The Henrico County Games

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2011

The Henrico County Games program was designed to enhance employee experience with the Department of Human Resources’ Fitness and Wellness Division. The county strives, through innovative programming, to promote wellness by encouraging employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The Henrico County Games provided a unique way to boost employee morale, inter-departmental teamwork, and county pride, all while having fun. The Henrico County Games brought together various departments to compete against one another in 3 events over a three month period. Encompassing a team tug-of-war, a mental skills challenge, and a two-mile cross country run, the program has been an overwhelming success. Its primary goal has been to involve as many employees as possible. In all, 13 teams representing 8 different County departments competed to earn the coveted Championship Award, which was awarded to the team with the highest score after the three events. In addition to improved morale, 34 percent of participating employees did not have previous experience with the Department of Human Resources’ Fitness and Wellness efforts, and the Games boosted Fitness and Wellness programming participation by 24 percent.