Part 6: Case Studies: Case Study 2
A Guide for Custom Community Intervention Planning

 Case Study #2, Walking at Work

Background Information: You are a manager at Bayside Computing Corporation. You have noticed over the years a steady increase in overweight workers, coupled with a dramatic decrease in physical activity. Employee fitness programs have been all but eliminated because of budget cuts. Many employees are interested in health, but increasing pressures and workloads mean people are more reluctant to take work breaks for any reason, especially walking.

By your estimate, employees are getting little to no physical activity on most days. You also notice many employees eating their way through the workday. The decrease in activity and increase in calorie consumption is leading to an increase in weight gain in the workforce.

Environmental Assessment and Intervention Planning
	Step		Your Plan
1	Define the problem.		Overweight employees and little physical activity. Time and work pressures are a considerable barrier to physical activity.
2	Define your community.		Bayside Computing Corporation
3	Define your audience.		Sedentary workers, primarily software developers
4	Who are your partners?		Supervisors and managers Worksite health and safety employees Employee volunteers
4a	Assemble your partners.		Manager Supervisor Occupational health nurse Volunteer from each production group
5	What dimension(s) of the environment is the team going to assess?		Built (identify and mark walking routes) Social (how will this affect production goals, employee health and safety priorities) Social (willingness of supervisors to allow workers to take short exercise breaks) Social (willingness of workers to take breaks)
6	What data collection methods, tools, and strategies will be used?		Walkbability checklist Survey of workers and supervisors Maps of buildings and grounds
7	How are you going to use the information you collect?		Presentation to management Presentation to supervisors Emails to employees
7a	Gain community support and confirm that they see the problem as you and your partnership team see it.		All groups are on board, but a couple of supervisors remain skeptical about whether encouraging workers to walk at work will really make a difference
8	Identify opportunities for environmental change.		Buildings and grounds to certify safe areas to walk and allocate resources for sings as needed Recruit cooperating supervisors to reinforce walking plan Identify workers from production groups to recruit other workers
9	Select an intervention strategy.		Worker volunteers to model walking meetings and encourage participation Buildings and grounds to install signs Email reminders and marketing to boost participation Incentives to encourage worker participation
10	Plan your evaluation.		Observations of walking activity at several points in the company and on 3 random days before program and immediately after, again at 3 and 6 months Pre-post worker online walking diaries Pre-post worker and supervisor surveys
11	Plan your intervention.		Program ready to roll out 12 months after team is assembled Communicate via emails and notices to employees

 Other Case Studies

See these case studies also:

• Case Study #1, A Worksite Weight Problem: Modify the offerings in a cafeteria.
• Case Study #3, A Neighborhood Gets Fit: Develop safe activity choices in a suburban neighborhood.

Next Step: Part 7: References and Other Resources

Last Update 1.11.06

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