Humanitec’s Remote Team Engagement: Boosting Connection Through Gamified Wellness with YuMuuv

Humanitec, a software company specializing in internal developer platforms, has been operating fully remotely since 2020. With 50+ employees distributed globally, fostering engagement and team spirit across virtual boundaries has been a key challenge. To bridge this gap and create meaningful connections, Humanitec partnered with YuMuuv to implement a structured wellness challenge program.

This case study explores how Humanitec successfully leveraged YuMuuv to boost employee engagement, encourage physical activity, and strengthen team dynamics, particularly in the lead-up to company-wide in-person meetings.

Background: The Remote Work Challenge

As a fully remote company, Humanitec prioritizes initiatives that build relationships and foster a sense of belonging among employees. Despite the availability of digital collaboration tools like Zoom and Slack, personal interactions remain crucial. Recognizing the importance of shared experiences, the company looked for innovative ways to enhance engagement before their bi-annual in-person meetings.

Key Objectives for the Wellness Initiative:

• Strengthen Team Bonding: Encourage cross-team interaction before in-person company gatherings.
• Improve Employee Well-Being: Promote physical activity as a means to support overall health and productivity.
• Enhance Engagement in a Fun and Competitive Way: Introduce a structured, gamified wellness challenge to sustain motivation.

YuMuuv was selected as the ideal solution to meet these objectives by providing a platform that allows for seamless step-tracking, team-based challenges, and interactive engagement.

Implementation of YuMuuv at Humanitec

Humanitec developed a structured engagement plan leveraging YuMuuv’s challenge-based platform. The initiative was built around pre-event step challenges designed to energize employees before company gatherings.

Key Components of the Program:

1. Pre-Event Step Challenges:
   • One-month step challenges leading up to company-wide meetings.
   • Controlled-random team formations, ensuring balanced groups with employees from different departments.
   • Encouraging friendly competition by tracking progress in real-time.
2. Fostering Cross-Team Engagement:
   • Teams composed of employees from various departments to enhance collaboration and communication.
   • Slack-based discussions where employees shared photos of walks, runs, and outdoor activities.
   • Increased interactions beyond daily work-related tasks.
3. Motivational Reward System:
   • Competitive yet inclusive structure where every contribution mattered.
   • Incentives structured around increasing the company’s sports activity budget for winning team members.
   • Participants could use the bonus budget for gym memberships, running gear, or other wellness-related expenses.
4. Gamification and Competition:
   • Employees eagerly anticipated each challenge, frequently asking, “Where’s my team?” and “When does the challenge start?”
   • Step count leaderboards drove engagement, with employees walking until the last minute to improve team rankings.
   • New employees were quickly integrated into company culture through active participation.

Results & Key Achievements

Since adopting YuMuuv, Humanitec has seen a remarkable improvement in employee engagement and participation in wellness activities:

• 80% Employee Participation:
  • A significant majority of employees actively engage in the challenges.
  • Even less active individuals contribute, knowing their steps make a difference to their team.
• Enhanced Cross-Team Interactions:
  • Employees interact beyond their immediate teams, leading to stronger internal networks.
  • Increased Slack engagement with employees posting updates, photos, and progress discussions.
• Sustained Motivation and Excitement:
  • Employees eagerly anticipate challenges, proactively asking about start dates and team formations.
  • Step counts remain high until the last moment, fostering a fun and competitive atmosphere.
• Balanced Competition & Fair Play:
  • Early challenges faced imbalanced teams, but Humanitec improved fairness by distributing high-performing participants across different groups.
  • Recent challenges have seen closely contested competitions, leading to higher engagement.

Challenges & Areas for Future Improvement

While the YuMuuv integration has been largely successful, Humanitec identified some areas for enhancement:

• Fine-Tuning Step Tracking Accuracy:
  • Some variations in step counts across different tracking devices.
  • Employees using manual uploads benefit from flexible input options.
• Further Expanding Challenge Variety:
  • While step challenges have been effective, exploring additional challenge formats (e.g., hydration, mindfulness, or cycling challenges) could provide fresh motivation.
• Enhanced User Experience & Analytics:
  • Employees enjoy YuMuuv’s intuitive dashboard but suggest further improvements in visual reporting.
  • Providing historical data access for employees to track long-term progress.

Future Plans & Scaling the Initiative

Looking ahead, Humanitec aims to:

• Continue running pre-event challenges to maintain momentum and engagement.
• Experiment with new challenge types that promote holistic well-being.
• Leverage YuMuuv’s analytics capabilities to further personalize wellness initiatives.
• Refine the incentive structure to encourage even greater participation.

Humanitec’s collaboration with YuMuuv demonstrates that a well-structured wellness challenge can significantly enhance team engagement, especially in remote work environments. By integrating physical activity with team-building initiatives, Humanitec has successfully fostered a more connected and motivated workforce.

For organizations seeking to improve remote team engagement, Humanitec’s success with YuMuuv provides an excellent model of how digital wellness solutions can strengthen workplace culture and employee well-being.