Operationalizing McKinsey’s 6 Evergreen Principles with HealthNEXT
Operationalizing McKinsey’s 6 Evergreen Principles with HealthNEXT
NEXTpert: HealthNEXT Leadership Team
The McKinsey Health Institute’s recent report, Thriving Workplaces: How Employers Can Improve Productivity and Change Lives, highlights the immense value of investing in employee health and wellbeing. Research shows that prioritizing employee wellbeing is both a business and cultural imperative, unlocking up to $11.7 trillion in global economic value and delivering proven returns through higher productivity, reduced absenteeism, lower healthcare costs, and improved retention.
HealthNEXT brings these insights to life by operationalizing McKinsey’s six evergreen principles through a proven, evidence-based framework that embeds wellbeing into the core of organizational culture and strategy. HealthNEXT’s approach empowers organizations to move beyond one-off wellness programs to create sustainable, high-impact cultures of health and wellbeing that deliver measurable business results.
Download the full HealthNEXT report PDF with case study examples.
McKinsey’s 6 Evergreen Principles—and How HealthNEXT Brings Them to Life
- Understand the Baseline Health Status of Employees and the Value at Stake
HealthNEXT conducts comprehensive assessments using advanced analytics and data from multiple sources to identify key health risks, cost drivers, and improvement opportunities. This creates a tailored roadmap for action.
- Develop Initiatives for a Sustainable Healthy Workforce
Initiatives are designed for long-term impact, addressing the full spectrum of employee health needs—from prevention to chronic condition management—while remaining adaptable as workforce needs evolve. By embedding these programs into organizational culture and strategy, employers can help ensure ongoing relevance and effectiveness as their workforce and business environment change.
- Pilot Interventions to Test and Learn
HealthNEXT helps organizations launch targeted pilot programs, gather real-world insights, and refine strategies before scaling successful initiatives across the enterprise. By testing new initiatives on a smaller scale, organizations can gather real-world insights, identify what works, and refine strategies before expanding successful programs more broadly.
- Track Three to Five Metrics to Measure Success
By aligning key performance indicators with business goals and conducting regular data reviews, HealthNEXT ensures organizations can clearly measure progress and make data-driven decisions.
- Ensure Leadership Commitment and Sponsorship
HealthNEXT engages leadership at every step, fostering visible commitment and aligning wellbeing initiatives with organizational priorities to drive participation and accountability.
- Embed Employee Health into Organizational Culture
Wellbeing becomes part of the organization’s DNA, with health-focused values, policies, and peer champions driving engagement and lasting change at every level. This deep integration results in higher employee engagement, improved retention, and stronger performance, as employees feel supported, valued, and motivated to contribute their best.
Key Takeaway:
HealthNEXT transforms McKinsey’s strategic vision into actionable steps that deliver real, sustainable results. By operationalizing these evergreen principles, employers can create thriving workplaces and achieve measurable improvements in workforce health and performance. To get started, contact HealthNEXT today.
Advancing Employer Cultures of Health and Wellbeing: Lessons for Business Coalitions and Employers
Advancing Employer Cultures of Health and Wellbeing: Lessons for Business Coalitions and Employers
Authors: Dr. Ray Fabius and David Kirshenbaum, Dixon Thayer, and Ivor Kiwi—along with collaborators from the CDC Foundation, Greater Philadelphia Business Coalition on Health (GPBCH), and Tufts Medical Center, has been published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (JOEM).
A forward-thinking report authored by a team of leading experts—including several members of the HealthNEXT leadership team, Dr. Raymond Fabius, David Kirshenbaum, Dixon Thayer, and Ivor Kiwi—along with collaborators from the CDC Foundation, Greater Philadelphia Business Coalition on Health (GPBCH), and Tufts Medical Center, has been published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (JOEM). Advancing Employer Cultures of Health and Wellbeing: Lessons for Business Coalitions and Employers details how a collaborative, evidence-based sequenced approach can help employers transform their workplace cultures and drive measurable improvements in employee health, wellbeing, and organizational performance.
As part of this study, seven diverse employers joined a structured, year-long Employer Learning Collaborative led by HealthNEXT, the CDC Foundation, and GPBCH. Through this collaborative, HR and benefits leaders from organizations representing nearly 185,000 employees shared best practices with other participants, tackled common challenges, and received expert guidance from executive physician advisors—all while working together to accelerate progress and accountability. An average 80-point improvement was achieved in a benchmark culture of health and wellbeing assessment score. Our research shows that for every 50-point improvement, there’s a corresponding 1% reduction in medical cost trend.
