Latest news with #employeehealth
Geek Wire
29-05-2025
- Business
- Geek Wire
Real Answers from the Field: Insurance Advisor, Josh Storms, on Why Tech Companies Choose ALLtech for Benefits
Q: What do you say when a tech company asks why they should look at ALLtech? Josh Storms: I tell them ALLtech was built for them. We're not trying to fit tech companies into a general solution—we designed this trust specifically for the PNW tech community. Whether they're a small startup or scaling fast, ALLtech gives them access to benefits that are usually out of reach. Q: Who qualifies to join ALLtech? Josh Storms: Any tech company in the Pacific Northwest. I work with groups as small as two employees and as large as several hundred. ALLtech is about leveling the playing field so even the smallest teams can offer top-tier benefits. Q: What types of coverage does ALLtech include? Josh Storms: Medical, dental, vision, life, and disability. We work with top carriers like Regence, Delta Dental, and VSP. That gives companies access to solid networks and flexible options—without overpaying. Q: A lot of companies worry about cost. How does ALLtech help? Josh Storms: That's usually the first thing people ask. The trust model lets us negotiate group rates, which drives costs down. Most of the companies I work with are surprised at how competitive the pricing is once they see the options. Q: How hard is it to manage the plans? Josh Storms: We make it simple. Companies get support for enrollment, compliance, and day-to-day admin. It's a big difference from going it alone or trying to manage a piecemeal setup. Q: What role do benefits play in hiring and retention? Josh Storms: A big one. The tech space is competitive. If you're not offering good benefits, you're already behind. ALLtech gives companies the tools to compete—especially with job seekers who expect strong health coverage as part of the deal. Q: Is ALLtech only for early-stage startups? Josh Storms: Not at all. I work with a mix of pre-IPO startups and well-established tech firms. What they have in common is the need for flexible, affordable benefits that grow with them. That's where ALLtech fits in. Q: What's the main takeaway for companies considering ALLtech? Josh Storms: You don't have to be a big company to offer great benefits. ALLtech gives you access, affordability, and support—all in one place. Q: How do they get started? Josh Storms: Just reach out. I'm happy to walk through the details and help compare options. You can also check out more at ALLtech Benefits. If you are ready to offer your team competitive, affordable benefits without the headache of complex administration, ALLtech is here to help. Learn more about how ALLtech can support your company's growth and success by visiting ALLtech Benefits.
Fast Company
27-05-2025
- Health
- Fast Company
Why your workplace wellness program isn't reducing stress—and how to fix it
Companies are spending more than $65 billion globally on corporate wellness, offering everything from meditation rooms and resilience webinars to nap pods and self-help apps. Projections suggest this market will exceed $100 billion by 2032. And yet burnout is worse than ever. Post-pandemic, 77% of U.S. employees report experiencing workplace stress, according to the American Psychological Association, and 82% say they're at risk of burnout. Experts blame collaboration overload, digital fatigue, and blurred work-life boundaries. Even artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT, intended to streamline work, can amplify pressure by raising expectations for speed and output. This disconnect exposes a hard truth: More wellness spending doesn't mean better employee well-being. If anything, it masks the root of the problem. The Corporate Wellness Paradox The more companies invest in wellness, the worse employees seem to feel. Is wellness spending the cause of burnout? Probably not. But it's clearly not preventing it either. So why are both rising in tandem? 1. Wellness as a deflection, not a solution. The 10 most dangerous words in business: Burnout is an organizational problem that needs an organizational solution. Too often, companies outsource that responsibility—handing out mindfulness apps rather than asking why employees need them in the first place. Like blaming the canary instead of clearing the toxic mine, we focus on individual resilience instead of fixing the system. 2. Perks that miss the point. Wellness perks like yoga sessions sound good, but they don't address what's actually broken: unsustainable workloads, poor management, lack of autonomy, and toxic cultures. These programs treat symptoms, not causes. It's like handing out umbrellas in a flood and calling it disaster relief. 3. Branding over behavior. Wellness is often treated as a recruitment asset —front and center in job postings and Mental Health Awareness Month campaigns, but rarely integrated into how work actually gets done. If wellness isn't embedded in deadlines, resourcing, and manager training, it won't move the needle. The result? While 81% of employers say their well-being programs are effective, 61% of employees disagree. That gap signals a deeper issue: performative wellness that looks good on paper but fails in practice. 