The ROI of care: Why flexible, proactive wellbeing is now a business strategy

Indian companies lose nearly ₹14,000 crore a year to absenteeism, yet well-being is still treated as a benefits issue and not aligned with core business strategy. At the People Matters “Total Rewards & Wellbeing Conference”, MediBuddy’s VP, Corporate Business, Adhithya Parthasarathi, called out this disconnect strongly, “All our businesses are driven by numbers, but these numbers are driven by human beings, the employees” 

According to McKinsey Health Institute research, nearly one in three employees in Asia report burnout, and in India, around 40% of workers say they struggle with distress, anxiety or depression. In the workplace of today, with chronic stress, health anxieties, volatile markets and life-stage transitions, employees actively seek care that protects them proactively before it’s too late.

Again, “a one-size-fits-all benefits programme no longer serves a multifaceted workforce,” stresses Adhithya. A flexible, cashless benefit system must be the foundation - one that treats wellbeing, not as a perk, but as infrastructure that enables performance. This is when well-being moves beyond HR policy and becomes organisational strategy.

In the past, compensation was the primary lever of talent attraction. Today, a staggering 70% of job seekers rank health and wellness benefits as a top priority. 

And when it comes to these wellness benefits - “96% of the people we surveyed said they want tailored options, and because of that, they aren’t happy with what organisations are providing,” shared Adhithya. Employees today want personalised wellness that includes their families. And they are already spending on it - 71% spend up to 5% of annual income on health and wellness needs out of pocket, outside employer benefits and spend not just on themselves but on their families as well.

This makes health and wellness benefits no longer a perk, but a workplace priority. 

In India, absenteeism is 3% higher than the global average, costing organisations up to ₹14,000 crore annually. But even more alarming is the rise of presenteeism - employees who show up but cannot perform. “41% of the time that an employee spends in the office today, they're actually not as productive as they want to be,” expressed Adhithya. 

This productivity loss is a business sinkhole that can cost up to one lakh rupees per employee per year. “Every sick leave costs about 10,000 rupees per employee per year for every organisation. So when we talk about some of our largest clients with lakhs of employees, on average, three sick leaves per year means 30,000 rupees lost in productivity per employee, translating to productivity loss in crores for the organisation.” 

This shows that health is an organisational infrastructure, and not investing in it can prove to be costly.

The great shift in benefits design is customisation. 

“Does this mean that you have to expand your budget to take care of all your employees? Not necessarily, it can also be done by optimising your benefits to match all your employees’ needs,” said Adhithya.

Whether an employee is entering the workforce, managing chronic health issues, returning from maternity leave, or navigating late-career health concerns, their needs evolve. And one fixed programme cannot meet the needs of all employees, let alone those of an individual employee during different life stages.

“How do you design a benefit system that caters to all these employees at any given moment? The ask is to keep a flexible wallet or a flexible benefit system - not by personalising for every employee, but by enabling choice and access,” shared Adhithya. 

The solution is not only flexibility, but accessibility. A system that supports families, removes paperwork, and makes the benefit redemption experience stress-free. “One way to increase awareness and increase adoption is to introduce cashless benefit redemption,” said Adhithya. Cashless models eliminate reimbursement friction and accelerate adoption.

This is where care moves from cost to capability. With aligned benefit design, organisations have seen:

• 22% rise in productivity
  
  

• 14% reduction in healthcare costs
  
  

• 15% reduction in absenteeism
  
  

Even small benefit changes drive real outcomes. For instance, adding eye care initiatives in organisations led to early detection of serious health conditions - “7% that took the free eye checkup with us had a deeper problem with their eyesight, and hence we were able to act fast and prevent hospitalisation,” shared Adhithya. Maternity programs have reduced return-to-work time and attrition among women by up to 42%.

Thus, it is evident that these outcomes have a direct business impact. 

Adhithya shared stories of employees who avoided life-threatening situations simply because they had access to the right mechanism.

A gastric issue was detected as a potential cardiac problem. “Mr Rakesh - who had an online teleconsultation program - had access to a doctor, who recommended an ECG test, and found that he had symptoms of getting a heart attack,” shared Adhithya. A rash helped identify stage-two skin cancer early enough to intervene.

When designed right, a health and wellness system doesn’t just improve productivity. It saves lives. Such a health and wellness benefit system empowers the employee to remain stress-free,” Adhithya said. 

This is where wellbeing becomes a business differentiator, as employee care moves from a programme to an operational advantage.

The keynote delivered what the industry long suspected but never quantified clearly - Well-being is not the responsibility of HR alone. It is a strategy that drives talent retention, productivity, employer brand and business continuity, which are the fundamentals of organisational performance.

Employees want benefits that adapt to real life. Leaders want performance structures backed by data. When both come together, care shifts from cost centre to competitive capability.

The future of care is proactive, personalised, and business-aligned. Because the ROI of care isn’t just improved wellness of employees, but a strong and resilient workforce.