Why the Need for a Collaborative: Addressing Today’s Workforce Health Challenges
Employers today face mounting challenges in supporting workforce health and wellbeing. As shared in the report, over half of Americans receive their health benefits through their employer, but rising health care costs, increased rates of chronic disease, and surging stress and mental health concerns are straining both employees and organizations. In 2025, 75% of employees report struggling with low mood or stress, and 81% believe more mental health support is needed at work. Meanwhile, employers are under pressure to balance escalating benefit costs with the need to attract, engage, and retain talent in a highly competitive market.
The employers who joined this initiative were motivated by a desire to address these pressing issues head-on. Many recognized that traditional wellness programs were not delivering the sustained engagement or outcomes needed. They sought a more strategic, holistic approach to advancing employee health—one that would not only improve wellbeing but also drive productivity, reduce absenteeism, and help moderate health care costs. By participating in the collaborative, these organizations aimed to:
- Identify and close gaps in their current health and wellbeing strategies
- Overcome barriers such as low engagement, limited resources, and competing business priorities
- Build a resilient, supportive culture that empowers employees to thrive
- Position themselves as employers of choice in a rapidly changing landscape
Key Takeaways Learned from the Collaborative
- Measurable Culture Change: Using HealthNEXT’s Corporate Health Assessment Score (CHAS) tool, employers identified gaps and strengths across ten key pillars of a healthy workplace. On average, companies improved their culture of health scores by 80 points—from 60% to 71% of the benchmark for high-performing organizations. The greatest gains were seen in leadership engagement, strategic planning, and communications.
- Value of the Collaborative Approach: The collaborative model enabled employers to break down silos, share experiences, and learn from one another’s challenges and successes. This approach not only accelerated progress but also fostered a sense of shared accountability and innovation. Feedback from participants overwhelmingly confirmed the value of the collaborative: 100% agreed that the program met their expectations and helped advance their organization’s culture of health and wellbeing, and qualitative interviews highlighted the benefits of peer learning, expert support, and actionable planning.
- Leadership and Engagement Are Critical: Organizations with strong leadership commitment and active management involvement saw the most significant progress. Participants noted that executive support not only accelerated change but also helped dedicate more resources and align health strategies with broader business goals.
- Actionable Roadmaps and Expert Support: Each employer received a tailored strategic plan and ongoing support from a physician executive advisor. This hands-on approach helped HR and benefits teams organize priorities, overcome barriers, and implement best practices—regardless of organization size or industry.
- Overcoming Common Barriers: The study highlighted typical challenges, including competing corporate priorities, staff turnover, and the complexity of benefit design changes. The collaborative format and expert guidance helped employers navigate these obstacles and maintain momentum.
- Positive Impact Beyond the Workplace: By improving workplace cultures of health, employers not only benefit their employees but also contribute to healthier communities. The participating organizations’ efforts potentially touched over 425,000 lives, underscoring the far-reaching impact of employer leadership in public health.
What Employers Said
> “The single biggest impact is being able to organize everything we want to do in a meaningful way.”
> “It opened my eyes to where the holes are, what we really could do better, and also highlighted what we’re really great at.”
Why This Matters
- Proven, Scalable Approach: The results demonstrate that with the right tools, expert support, and peer collaboration, employers of any size can make significant strides in building a culture of health and wellbeing.
- Business Value: Improvements in culture of health scores are linked to moderated medical costs, increased productivity, and enhanced reputation as an employer of choice.
- Sustainable Change: The structured, evidence-based methodology provides a foundation for ongoing improvement, empowering HR and benefits leaders to drive lasting impact.
2024 Learning Report: Elevating Organizational Performance by Building Cultures of Health and Wellbeing
2024 Learning Report: Elevating Organizational Performance by Building Cultures of Health and Wellbeing
Author: HealthNEXT
This comprehensive report by HealthNEXT delves into the transformative impact of fostering a culture of health and wellbeing within organizations. Highlighting the case study of the Greater Philadelphia Employer Culture of Health Collaborative, the report showcases how a strategic, evidence-based approach can lead to significant improvements in employee health outcomes and enterprise financial performance.
