Guest Column from Katrina Walton Wellness Strategist.

Small business is largely overlooked when it comes to workplace wellness. It’s therefore unsurprising that small businesses are also less likely to offer workplace wellness initiatives for their employees.¹

Given that small business comprise the majority of businesses in Australasia, that is a lot of people who don’t have access to, and subsequent benefit from such programs.

So what are some of the potential barriers and challenges for small business to embrace wellness?

The Challenges and Advantages

As a small business owner or manager, you’ve probably seen the studies and you know wellness works.  But frankly, with an already overextended budget and staff, a long to-do list and lack of in-house expertise you may have tuned out. Or you’re simply not convinced it’s viable for your business.

You’re not alone.  Small businesses across the globe are facing this same challenge.  They can’t afford a big wellness strategy or program, and don’t have time to piece it together themselves.  Affordable wellness solutions for small businesses are hard to find.

But don’t despair! You can still reap the benefits of a wellness strategy without a ‘big end of town’ budget. You may not have a state-of-the-art onsite gymnasium or café serving fancy salads like some of the large organisations that attract the media spotlight. However, your small business has several advantages for delivering a cost-effective wellness strategy which will outweigh the challenges.

This includes easy access to management, an ability to implement quickly, ease of program communication, higher levels of program engagement (typically 90-100% compared to 30-40% in larger organisations) and greater ability to build a supportive wellness culture.

Plus, in my experience working with small business owners, given a very high percentage of these are family businesses, they tend to care more about their employees as owners often see their employees as extended family members.

What does this mean for your business? With these advantages, and a little creativity, an affordable and simple workplace wellness strategy will be easier to implement than you think.Not only will it lead to more healthy and engaged employees, but it will boost your bottom line.

Still not convinced?

Consider this – what’s the cost of doing nothing? The conundrum for small business is that compared to big business, any employee health or wellness issues will be amplified ten-fold. The smaller the business, the greater the impact.

For example, if two of your eight employees are off unwell – that’s 25% of your workforce – a significant dent in your company’s productivity. Or John’s lack of physical conditioning and poor core stability may have contributed to his manual handling injury which has subsequently bumped up your workers compensation costs.

Such examples not only lead to lost revenue, lost productivity and additional costs such as replacement staffing, but also potentially damage your relationship with customers. Convinced yet?

If not, recent research from Pricewaterhouse Coopers may sway you. The research commissioned by beyondblue in Australia concluded that small businesses stand to gain the most from investing in the mental health of their employees. Whilst businesses can expect an average return on investment from appropriate mental health strategies of $2.30 for every dollar spent, this jumped as high as $15 for small business.³

11 Tips for Cost-Effective Wellness Delivery for Small Business

Not sure where to start? Whether it’s for big or small business, the core wellness principles are the same.The following low cost strategies will help you kickstart and sustain your wellness strategy:

1. Determine the needs and interests of your employees through a simple survey or discussion at a team meeting
2. Nominate an employee to champion the strategy
3. Modify or extend your existing organisational policies (e.g. occupational health and safety, flexible working) to demonstrate your commitment to employee wellness
4. Where suitable, include low cost virtual modes of program delivery (e.g. online programs, mobile apps)
5. Extend programs to family members where possible to maximise impact and engagement
6. Tap into free or low-cost community resources such as local council programs
7. Collaborate with other local businesses and organise group activities or discounts on services like gym membership
8. Partner with a larger business that has an established wellness program
9. Integrate wellness initiatives into existing company events such as team meetings or social events
10. Create a supportive wellness environment for example, providing bike racks to encourage employees to cycle to work or healthy catering for team meetings
11. Subsidise activities or programs (e.g. registration for corporate sporting events)

Even an annual company family picnic can have wellness benefits through increasing team cohesion, morale and commitment to the business. Or why not follow the example of leading Brisbane based tree surgery company Brisbane Tree Experts, who incorporate massage as part of their reward and recognition strategy for their field staff. Not only does this serve as a ‘feel good’ reward, but given the physical nature of their roles, as a valuable recovery and injury management strategy. A win-win scenario!

Further Reading / References:

1. Phillips, K et al (2004) ‘Strategies for Health Promotion in Small Business’, The Art of Health Promotion.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics (2002) Small Business in Australia 2001, Accessible: www.abs.gov.au
3. Pricewaterhouse Coopers (2014) Creating mentally healthy workplace – return on investment analysis, Accessible: www.headsup.org.au

Katrina Walton is the Director at Wellness Designs and has over 18 years experience in the strategic development and implementation of multi award-winning wellness programs, nationally and internationally. Katrina is passionate about spreading the wellness message, whether it be through publishing, speaking, training or tweeting! You can connect on Linkedin and follow her on Twitter.