The Great Resignation was a clear signal that organisations were struggling to respond effectively to rising mental health challenges within their workforces. The COVID-19 pandemic further underscored this challenge, demonstrating that traditional offerings such as competitive compensation and job security were insufficient to meet evolving employee expectations.
Today’s modern workforce wants companies that actively support their mental, physical, and emotional well-being. According to the World Economic Forum, efforts to invest in well-being have risen by 27% since 2020 in the APAC region alone. This demonstrates that some companies have started to rethink the cost of mental health in the workforce and prioritise employee wellness as a business strategy.
Additionally, a 2016 survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) found that 89% of employees at companies that support well-being initiatives are more likely to recommend their company as a good place to work. 91% of these employees found themselves motivated to do their best on the job, as a result, the APA said.
Corporate wellness programmes work best when they're designed with employee fulfilment and well-being at the core. This people-first approach creates a foundation for job satisfaction, which often translates into stronger productivity and performance outcomes.
Companies who are doing it right
The following organisations are recognised globally not just for their innovation and business success but also for HR best practices, including exemplary and employee-centric corporate wellness programmes:
IBM
The only company in this list that financially incentivises its employees to make healthier choices, IBM provides its employees with four 12-week programmes encompassing diet and nutrition, children and family health, physical fitness and personal vitality.
According to IndustryWeek and The Health Project, IBM’s corporate wellness programme is entirely online, with 84% of its 120,000 employees signing up for at least one programme yearly. While nearly half of these employees complete a programme, IBM has saved roughly USD 191 million in three years by improving employee well-being and productivity and reducing healthcare claims.
EY
EY has a track record of providing its employees with a clear path to getting help. Its integrated employee assistance and life management services programme has been a staple of the company’s employees and their families for more than 40 years, according to Great Place to Work.
The company has gone out of its way to make it easy for employees to access support and help when needed. Using a 24-hour hotline and website, EY employees can access counselling services, health and well-being solutions, child and elder care resources, daily life and home services, dependent care and personal travel.
Red Hat
While it is standard practice by most organisations to offer their employees an annual paid vacation package, many still overload their employees with work when they return to work after vacation. This is counterproductive because it makes employees feel reluctant to take time off from work and less relaxed when they are on vacation, knowing what to return to when their vacation is over.
Red Hat has cleverly solved this problem by offering their employees Recharge Days. Such days are special quarterly days off that allow employees time to unplug, rest and recharge. This means that employees can “switch off” and return to work without awaiting meetings and emails. In other words, they do not have to “catch up on lost work time” or “make up” for the days they do not have to work.
Google’s campus offers a comprehensive wellness programme in partnership with Premise Health. The programme features onsite healthcare services, including physicians, chiropractors, physical therapy, and massage services and access to fitness centres, classes and community bikes.
Employees can learn new skills by taking cooking classes, coding programmes, or guitar lessons, to name a few. The organisation’s campus cafés and micro kitchens have nutritious meals and snacks.
The search engine giant also offers its employees access to financial advisors and financial planning services. Employees are also given flexible hours, vacation time and volunteer time.
Microsoft
Software and tech heavyweight Microsoft offers education and training for quitting smoking, weight management and fitness. Moreover, the company funds gym memberships and fitness-related purchases while providing its employees with free Zumba classes.
Microsoft also organises health screening events for employees and their spouses for common ailments such as heart disease, diabetes, cholesterol, and blood pressure, as well as mammograms and flu shots. The Microsoft campus also offers onsite clinics, optometrists and pharmacists.
The Microsoft CARES employee assistance programme provides free personal and family counselling, stress management, and child and elder care resources. Microsoft also has a mentorship programme, employee source groups, networks, and social groups to build community and a sense of connectedness among its employees.
The right approach is the solution
Now that you know what some organisations are doing right, how do you go about offering wellness programmes as an incentive to attract or retain talent within your organisation? Yes, while you may not have a massive budget or capacity for large-scale programmes, implementing a reasonably robust (and practical) wellness programme for the benefit of your employees is entirely achievable.
According to Grand View Research, the global corporate wellness market was valued at USD 53.54 billion in 2024 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.0% from 2025 to 2030. Companies are beginning to see that employee well-being should be an organisational priority for business success and are willing to invest in corporate wellness programmes.
This does not mean that a corporate wellness programme will be the magic solution to your talent problems; rather, it is intended to be a way of caring for your existing employees, to spread positive word-of-mouth about your organisation, as opposed to creating a way to “make them stay”.
Meeting your employees’ wellness needs
You know, implementing a corporate well-being programme is essential. But how do you go about it if you have limited means?
Many organisations face an important decision between developing in-house wellness initiatives or partnering with external providers. While some companies thrive in managing wellness initiatives through their HR departments, others find that competing priorities and limited capabilities can affect programme effectiveness. Working with an external partner can bring specialised expertise and dedicated focus that ensures consistent delivery and engagement.
Well-meaning HR staff need long-term momentum to deploy and support a successful well-being programme that would be best left to those with the relevant training and certifications.
At Naluri, we have the expertise and resources to promote, launch and support the long-term engagement of your company’s wellness programme. Our customisable corporate wellness solutions look after your employees’ physical and mental health needs, regardless of their risk levels.
Our solutions can help you craft a corporate wellness programme with end-to-end multidisciplinary support with clinically proven digital tools to empower real change among your employees. Our corporate wellness programmes have repeatedly produced clinical health outcomes in just 16 weeks by supporting your employees through prevention and treatment.
Some numbers to keep in mind when contemplating our corporate wellness solutions:
- Our programmes deliver 4X return on investment in as little as six months.
- 60% of our participants achieve clinically significant health outcomes that reduce risk factors for chronic conditions.
- We provide proactive employee recruitment, enrollment and rollout to increase programme adherence by 200%.
- Our programmes do not just “patch” and “medicate” physical and mental health conditions; we prioritise prevention, wellness and well-being and encourage employers to do this too.
That's not all. Among the features we offer your employees that give added value are:
- Integration with connected devices
- Team-wide and personal challenges
- A dedicated 24-hour text and careline
- An exclusive health and wellness resource library
To discuss your organisation’s unique needs and pain points, contact the Naluri team. The company’s corporate health and well-being ecosystem includes various services to suit different needs