Merck Case Study
Building a Culture of Health and Wellbeing: Merck Case Study
A culture of health and wellbeing in the workplace fosters an environment where employees are encouraged to make healthy choices, both consciously and unconsciously. Reduced healthcare cost trends and marketplace out-performance have been associated with such cultures, as demonstrated through employee health assessment scores. Merck, a leading global employer, sought to develop such a culture to promote the health and wellbeing of its workforce, under the direction of Cathryn Gunther, by partnering with HealthNEXT for several years.
A validated and peer-reviewed case study detailing Merck’s journey to health and wellbeing, entitled “Building a Culture of Health and Wellbeing at Merck,“ was published in a major medical journal. The study was co-authored by HealthNEXT president Dr. Ray Fabius and researcher Dr. Sharon Frazee, and sheds light on the strategies employed by Merck to build a strong business case, collaborate with strategic partners, devise an implementation plan, and gain crucial support and resources from the C-Suite.
The case study is a valuable resource for employers looking to develop a culture of health in their organizations. It offers insights on various aspects, including:
- The importance of establishing a corporate culture of health and wellbeing in the workplace
- Strategies for developing a comprehensive and data-rich analysis of the current state of employee health and culture
- The need to increase awareness of available resources and track progress toward best practices
Benefits of Building a Culture of Health and Wellbeing in the Workplace
In today’s competitive marketplace, it is advantageous for employers to take a holistic approach to assessing and mitigating health risks in their workforce. Employers who build a culture of health and wellbeing in the workplace can benefit in several ways, including:
- Improved employee health and wellbeing, leading to increased productivity, reduced absenteeism, and lower healthcare costs.
- Increased employee engagement, leading to higher job satisfaction, improved retention rates, and a more positive workplace culture.
- Improved corporate reputation, helping to attract and retain top talent, as well as improve relationships with customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders.
Merck’s Implementation Plan
Merck established an implementation plan for achieving a culture of health and wellbeing using a structured approach. The first step was establishing two strategic imperatives: improving health status in targeted areas and establishing a workplace culture promoting good health and prevention by focusing on daily habits.
Once the strategic imperatives were established, the team followed these steps to create their implementation plan:
- Conduct a comprehensive analysis of the current state of employee health and culture: This includes gathering diverse data sets and identifying information gaps.
- Develop metrics and goals to measure impact: Including participation rates, program completion rates, satisfaction, and engagement levels.
- Build a business case to achieve alignment on the effort: Identify the benefits of building a culture of health and wellbeing in the workplace.
- Align strategic partners: Including HR, benefits, and communications teams, to ensure the program is integrated into the broader organizational strategy.
- Engage the C-Suite to garner support and resources: Including securing funding and resources to support the program.
- Develop an implementation plan: Including specific tactics and timelines for achieving the strategic imperatives, such as offering health screenings, providing access to healthy food options, and promoting physical activity.
Lessons Learned by Merck in Building a Culture of Wellbeing
The case study summarizes the beginning phases to augment a culture of wellbeing at Merck. Based on Merck’s experiences, here are some best practice tips for employers:
- Collect diverse data sets and identify information gaps to comprehend the health and wellness status of employees from different departments and locations.
- Conduct surveys to understand how employees feel about the benefits offered. Follow up the survey with empathetic responses and planned next steps to address their feedback.
- Establish a clear vision and business case for a culture of health and wellbeing, including the “why, who, what, and how” of the initiative.
- Develop an implementation plan to demonstrate operational excellence with specific goals, metrics, and timelines for measuring the initiative’s impact.
- Communicate and engage with employees and leaders to ensure buy-in and support for the initiative.
- Measure the initiative’s impact on employee health outcomes, healthcare costs, productivity, satisfaction, and overall organizational performance.
- Sustain investments in the initiative over time to ensure lasting benefits.
By following these best practice tips, employers can successfully build a culture of wellbeing that promotes employee health and wellness, improves organizational performance, and reduces healthcare costs.
Merck’s Evidence-Based Approach to Wellbeing
Merck’s efforts to build a culture of health and wellbeing yielded significant benefits for the organization. By establishing a clear vision and business case, Merck promoted employee health and wellness, improved organizational performance, and reduced healthcare costs. This was documented and achieved through collecting diverse data sets and actively engaging with employees and leaders. By demonstrating the implementation of an evidence-based approach in this case study, Merck expressed their goal of becoming a benchmark role model for employers seeking to build a culture of health and wellbeing.
