One of StraightArrow’s core values is that we are, and always strive to be, a team of great people. Entering our seventh year with the axiom “Stronger at 7,” we put a more physical spin on this principle, emphasizing fitness and health in our office life.
Last month, those efforts paid off as the People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP) recognized StraightArrow as one of the country’s best companies for “Creating a Culture of Wellness.” The award, presented on the 26th of July, distinguished StraightArrow as the 3rd best among 21 entries in PMAP’s nationwide contest.
To join the contest, each participating company had to submit a two-minute video showing their health and wellness programs, along with a brief written description of the same. Our entry, which you can view below, featured the various initiatives we’ve introduced, one by one, since the start of the year. Each one takes a slightly different approach to encouraging better health, the better to ensure that there is something to appeal to each and every one of our employees.
A Conducive Environment
The environments we find ourselves in are among the strongest influences on our lifestyles and habits. As such, some of the first steps involved creating an environment more conducive to establishing a health and fitness culture.
One major change was in the snacks in the office pantry: we cut back on cookies and sugary biscuits and stocked up on fruits. What we eat is determined more by convenience than we often realize, and putting healthy options close to hand makes them that much easier to choose.
Another change was the introduction of Strong Fridays, an adjustment to the company dress code that allows employees to come to work in athletic or activewear at the close of each week. It’s a welcome convenience to the many employees who exercise after their shift, and ties in nicely with the rest of our corporate wellness programs, like the Best Shot Challenge and Stand Up in Sixty.
Training Incentives
StraightArrow provides incentives for employees to develop their physical abilities, both in specific sports as well as in more general aspects. The yearly sportsfest covers the first aspect, while the Best Shot Challenge, introduced this year, covers the second.
Held each year, the company sportsfest features mainstays like basketball and volleyball, as well as less common events, such as darts and billiards. This year, indoor games like chess and game of the generals were included to highlight mental acuity as well.
The Best Shot Challenge offers a reward for employees who can set a record in a quarterly challenge. These challenges are simple conditioning exercises, such as burpees and jump rope, to ensure an even field of competition regardless of each employee’s choice of sports. Those interested can take a crack at the challenges on Fridays, with each attempt observed by designated supervisors.
Exemplary Employees
Just as customers trust other customers best, employees are likely to be inspired by fellow employees who show that the demands of work are no barrier to healthy living. One of our employee engagement programs, #FitFTW, is a social media contest: employees submit boomerang shots of their workouts, with the most creative one winning a prize. Of course, even before we started these initiatives, there were already members of the StraightArrow team setting an example for living an active life.
There are several benefits—personal and professional, individual and communal—to promoting a culture of fitness and better health. Exercise and balanced diets have been shown to improve mental well-being, boost self-esteem and productivity, and, naturally, prevent sickness.
At StraightArrow, we see a balanced, active lifestyle as an important factor in achieving excellence, and a culture of wellbeing as an integral part of building a team of great people. We are therefore proud to have been recognized by the PMAP, an esteemed organization in the field of human relations, who have for 56 years been striving to advance the profession, science, and art of HR management.
If you’d like to work with like-minded creatives in a culture that values holistic physical well-being, then StraightArrow may well be the place for you—so get in touch and create for the world with us.
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