DALLAS - Keeping staff morale high in a down economy is a tough task. But an employee-driven program at Advancial FCU is seeking to address that challenge, while also helping staff members get into good physical and mental shape.
AFCU is now more than six months into its "iCare" program, which is dedicated to helping employees be healthy in mind and body and to give back to the community.
"We started with an employee survey to find out how many were interested in losing weight, how many were interested in quitting smoking or participating in fitness programs," explained Suzan Dick, VP-human resources. "Based on their interests we decided what teams we needed and opened it up for employees to join those teams."
A half-dozen teams were created based on the surveys, and while most employees opted for just one team, others joined multiple teams to accomplish even more personal goals. Over the last six months, Advancial employees have been given the opportunity to learn about good nutrition and disease prevention, discuss ways to serve the community through volunteer initiatives, take care of the environment, and even participate in physical challenges, with prizes awarded to the winners.
"We are looking at this as a way to increase employee engagement. This is only one program we have in place to do that," said Dick. "I think this is going to be a staple for us."
The program, which costs Advancial FCU about $12,000 per year, could also reduce employee expenses in the long term, especially when it comes to medical costs. With four teams geared towards physical wellness, the goal is workers who require fewer serious medical visits and treatments, leading to less pressure on premiums. "We will be tracking the number of employees participating on a team, the number of people who successfully quit smoking, the number of people getting annual physicals, and our insurance experience ratio," she explained. "A lot of people only go to the doctor when they are sick and don't go when they are well when things could be caught in early stages."
To boost camaraderie, teams have their own pages on the CUs intranet, and bring in teammates from the $696-million institution's Alaska offices for meetings via videoconferencing. In just a few months, the program, which is organized and run entirely by the team members and not HR, has affected changes to employee benefits, as the CU added 16 paid hours off for volunteer work each year as a new perk.
"Whether people are on a team or not we think we're providing something for everyone that will round out their lives in some way," Dick said.
