Beyond the Basics: The Real ROI of Workplace Wellness

Why "Wellness Benefits" Often Go Unused — and What High‑Performing Companies Do Differently

Most organizations offer some form of wellness support.
Far fewer see measurable results from it.

The gap isn’t intention — it’s execution.

The Current State of Workplace Wellness (What the Data Keeps Showing)

Across industries, the same patterns appear again and again:

• Low utilization: Coaching and wellness benefits typically see 5–10% active usage, even when fully paid for.

• Awareness gaps: Roughly 50–70% of employees report they don’t clearly understand what wellness or coaching benefits are available to them.

• Silent interest: Of those who do know coaching exists, a significant portion say they’ve considered using it — but never do.

This creates a costly paradox:

Employers invest in wellness.
Employees want support.
Results fail to materialize.

Why Traditional Wellness Programs Miss the Mark

Most programs are designed around availability, not accessibility.

Common friction points include:

• Generic offerings that don’t reflect real employee needs

• Lack of personalization (especially for women in mid‑career or midlife)

• Poor communication beyond onboarding

• Programs positioned as “optional extras” instead of performance tools

When wellness feels peripheral, usage stays low.

The ROI Companies Expect — and Rarely Achieve

When wellness programs are implemented strategically, studies consistently show:

• $3–6 return for every $1 invested through reduced absenteeism, turnover, and healthcare costs

• Improved productivity and engagement

• Higher retention of experienced female talent

But ROI only appears when employees actually use what’s offered.

Unused benefits don’t fail quietly — they drain resources without delivering value.

Why Women’s Health Is a Performance Issue (Not a Perk)

For professional women — particularly in their 40s and beyond — wellness gaps show up as:

• Decreased energy and focus

• Higher stress reactivity

• Weight and metabolic shifts

• Sleep disruption

• Reduced resilience under pressure

These aren’t personal issues.
They directly affect:

• Leadership presence

• Decision‑making

• Burnout risk

• Retention of institutional knowledge

Ignoring this costs companies far more than addressing it.

What High‑Engagement Wellness Programs Do Differently

Organizations that see real adoption share a few key traits:

• Wellness is framed as performance infrastructure, not self‑care fluff

• Programs are tailored, not one‑size‑fits‑all

• Education precedes access — employees understand why it matters

• Support is normalized and visible, especially from leadership

This is where structured frameworks like PACE² come in.

Why Boots-on-the-Ground Changes Everything

Most wellness programs are built to be accessed — not adopted.

When support lives in a portal or an email, engagement depends entirely on individual motivation. That’s where utilization drops.

Adding a boots-on-the-ground, local wellness presence consistently changes outcomes.

What organizations see when wellness has a real, visible human attached to it:

• 2–4× higher participation rates within the first 90 days

• 30–50% improvement in adherence to coaching and education programs

• Greater awareness of existing benefits employees didn’t know they had

• Increased trust, especially among women hesitant to self-identify as needing support

The difference isn’t incentives alone — it’s access plus accountability.

A local or on-site wellness lead:

• Normalizes participation

• Reduces stigma around support

• Reinforces education in real time

• Turns passive benefits into active behavior change

Employees don’t engage with platforms. They engage with people.

Imagine a Different Model: Wellness That Shows Up

Now imagine this instead.

Your organization wants better engagement, lower burnout, and stronger performance — but your HR team is already stretched thin.

Because let’s be honest:
Your HR director is not a nutritionist.
Not a hormone expert.
Not a coach.
And definitely not responsible for adding one more specialty role to an already overflowing job description. (No matter how well-intentioned.)

This is where boots-on-the-ground wellness changes the equation.

Instead of asking HR to be the solution, you give them a trusted, external partner whose sole role is to activate wellness — on site, locally, and human-first.

What "Boots-on-the-Ground" Wellness Actually Delivers

When a real, qualified wellness professional is visible and accessible, organizations gain:

• Higher participation without chasing employees
  Engagement increases because support is familiar, approachable, and present — not buried in a portal.

• Improved adherence and follow-through
  Employees are far more likely to complete programs when accountability feels supportive, not clinical.

• Relief for HR teams
  HR oversees the strategy — not the execution. No extra certifications, no added workload.

• Earlier intervention
  Small issues are addressed before they become burnout, leave, or turnover.

• Stronger trust and psychological safety
  Especially for women, participation rises when support feels personal and confidential.

• Better ROI on existing benefits
  You’re no longer paying for unused programs — you’re activating what already exists.

• A visible commitment to employee well-being
  Not a perk. A signal. One that employees actually believe.

This isn’t about adding more wellness.
It’s about making wellness work.

PACE²: From Perk to Performance Strategy

PACE² is designed to close the gap between offered and used wellness.

It focuses on:

• Predictable energy

• Adaptive stress response

• Cognitive clarity

• Sustainable engagement

Instead of adding more benefits, it helps organizations activate the ones they already invest in — while addressing the real physiological barriers employees face.

The Question Leaders Should Be Asking

It’s no longer:

“Do we offer wellness?”

It’s:

“Is our investment actually being used — and is it improving performance?”

Because benefits employees don’t understand or trust might as well not exist.

Note: Statistics reflect commonly reported ranges across workplace wellness, coaching utilization, and ROI studies. Organizations should assess internal data for precise benchmarking.

Ready to assess how your company’s wellness program stacks up?

Schedule a PACE² consultation today!