by Patrick Gaul

Building and maintaining a board of directors can be a challenge for many organizations. Ideally the motivation for a potential board member should be passion for the service your agency provides.  It is also important to have the right mix of board members.  “Diverse boards are better able to expand capacity and weather tough times” according to the article Board Diversity: Your Biggest Challenge in the May/June 2009 issue of Nonprofit World.

If you are looking at ways to improve development, why not look at the things you highlight when recruiting employees?  Are there any benefits that can be efficiently extended to board members?

I recently had a conversation with an administrator at a non-profit Ease@Work customer.  She had been telling a board member about the new fitness coaching service we had recently added to our program.  This board member was interested in this service because, like most of the US population, she was looking for help with weight loss.  

She called us to ask if they were allowed to include board members in the census of covered employees.  My immediate answer was yes, of course she could.  When I checked their contract I learned she could even do so without incurring any additional cost because adding their board members would not increase their numbers beyond the maximum allowable under our agreement.

Ann Kent, the Non-Profit Services Director at Business Volunteers Unlimited told me, while there are no laws against offering something of value to a volunteer board member, our customer should check her organization’s bylaws.  In this case, since this agency can offer our program to their board at no cost, it is highly unlikely that the bylaws will forbid it.  In most cases our agreements are based on a per employee rate.  Even then, at approximately $2 per employee per month our program should be well within any limits set in the bylaws.  

In many cases the benefits offered by your organization will be too costly to extend to your board members and may not be needed by the board member.  Health insurance comes to mind.  Your board members probably already have access to an EAP as well.  However, if they work for a large national company they probably do not have an EAP that offers as many high quality local resources like in-person fitness or nutritional consultations. When they find out how inexpensive it is, they’ll applaud you for making such a wise benefit choice.

Starting a fitness program doesn't have to be complicated...it can be a "walk in the park" with a little guidance from a good fitness coach.

The Best Time to Start a Fitness Program

By Valerie S. Nosek

When is the best time to start a fitness program? Whether you’re talking about diet or exercise, people often vow to start health and wellness activities at particular times…how often have you heard:

“I’m starting my diet on Monday.”

“After the holidays, I’m going to start eating better and exercising.”

“When I get back from vacation, I’ll work on getting in shape.”

But really, the best time to start a fitness program (if you don’t already have one in place) is right now. Unfortunately, procrastination is often used as an excuse for putting off the positive action that could be taken immediately.

One person who has been successful at lifestyle change put it this way:

“Your body does not know what day it is…Procrastination leads to a cycle of days, then months, then years. If you are thinking about starting a fitness program or a diet, put down your Twinkie and start now, not tomorrow!”

The article, “Procrastinating Health & Fitness,” went on to point out “not many people procrastinate brushing their teeth, using toilet paper, or combing their hair before going out. Most people consider this personal hygiene as a non-negotiable part of life.”

Shouldn’t diet and exercise be on this list as a non-negotiable? We think so.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

When Benjamin Franklin made the remark above, he could have been talking about what we know about disease prevention and wellness today. Health care professionals agree that the majority of chronic diseases are preventable (or even reversible in some cases) when people make healthy lifestyle choices.

“Nutrition, smoking cessation, substance abuse prevention, stress reduction and exercise are all modifiable lifestyle risk factors,” said Stephanie Patek, an Ease @Work acccount representative and certified fitness coach.

Getting Started

Employees should always check with their doctor. It’s always important to start with the healthcare provider in order to find out if there are any current health risk factors that would impact an exercise plan. (However, even with certain health issues, a fitness plan is not out of the question. It just has to meet the criteria or limitations your employee’s doctor specifies.)

Encourage use of available resources. “Insurance usually doesn’t cover preventative wellness services, such as nutritional or fitness coaching, until problems surface or symptoms show,” Patek says. So “think outside the box” on how to access needed information and/or support.

Libraries offer a wealth of educational resources on health, wellness and fitness…at no out-of-pocket cost! Use library resources to develop a “get started” plan, or step-up a plan already in place.

Suggest employees find a mentor in a friend who is practicing a healthy lifestyle.

Explore programs at the local community center, church, YMCA/YWCA or other fitness center. Watch for free informational wellness-related seminars at hospitals or healthcare centers.

Wellness committees and human resource professionals. Many employers have already implemented wellness initiatives in the workplace; others, aware of the need for a healthier workforce, are in the process of developing programs. Find out if your employee assistance program (EAP) is a comprehensive provider. Does your EAP offer nutritional coaching, smoking cessation, fitness coaching along with stress management?

And don’t forget…awareness is key. Your EAP should be your partner in promoting awareness of available wellness programs by providing flyers, employee newsletters, on-site visibilities and seminars.

Call us, we can help…Ease@Work offers comprehensive and fully integrated EAP services. We also offer assistance with developing or expanding your organization’s wellness program.