The power of peers: CNH Industrial champions employee well-being

CNH Industrial’s employees take pride in their products and understand their impact on the world. They are hard-working, dedicated and do their best work for the good of the company. But employees face some barriers to whole person well-being, especially those working in manufacturing plants.

CNH Industrial is a global leader in the capital goods sector. Its 8,000 employees ― full-time, part-time and union ― manufacture agricultural machinery, construction equipment, commercial vehicles and other heavy machinery used around the world.

Building heavy machinery can be physically demanding, which leaves plant employees limited time during the day to focus on self-care.

CNH Industrial champions employee health, but the company’s previous wellness program — nearly a decade old — focused only on physical health and one-time screening events. The company was looking to expand beyond physical health to a whole person approach. So CNH Industrial partnered with Limeade to deliver a whole-person well-being program that would resonate with employees in different life stages, job roles and locations. The new Thrive program would allow employees to define well-being for themselves ― and create a community with their peers where wellness is supported and celebrated.

Navigating change

With the previous wellness program, employees took their personal wellness assessment using iPads onsite during a biometric screening. The process was rushed and did not provide actionable recommendations based on individual results.

To manage the transition to a digital well-being assessment, Limeade recommended a six-week campaign to reward employees who took the wellness assessment prior to their biometric screening. While the assessment’s personal questions could have posed some employee resistance, the CNH Industrial Wellness team communicated its purpose throughout the campaign. As an added incentive, the CNH Industrial wellness team offered a $5 Subway gift card to those that completed the assessment. As a result, more than 75 percent of registered employees completed the well-being assessment prior to their screening.

“It was important to show employees that this was a different system ― and we’re doing it because we care about them. We want them to be their best selves and we’re helping them take that first step,” said Bobbi Dyer, benefit analyst at CNH Industrial. “This approach really eased concerns and the gift cards were a nice token to say thanks.”

Engaging union populations

Three of CNH Industrial’s plants are staffed by union employees. Prior to the launch of Thrive, the HR team used data to show union leaders the potential impact of higher well-being on productivity and health cost savings. But to engage the employees themselves, they developed a peer-to-peer approach.

“Our employees tend to respond better to each other than to authority figures, so we did whatever we could to encourage buzz around the plants. Employees love being rewarded with branded lunch bags and water bottles and showing them off at work. This gets people talking and asking questions about the program. Once you get a few advocates on board, it just takes off,” said Dyer.

Reaching an offline population

Leveraging the power of peer influence, CNH Industrial launched a wellness champion network to reach employees at locations across the country ― many of whom can’t check email during the day. Champions are responsible for spreading corporate messages across their location in meetings, on bulletin boards and through word-of-mouth. They are able to connect with each other through a targeted challenge on Thrive to share ideas and get new information. They also receive a budget to reinforce program messages in a way that will resonate with their local populations. From smoothie parties to onsite yoga and fruit-infused water ― wellness champions are reinforcing well-being both in and outside of Limeade technology.

After launching four months ago, more than 89 percent of employees are registered, 87 percent completed their well-being assessment and 86 percent completed their health screening. And of eligible union employees, more than 84% participate in the Thrive program.

“If you have a healthy workforce, employees are proud of what they’re doing, they’re proud of themselves and they’re going to make a great product,” Bobbi Dyer, benefit analyst at CNH Industrial said.