Workplace Options http://www.workplaceoptions.com Workplace Options sums up its company mission in one, concise statement: "Strengthening workplace effectiveness through employee engagement and support." From the website, "Workplace Options is a leader in customized work-life and employee support benefits to EAPs, individual companies, government employees, universities, hospitals and other organizations, all over the world. "Currently serving over 32.5 million employees worldwide, Workplace Options has 30 years of experience as a leading work-life services provider, and more than 15 years of experience innovating EAP services outside the U.S. "Founded in Raleigh, NC in 1982, we began our company by providing work-life consulting and training to corporations - including work-life needs assessments, policy development, implementation, and corporate on-site child care center design and development. Then in 1997, we launched a new business model that focused exclusively on providing resource and referral solutions to EAP and third-party organizations. That change allowed Workplace Options to better leverage its expertise in dependent care and convenience referrals and to partner directly with clients to develop and deliver innovative work-life products and services." The website's information regarding the management team at Workplace Options reveals a very strong management team with a wealth of talent and experience in the EAP services industry. Credibility stems from such talented managers as Mary Ellen Gornick, a nationally recognized expert in the employee assistance and work-life industry and Rita Piper, with 30 years experience as a work-life/wellness professional, trainer, project administrator, account manager and sales executive. Workplace Options website brings availability of services to the web in an on-demand capacity. Some of the services provided include dependent care assistance, support for care of an elderly relative, and a compr

Workplace Options website brings availability of services to the web in an on-demand capacity. Some of the services provided include dependent care assistance, support for care of an elderly relative, and a comprehensive work-life website with a comprehensive library of online resources for a wide variety of issues around parenting, elder care, relationships, wellness, work, and everyday life. Further, content includes over 5,000 regularly updated articles, 45 financial calculators, 70 interactive health and emotional health assessments, 77 streaming audio, and over 300 video files covering a range of health and emotional health topics, over 100 ready to use legal documents, and 92 SkillBuilder online training programs. Homepage content such as featured articles and polls are updated monthly, and website resources are reviewed and updated daily. Users can also take advantage of 9 interactive self-search locators for: child care, elder care, adoption, education, pet sitting, private and public colleges, volunteer opportunities, and attorneys. In addition, webinars are available each month on a different work-life topic. Previous webinars are archived for easy download. A Spanish version of the Advantage Work-Life Website is also available. Workplace Options is more of a globally-based provider than Deer Oaks (my first website review) is. As such, I feel that the nature of their programs is more universal and less company- generated than that of Deer Oaks' programs. However, the work-life website could be a good starting point for members to understand the options available in dealing with their own personal work-life issues.

Deer Oaks- A Behavioral Health Organization http://www.deeroaks.com/ From the company's posted mission statement, Deer Oaks is a large behavioral healthcare organization offering Employee Assistance, Elder Assistance, and psychological assessment and treatment services throughout the United States. Of particular interest to our class, Deer Oaks offers Employee Assistance Program services to 'public and private companies. From the website, "founded in 1992, Deer Oaks EAP Services is a premier provider of Employee Assistance, Work/Life, and Health & Wellness Programs serving over 1 million members throughout North America. Deer Oaks offers public and private employer groups short-term counseling and work/life services that positively impact employee morale, medical claims, turnover, and supervisor effectiveness." As far as intended audience, this is a commercial website intended for the members of employer groups that subscribe to the services that Deer Oaks provides. Employees have 24-hour access to the Deer Oaks website to receive resources to balance work and family life. Through the website, employees can receive information regarding Deer Oaks services, answer self-assessment questionnaires and schedule appointments. The website features online support chats, message boards, questionnaires, monthly educational newsletters, an online library and an online magazine. The website also offers web-based seminars and information on a wide variety of topics, including wellness, family and workplace issues, financial and legal concerns. I find the website quite credible as a review of the credentials of the senior members of the organization shows them to be highly trained and qualified to perform their jobs. A number of them have received Doctorates in clinical psychology and seem well qualified to direct programs designed to assist employees attempting to balance work and life commitments. The range of assistance provided under the EAP plan is quite extensive a

The range of assistance provided under the EAP plan is quite extensive and would be an attractive benefit to anyone working for a company that sponsored such a plan. From the website, some of the services provided include: Comprehensive Diagnostic Assessments, Telephone Triage, Individual, Marital, Family, and Group Psychotherapies, Clinical Coordination and Consultation Services, Crisis Intervention Services, Supervisor/Manager Training, Psycho-Educational In-Services, Appropriate Referrals for Financial, Legal, or Health Plan Needs. Types of issues addressed through these services can include: Depression, Anxiety, Interpersonal, Familial, or Marital Conflicts, Grief: Death and Dying, ADHD and Conduct Problems, Substance Abuse, Stress Management, Childcare/Eldercare, Occupational issues, Crisis Management, Workplace Violence, Trauma: Abuse / Neglect, Domestic Violence, Financial, Health, or Legal Difficulties. Programs of particular interest include the following: Legal Assist Through Legal Assist, participants have free access to vital legal information on the Deer Oaks website, including a library of legal documents (with legal information on eldercare, domestic violence and family health) and a small claims and consumer "self-help" series, as well as access to online document preparation. Participants also have access to telephone information and services from a full service legal and financial Consumer Resource Center. Program participants are entitled to free preparation of a simple will by an attorney, and professional review of many types of legal documents. Find Now Childcare and Eldercare Program The Find Now program is designed to assist participants with caring for children and / or aging parents. The resources of this program make the search for licensed, regulated, and inspected childcare and eldercare services in each community an accessible and streamlined process. Online databases are available for searches. In addition, child and geriatric psych