HealthNEXT’s Program: A Proven Way to Improve Employee Health and Wellbeing
HealthNEXT’s culture of health and wellbeing program provides a customized assessment, roadmap, and guidance to help organizations improve employee health and wellbeing while reducing healthcare costs and providing a competitive advantage in the marketplace. HealthNEXT helps companies duplicate the results of this case study by providing access to over a decade of research and best practices, as well as connecting employers to experts – former corporate chief medical officers and other leaders in population health. These experts, known as “NEXTperts,” provide guidance and support to implement a strategic multi-year plan and create benchmark corporate cultures of health and wellbeing.
NEXTpert Highlight: Emotional WellBeing Assessment (EW55)
NEXTpert Highlight: Emotional WellBeing Assessment (EW55)
NEXTpert: Dan Conti, PhD
Dan Conti, HealthNEXT NEXTpert, and subject matter expert on HealthNEXT’s Emotional WellBeing Assessment, provides insights on the benefits of the EW55 assessment for organizations, HealthNEXT’s approach to emotional wellbeing, and the data and insights the assessment provides to employers.
Myth-Busting Employee Health and Wellbeing: How Businesses Can Thrive Despite Chronic Illness, Mental Health Inequities, and Quiet Quitting
Myth-Busting Employee Health and Wellbeing: How Businesses Can Thrive Despite Chronic Illness, Mental Health Inequities, and Quiet Quitting
HealthNEXT Webinar
Gain valuable insights from population health experts Dr. Ray Fabius, Dr. Mark Cunningham-Hill, and Mike Critelli as they dispel the major myths hindering businesses from developing competitive advantages and lowering healthcare costs.
Population Health Series
Population Health Series
Get access to a two-part webinar series featuring Dr. Abbie Leibowitz, the Chief Medical Officer of HealthAdvocate and HealthNEXT’s President, Dr. Ray Fabius.
Part 1: Population Health Uncovered: Insights from Industry Leaders
An essential session for HR leaders, benefits brokers, and organizational leaders. This webinar will delve into the complex and dynamic field of population health, offering valuable insights and strategies for effective management and improvement.
Part 2: The Future of Population Health: Creating a Workplace Culture of Health and Wellbeing
In this follow-up session, Drs. Leibowitz and Fabius will discuss how organizations can leverage the principles of population health previously shared to build a culture of health and wellbeing in their workplace. By delivering on the promises of population health, it is possible for employers to not only address chronic conditions and other cost drivers but keep healthy people healthy, effectively muting the current medical trend.
Population Health Alliance Expands Named Award Program to Employer Health & Wellbeing
Population Health Alliance Expands Named Award Program to Employer Health & Wellbeing
Publication: PR Web
Population Health Alliance expands their Named Awards Program with the support of HealthNEXT to recognize leading Cultures of Health and Wellbeing organizations. The award focuses on employer groups who excel in building cultures of health, safety, and wellbeing and who have benchmark programs focused on employee population health management.
Creating an Award-Winning Culture of Health and Wellbeing at DTE Energy
Creating an Award-Winning Culture of Health and Wellbeing at DTE Energy
Authors: Dr. Ray Fabius, MD, and David Kirshenbaum, MBA
A recent article published in Population Health Management highlights how DTE Energy, a Detroit-based energy company with nearly 11,000 employees — 50% of whom are field-based and 49.3% union members—transformed its workplace by fostering an award-winning culture of health and wellbeing. Co-authored by Dr. Ray Fabius and David Kirshenbaum of HealthNEXT, the case study details DTE’s strategic journey to improve employee health outcomes, enhance workplace safety, and strengthen organizational performance. Over a five-year period, DTE achieved a remarkable 75% improvement in their corporate health assessment score, demonstrating significant progress towards becoming a benchmark employer in health and wellbeing.
The Why: A Commitment to People and Purpose
DTE’s vision was rooted in doing “the right thing” for its employees, customers, and community. With a workforce initially burdened by higher-than-average health risks, DTE recognized the need for a comprehensive approach to improve employee health, safety, and engagement.
