TransUnion and Fitbit Case Study
About TransUnion
HEADQUARTERS: CHICAGO, IL
NUMBER OF ASSOCIATES: 4,000
LOCATIONS: 48 GLOBALLY
In conducting a global Fitbit walking challenge for our U.S. and international offices, TransUnion was able to generate not only more physical activity among the participants but tons of engagement, healthy competition, and fun! — Debra Wasserman, Director, Benefits and Wellness at TransUnion
Out with the old, in with modern wellness.
In 2015, TransUnion was looking for a way to spice up their wellness program because their prior one never really took off. They thought long and hard about what they wanted to get out of their wellness program, and instead of focusing on healthcare costs and number crunching, they looked at the bigger picture. They wanted something that would keep their associates engaged and excited about being part of the company.
After plenty of research, they noticed that other companies, both big and small, were turning to activity trackers and step challenges to crank up wellness in the workplace. This modern approach to wellness got them thinking that if other companies could do it, why couldn’t they? They decided to give Fitbit Health Solutions a try after learning about the easy-to-use dashboard and realizing how popular the Fitbit brand already was among employees.
A six-week trial became a global hit.
In the summer of 2015, TransUnion implemented a six- week step challenge using Fitbit Health Solutions. Their pilot program included three of their U.S. office locations, and rallied an impressive 550 participants. People were engaged, colleagues were bonding, and they were all appreciating where they worked. Even the president of the company got in on the fun and challenged associates to beat his step count—which many participants were able
to achieve. Average step counts were well above 10,000 per day and associates were eager for more challenges.
By 2016, TransUnion knew they had a successful program on their hands. However, with 48 offices spread across the world, administrators were all too aware of the difficulties
in implementing a global program. According to recent research, some of these common barriers tend to be many differing cultures and laws across countries, lack of global oversight, and an inconsistent global strategy.* With Fitbit Health Solutions, TransUnion recognized they had a scalable solution that could work across all locations.
Finding motivation in friendly competition.
In 2016, TransUnion expanded the challenge to seven countries. Teams were split up by location and over 1,000 associates participated. The 25 teams were challenged
to achieve the highest average step count, while having pop-up challenges along the way—including those that encouraged them to get the most steps in a day or beat their own step counts.
Team standings and pop-up challenge winners were announced through weekly wellness newsletters, where photos of teams being active were featured for extra motivation.
At the end of the challenge, the Philippines office came out on top with an average of 19,475 steps, and an overall team average of over 10,000 steps. Best of all, associates bonded with colleagues from all over the world by working towards the same wellness goal.
The progress was hard to ignore
10,873 steps
Average step count during 6-week step challenge in 2016
19,475 steps
Average step count of 2016 winning team
25th to 3rd place
Team improvement in just one week