4. The illusion of progress. Companies often equate the presence of wellness programs with progress. But few measure what matters: burnout rates, psychological safety, and team performance. When wellness becomes symbolic, it can obscure the deeper structural problems driving stress. How Companies Can Improve Their Workplace Wellness Programs If traditional wellness programs aren't solving the problem, what will? Start by shifting from symbolic gestures to structural change. The most effective strategies don't focus on fixing individuals—they fix the systems creating burnout in the first place. Here are five ways to start. 1. Measure what matters. Don't confuse participation with impact. It's one thing to track completion rates; it's another to measure real behavioral outcomes. Metrics like absenteeism, turnover, psychological safety, and employee net promoter scores offer a far clearer picture of employee well-being than satisfaction surveys ever could. 2. Ask better, validated questions. Move beyond generic surveys. Use research-backed questions from sources like Mental Health America, having employees rate statements such as: My work stress affects my mental health. My manager provides emotional support to help me manage my stress. These surveys reveal insights about workload, leadership, and organizational culture—three of the strongest predictors of workplace mental health. 3. Rethink ROI. The best wellness investments aren't flashy—they're foundational. Fair compensation, job security, schedule flexibility, and a culture of respect aren't perks; they're prerequisites for a healthy, high-performing workplace—and exactly what workers want. These elements do more to buffer against chronic stress than any app or wellness challenge ever could. 4. Train managers as mental health allies. People don't leave jobs—they leave bad bosses. Train leaders to recognize burnout, normalize open conversations, and model healthy boundaries. Research shows managers influence employee mental health more than therapists. That's a leadership skill companies can't afford to ignore. 5. Design work differently. Instead of pushing employees to 'build resilience,' ask how your organization might reduce the need for it. Redesign roles, expectations, and collaboration norms to create environments in which people don't have to constantly recover from their jobs. We Don't Need More Wellness Programs—We Need Better Workplaces If companies frame wellness as a benefit instead of a responsibility, they'll keep spending billions while burnout grows. The real opportunity isn't in launching the next app or hosting another webinar. It's in rethinking how we design work itself.
Forbes
23-05-2025
- Health
- Forbes
5 Ways Employee Health Will Shape The Future Of Leadership
Employee health and well-being The future of leadership doesn't just belong to those who can adapt to change—it belongs to those who intentionally invest in the well-being and vitality of their people. Amid rapid transformation in healthcare, technology, and workforce dynamics, a critical leadership question is emerging: Are you designing an organization where people can thrive for decades, not just survive quarter to quarter? Longevity—once the domain of biohackers and futurists—is now a core strategic concern. And not just for personal health, but for workforce health, talent retention, and organizational resilience. A quiet revolution is underway. Aging is being redefined not as a linear path to decline, but as a modifiable, and in some ways reversible, biological process. Many chronic diseases that drive healthcare costs and shorten careers—heart disease, neurodegeneration, diabetes—are deeply tied to aging itself. For today's leaders, this insight unlocks new ways to think about workforce sustainability. From a macroeconomic standpoint, the opportunity is massive. The global longevity economy reached $25 trillion in 2022 and is expected to hit $33 trillion by 2026, according to Aging Analytics Agency. That's not a niche—it's a full-blown frontier. For CEOs and CHROs alike, this means rethinking employee experience through the lens of long-term health, retention, and cognitive performance. Investing in longevity isn't just about capital—it's about culture. While family offices and VCs are backing breakthroughs in diagnostics, regenerative medicine, and AI-powered biomarkers, forward-thinking companies are embedding health span into their leadership models and employee value propositions. 'Even simple changes such as sleep optimization, metabolic tracking, and individualized care protocols can yield powerful results in energy, clarity, and resilience,' says longevity investor Andrew Medjuck. 