a culture of wellness includes fostering positivity and mental health. Activities that are healthy and fun will keep your population engaged and help change your company’s culture for the better.

If your company is stuck in a rut when it comes to increasing engagement and seeing wellness program results, call in the experts. An award-winning health and fitness consultancy, for the last 25 years Aquila has been creating, managing, designing and implementing innovative health and wellness solutions for private and public organizations. Learn more about what Aquila can do for your wellness program by contacting us at info@aquilaltd.com.