Communicating Employee Wellness Programmes at Workplace. A Study of Public Institution of Higher Learning in Kenya

Abstract

Employee wellness programmes (EWPs) have evolved from peripheral organisational perks to strategic imperatives central to institutional sustainability and workforce productivity. In Kenya's public institutions of higher learning, wellness programmes are inconsistently implemented, with their effectiveness frequently undermined by poor communication, limited employee awareness, and inadequate institutional commitment. While existing literature has examined the relationship between wellness programmes and employee performance, the specific dimension of how these programmes is communicated to employees remains underexplored, particularly within the higher education. This study investigated the communication of employee wellness programmes at the workplace, with specific focus on a public institution of higher learning in Kenya. The study was grounded on Diffusion of Innovations and Two-Step Flow of Communication Theories. The study adopted a qualitative research approach and a case study design, conducted at the University of Eldoret, Kenya. A sample of 40 participants was selected through purposive, stratified, and random sampling techniques from a sample frame of 100 eligible employees. Data was generated through three complementary qualitative techniques: in-depth interviews with key informants, four focus group discussions with homogeneous groups of employees, and document analysis of institutional wellness-related documents. Data analysis was conducted using thematic analysis, involving transcription, coding, and organisation of codes into themes reflecting patterns in communication practices, employee perceptions, and challenges. The study revealed that nearly 90 percent of employees valued wellness benefits as important in their choice of employer, yet participation remained low due to systemic communication failures. Communication from management was predominantly top-down and inefficient, with emails and memos as the most common channels. This unidirectional approach denied employees opportunities to raise issues and seek clarification, significantly affecting programme uptake. Inadequate knowledge about programme specifics and benefits was identified as a key obstacle to full participation, with knowledge gaps disproportionately affecting younger workers, less educated workers, and lower-paid workers. Lack of employee commitment and interest was attributed to perceived organisational insincerity and the absence of visible leadership engagement. Effective communication was positively correlated with participation, with face-to-face briefings, peer communication, and digital platforms rated as more effective than emails and memos. The study concludes that effective communication of employee wellness programmes is a strategic imperative requiring dedicated resources, multi-channel approaches, two-way feedback mechanisms, personalised benefit-driven messaging, and visible leadership commitment. Public institutions of higher learning in Kenya must abandon passive promotion mentalities and adopt proactive, evidence-based communication strategies that recognise employees as active participants in their own well-being. The study recommends the adoption of interactive communication processes and digital platforms, implementation of personalised communication strategies, establishment of wellness champions as health ambassadors, focus on audience segmentation to tailor communication to group needs, development of benefit-driven messaging, strengthening of leadership visibility, and institutionalisation of feedback mechanisms for continuous improvement.