'When leaders adopt and promote these strategies, they create a ripple effect across their teams and industries.' The companies that prioritize human performance—mental, physical, and emotional—aren't just creating healthier teams. They're reducing burnout, improving decision-making, and building trust. In the modern workplace, longevity and retention go hand in hand. With professionals now working into their 60s, 70s, and beyond, it's time to view age as an asset, not a liability. Supporting health and cognitive endurance is no longer a nice-to-have—it's a strategic necessity. According to Harvard Business Review: 'In the long run, companies that care about their employees' health and well-being will be more likely to have employees who care about the company's health and well-being too.' The rise of enterprise-grade wearables and digital health tools further proves the point. These are no longer fringe gadgets—they're mainstream tools for optimizing performance, preventing burnout, and catching decline before it becomes crisis. With the wearables market projected to hit $380 billion by 2028, leaders have a unique opportunity to make workplace wellness measurable, personalized, and effective. There's also a deeper ethical responsibility. If longevity advances are only accessible to the elite, inequality will widen. That's why true leadership means not only embracing these tools personally but also working to make them accessible across teams, income levels, and communities. Philanthropic leaders, policymakers, and executives alike should be asking: How do we democratize access to the science of staying well? Whether through inclusive benefit design, employer-sponsored preventative care, or support for early-stage health startups, leaders can expand access and equity—while still driving business outcomes. As Medjuck points out, family offices are especially suited to invest in longevity with long-term vision, prioritizing impact over short-term ROI. But any leader can take a stand by shaping strategies that center human flourishing as a core business objective. The most powerful leaders don't just manage for this quarter—they invest in people for the long haul. And in a world where burnout, chronic stress, and attrition are rising threats, health is the ultimate competitive advantage. Longevity isn't just about living longer—it's about working better, thinking sharper, and showing up more fully for the teams we lead. As aging shifts from being a burden to a solvable challenge, forward-thinking organizations will distinguish themselves by how well they care for, retain, and elevate their people. This isn't just a health initiative. It's a leadership imperative. The future belongs to long-term thinkers. And in today's business landscape, the leaders who go ALL IN on the health and well-being of their people will build the most resilient and future-ready organizations of all.
Forbes
23-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
SAP Insights Newsletter: Coding Fun With GenAI
GenAI coding tools promise to upend how developers work. Which isn't a bad thing; in fact, there's much to like. getty New tools, new rules. GenAI coding tools promise to upend how developers work. Which isn't a bad thing; in fact, there's much to like. The problem is when there are no clear guidelines in place about when and how those tools are used. You could end up with subpar code, issues with IP, security problems, and more. We're certainly not suggesting any of this is intentional—only that difficulties (now and later) can arise if there's a lack of supervision and strategy. Now for the good news: there are steps you can take today to build that strategy. Make sure you don't miss out by subscribing to the next SAP Insights newsletter. Here's what else you can expect from the next edition: Flying ahead. GenAI is also coming soon to a flight pattern near you. Aeronautics is a complex, heavily regulated, and expensive industry. Manufacturers are beginning to use GenAI to modernize and streamline airplane production, while researchers are using it to provide better satellite data. How ya feelin'? Employee health and wellness programs have become ubiquitous in workplaces, yet research into their efficacy has been scarce. There's a growing body of work that suggests these programs often underperform. Are these programs a bad idea? Not if they're well designed. Research that hasn't reached your inbox. Our research roundup in this issue includes insights into why shrinking now is good for later; why, when it comes to innovating, it doesn't matter where those innovators are; and why the modern workplace needs some design rethinking—turns out employees will move to companies with workspaces they like.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
3 tips for avoiding workplace burnout
Workplace stress among American employees is on the rise, as nearly 3 in 5 workers in 2024 struggled with burnout. Amina AlTai, executive coach and author of "The Ambition Trap," joins Wealth with Brad Smith to discuss the cost of employee burnout and offer tips for avoiding it. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Wealth here. Sign in to access your portfolio
