How do you adapt a vitality initiative when it is already live?⚙️

Question 1: "When is this vitality plan a success for the employee?"🏆

Imagine you were not an HR employee but someone on the finance team, for example. You have not contributed to the development of the vitality initiative, or you only learn about it a week before it starts. The starting signal has gone off, you have signed up, and you may participate in your organisation's vitality initiative. As an employee yourself, you have not yet considered how the initiative can be a success; you just jump in.

When an employee does not have a clear picture of your goal or when the initiative becomes a success in your eyes, expectations and the actual elaboration can diverge, which can cause disappointment. For example, when an employee expects practical support through walking sessions and exercise schedules, but the initiative offers a gym membership, the divergent expectation can create disappointment.

By asking this question, you can identify what employees' expectations are. You can shift expectations early on so that they are contiguous with the development of the vitality initiative, or you can use this to adjust the initiative to the expectations of colleagues. For example, a colleague may see the idea of a gym subscription as a success when they use it twice. If several colleagues think alike, you could plan two fixed days when they can go to the gym together. Even if colleagues do not go to the same gym, they can motivate each other to go by themselves on these days.

Question 2: "What will it take to integrate this initiative into your own routine?"🔄

You are likely to get many enthusiastic responses from colleagues about your vitality initiative. That motivates and encourages you to continue with the initiative. It is important to ask enthusiastic employees what it would take to see this initiative through in their own spare time. Many employees can get excited about a 10,000-step challenge or a breathing exercise at the start of the day. Still, there is a reason why they do not currently apply this initiative themselves in their current routine. As an HR manager, you want to find out what is currently stopping them from starting these good intentions and what pitfalls they have encountered. It provides insight into any obstacles that have held them back, allowing you to start looking for targeted solutions. Moreover, these answers can help in adapting the initiative to employees' needs and interests.

Question 3: "What do you yourself think is going to be a potential pitfall?" 🕳️

By asking this question, you let the employee become aware of pitfalls. He or she is already encouraged while asking this question to look for solutions himself. Often, employees are unaware of the obstacles that could hinder them in a new vitality initiative. With this question, you already make colleagues more vigilant and alert to setbacks that may come while implementing a new vitality initiative.

It is important to look at possible challenges not only for them but also for your vitality initiative. This still allows you to anticipate in time, for example, drop-outs and overly high targets. When you know that there is a component in your vitality program that employees are struggling with, you can offer extra support, supervision, motivation, and inspiration at that moment. For example, if a colleague is super motivated and enthusiastically participates but knows that he or she is often too hard on themselves, motivation may sink in when a small goal is not achieved. You can lower the goals of your initiative or intervene when this colleague loses motivation by talking to him or her and motivating them again.

Question 4:" What do you like least about this initiative? What do you like best about this initiative?" ⚖️

As an HR manager, you want to ensure that your vitality initiative is effective and appealing to your employees. But what do they actually like and dislike about the initiative? By asking this question, you can see which aspects of the programme are motivating and which can be improved to increase engagement.

Suppose a colleague tells you that he or she is least enthusiastic about the group workshops because this person feels uncomfortable sharing personal experiences. On the other hand, he or she enjoys the weekly walks and feels much more free to tell personal stories. For example, you could adapt a vitality initiative to a workshop that starts with a walk. You could also replace the workshop every other week with a walk.

As an HR manager, you are faced with the challenge of creating an effective vitality initiative that suits your employees' different needs and interests. By asking the right questions and actively listening to their feedback, you can develop or adapt a program into an initiative that really makes a difference in their well-being and performance.

Do you also want to start new vitality initiatives that can be adapted both as a team and for each employee on an individual level? Schedule an appointment with one of us and let's have a digital cup of coffee soon.