Leadership is action, not position. Donald McGannon
Amidst all the chaos in the hours following the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Rudi Guiliani was highly visible on the ground, taking action and setting the tone for the response to the disaster by the City of New York. By contrast, the president of the United States was conspicuously absent. No doubt the Secret Service was sequestering him away to protect him, but this was a time when the visibility of our leaders was essential to the psyche of all Americans.
The visibility and presence of leaders in worksite health promotion programs is a critical success factor. The Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) and Mercer recently announced the results of analysis of the HERO Best Practices Scorecard documenting the relationship between senior management support and levels of employee participation in programs. The Scorecard is a survey tool that rates employee health management programs on series of best practice topics.
According to the analysis, strong leadership and cultural support are associated with higher participation rates and better program 
outcomes. The numbers speak for themselves - 66% of organizations with strong leadership and culture support reported improvements in health risks, compared with 26% of those with little or no support.
Does it pay off?
The HERO/Mercer analysis further demonstrates that commitment from management pays off. The analysis found that organizations with strong leadership were ten times more likely to report substantial impact on their medical plan trend.
When implementing a client's health promotion program, AdvancingWellness works closely with members of the senior management team. We encourage appointment of a 'sponsor' from the management team to be the owner and spokesperson for the program. We also encourage members of the management team to actively take part in the programs. This visibility adds significant credibility to the program, demonstrating that senior managers are not just talking the talk, but are literally walking the walk.
Mari Ryan, MBA, MHP, CWWPC
