Dive Brief:
- Fitbit and other health tracking apps have emerged as a “game-changing” way for HR to encourage wellness in the workplace with its ability to track metrics ranging from steps to heart rate, reports CIO.
- These programs help streamline HR wellness events by circumventing pedometers, self-reporting issues and problematic paperwork and allowing HR workers to simply access the company’s Fitbit data.
- While some may be concerned that this could foretell “Big Brother,” CIO reports that Fitbit’s programs require “explicit consent” from an employee to have their data shared.
Dive Insight:
"There really isn't a one size fits all program, and there's a really broad definition of what corporate wellness means," Amy McDonough, vice president and general manager of Fitbit Wellness, told CIO. "So it can be everything from a stepping or walking based program -- and that's maybe an easy place to get started and get your team engaged -- to everything that ties back into a benefits design and program."
Fitbit recognized the market potential and set up programs to facilitate corporate use of their programs, including company-specific online storefronts for employees so they can choose which device best suits them at a subsidized cost decided by the company, CIO reports.
The data HR can access from Fitbit is “limited to overall stats” so an HR manager can’t find specifics on any one employee’s habits. But the data gathered from Fitbit can help lead to lower company health insurance premiums, CIO reports – a win for all.
