Exploring Successful Implementation of Organizational Supports at the Worksite Environment: A Mixed Methods Approach

While there is evidence that organizational supports may lead to better employee health, research on implementing such organizational supports is lacking. This research sought to understand organizational supports and implementation of those supports using an Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods design approach. Employee survey responses (n = 202) were used to classify organizations into "high" and "low" categories for employee-reported health behavior improvement, agreement, and readiness for implementing change. For the qualitative phase of research (organization-level), semi-structured interviews were conducted with organization leads, and data were analyzed through constant comparative analysis procedure. Analyses sought to identify differences between "high" versus "low" organizations. In addition, the researcher used the "high" and "low" classifications to further review themes that emerged, to determine where there may be differences in organizations classified as "high" versus "low." Study results found the following nine themes to explain how organizations can improve implementing organizational supports: provide a contracted wellness program, formalized programming, and wellness incentives; create a culture of wellness in the organization; provide consistency in the supports offered; provide clear communication to employees; utilize leadership role modeling to show support; focus on leadership support that ensures organizational supports are implemented and sustained; and work to combat employee hesitation of organizational supports. The results of this study show that organizations have the opportunity to improve implementation of their organizational supports by applying the nine themes found.