The company defined wellbeing across four dimensions: physical health, emotional wellness, social connectivity, and financial fitness. By fostering a culture of vitality and care, DTE aimed to empower its workforce and align health initiatives with broader business goals.
The How: A Strategic and Measured Approach
DTE partnered with HealthNEXT to utilize two evidence-based tools—the Employer Health Opportunity Assessment (EHOA) developed by HealthNEXT and Culture Check Site Scans offered through Virgin Pulse. The EHOA provided a top-down comprehensive overview of the organization’s maturity in fostering a culture of health and wellbeing. The Culture Check Site Scan provided a bottom-up view of individual worksites on wellbeing supportive maturity. Together, these tools provided a comprehensive view of organizational strengths and gaps in the existing culture of health and wellbeing.
The initial assessments identified 11 areas of focus to bridge the gaps and achieve best practice over a multiyear strategic plan. These were as follows:
- Embed a best-practice culture of health and wellbeing into DTE’s culture
- Develop and engage an executive committee and champion
- Enhance the workplace environment with a focus on improved nutrition
- Improve population health, including behavioral health
- Market vitality
- Integrate data and analytics
- Train consumers and advocate for them
- Design evidence-based benefits
- Expand on-site services
- Form strategic partnerships and integrate them
- Establish direct provider relationships
Using these focus areas, a comprehensive project plan was developed that included the tasks, milestones, and goals, with a transparent methodology for planning, deploying, improving, and managing over time. Over five years, this roadmap of tactics was refreshed and updated each year, building on successes and ensuring that the correct sequence was followed.
Execution was supported by robust governance structures like the Wellbeing Executive Leadership Committee and a network of 200 local Wellbeing Champions.
The Results: Transformative Impact
DTE achieved significant progress over five years:
- EHOA Score Improvement: The company’s EHOA score rose by 75%, from 386 in 2018 to 675 in 2022—approaching benchmark levels. The EHOA focuses on ten best practice pillars to evaluate a company’s culture of health and wellbeing, producing a score out of 1,000. The benchmark goal is set at 700, indicating a high standard of excellence in health and wellbeing practices. Achieving such a score signifies that DTE is nearing best practice in health and wellbeing, reflecting their significant progress towards becoming a benchmark employer in this area.
- Recognition: DTE received prestigious awards like the C. Everett Koop National Health Award, recognizing their excellence in health and wellbeing initiatives. Since its inception in 1994, only about 70 organizations have received this honor, underscoring its exclusivity and the high standards required for selection.
- Injury Reduction: Musculoskeletal injury rates declined by 36%, while workers’ compensation claims dropped significantly, highlighting improvements in workplace safety.
- Employee Engagement: By 2023, over 89% of eligible employees and their spouses participated in wellbeing programs, including health risk appraisals, biometric screenings and annual checkups.
- Vendor Management and Strategic Partnerships: There was a remarkable 310% increase in the scoring of vendor management and strategic partnerships from 2018 to 2022. This growth underscores DTE’s commitment to leveraging external expertise to enhance its health initiatives.
- Leadership Support and Management Alignment: The score of this particular pillar increased by 109%, reflecting strong leadership commitment.
Notably, employee satisfaction with wellbeing initiatives has surged, with 83% affirming that “DTE cares about my wellbeing.”
Why a Culture of Health and Wellbeing Matters for Employers
- DTE’s case demonstrates that investing in a culture of health and wellbeing delivers measurable benefits:
- Improved employee health which results in reducing healthcare costs.
- Enhanced safety and wellbeing drive performance and retention.
- Recognition as an employer of choice strengthens brand reputation.
DTE’s journey underscores that building a culture of health and wellbeing is not just an ethical imperative but also a strategic advantage. By committing to long-term planning and leveraging proven frameworks like HealthNEXT’s EHOA assessment, organizations can create sustainable change that benefits employees and the bottom line.
2022 Benchmark Report: How Healthy Employees Create a Competitive Advantage
2022 Benchmark Report: How Healthy Employees Create a Competitive Advantage
Author: HealthNEXT
This benchmark report analyzes data from HR leaders and employers of all company sizes about their corporate health and wellbeing initiatives, drawing comparisons to benchmark organizations. Benchmark organizations are “best-in-class” companies successfully sustaining corporate cultures of health and wellbeing, operational performance, and employee productivity and retention.