For many organizations, wellness initiatives succeed or fail at the manager level. While executive support matters, middle management determines whether wellness is practically supported in day-to-day work.

Managers control schedules, set priorities, and shape how employees perceive what’s truly valued. Because they work so closely with their teams, they have firsthand insight into workloads, stress points, and morale — making them uniquely positioned to influence engagement and culture.

Here are five practical ways middle managers can actively champion wellness within their teams.

How Can Managers Support Employee Well-Being?

In this post:

1. Drive Cultural Change Where Work Happens

2. Remove Barriers to Wellness Participation

3. Show Care Through Connection and Development

4. Make Time for Wellness (Even When It’s Hard)

5. Communicate Consistently and Clearly

6. Lead by Example

7. Use Feedback to Strengthen Wellness Efforts

8. Support Wellness Champions

9. How Strive Supports Managers and Organizations

Drive Cultural Change Where Work Happens

Middle managers are often the ones translating policies into practice, making them powerful drivers of cultural change.

Small, visible actions can shift norms:

• Offering healthier food at meetings
• Encouraging lunch breaks away from desks
• Normalizing PTO usage and flexible schedules
• Supporting time away for family or personal needs

When managers make it clear that rest, recovery, and boundaries are acceptable, employees are far less likely to burn out.

This kind of cultural shift works best when wellness is built into how the organization operates, rather than treated as a separate initiative.

Remove Barriers to Wellness Participation

Employees quickly pick up on whether wellness is truly supported or quietly deprioritized.

Managers can increase participation simply by:

• Adjusting schedules to accommodate wellness offerings
• Avoiding conflicts between meetings and wellness activities
• Encouraging participation without pressure or guilt

When leaders actively support wellness opportunities, it reinforces that well-being aligns with business goals — not competes with them. Strong support at the manager level builds trust, improves morale, and strengthens team cohesion.

Show Care Through Connection and Development

Managers influence the emotional environment their teams operate in. Recognizing signs of stress, fatigue, or disengagement, and responding with empathy, goes a long way.

Strong manager-employee relationships are one of the most consistent drivers of employee well-being. Taking time to check in, acknowledge effort, and offer guidance helps employees feel supported and seen.

Supporting well-being also means supporting growth. Employees who feel stagnant are more likely to disengage, regardless of wellness benefits.

Make Time for Wellness (Even When It’s Hard)

One of the most impactful things managers can do is protect time for wellness.

That doesn’t look the same everywhere. In operation-heavy environments, wellness may need to happen during breaks, lunch hours, or before or after shifts. In more flexible settings, employees may prefer offerings during work hours that don’t cut into personal time.

Middle managers are best positioned to decide what’s realistic. They understand operational demands and can make small adjustments — like turning a standing meeting into a walking meeting or encouraging stretch breaks — without needing executive approval.

Clearing the path for wellness sends a clear signal: well-being matters here.

Communicate Consistently and Clearly

Managers are often the bridge between leadership strategy and employee experience. That makes communication critical.

Effective managers:

• Reinforce why wellness matters, not just what’s being offered
• Help connect wellness goals to team and business outcomes
• Model leadership support by participating themselves

When wellness communications come from both leadership and managers, engagement tends to be higher. Consistency also matters — sporadic messaging can make programs feel optional or short-lived.

For organizations managing wellness internally, this administrative load can add up quickly. Vendors like Strive help reduce the burden by handling registration, reminders, reporting, and program management, freeing managers to focus on their teams.

Lead by Example

Managers who actively participate in wellness programs send a powerful message. Whether it’s joining a class, organizing a friendly challenge, or openly discussing their own wellness goals, modeling healthy behavior builds credibility.

Employees are more likely to engage when they see leaders doing the same.

Use Feedback to Strengthen Wellness Efforts

Middle managers sit at the intersection of leadership vision and employee reality. Gathering feedback, sharing insights upward, and advocating for improvements helps keep wellness initiatives relevant and effective.

Inviting employee input also increases ownership and engagement — people are more invested in programs they help shape.

Support Wellness Champions

Wellness champions often emerge from across the organization. Employees who are passionate about health and well-being are eager to help drive engagement.

Managers play a key role by:

• Supporting their involvement
• Allowing time for planning and collaboration
• Encouraging teams to engage with wellness initiatives

When managers back wellness champions, efforts are more visible, credible, and sustainable.

This structure works best when wellness roles and responsibilities are clearly supported across the organization.

How Strive Supports Managers and Organizations

Strive’s corporate wellness programs are fully administered, with simple registration, built-in liability waivers, and engagement tracking. Each client works with a dedicated program manager who handles communications, reporting, and coordination — reducing the workload on internal teams.

For organizations that need more hands-on support, Strive also offers full- or part-time wellness coordinators to manage communications, surveys, program logistics, and vendor oversight.

Book a discovery call to explore how Strive can support your managers and strengthen wellness across your organization.