2025 Theo Award Winner: PepsiCo

PepsiCo saw an opportunity to improve ergonomic assessments across its beverage delivery operations. Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) represented the primary category of workplace ergonomic risk for its beverage delivery drivers.

Traditional ergonomic assessments were proving inadequate to assess the complex nature of this risk.

The safety team knew it would benefit from a different approach. Manual ergonomic assessments required safety staff to spend hours observing individual workers, gathering data on posture, movements, and physical demands. These assessments captured only brief moments in time, failing to address the cumulative nature of MSDs that could develop over long delivery routes.

The dispersed nature of delivery work made traditional one-on-one assessments particularly challenging, as safety teams would need to accompany drivers along their entire routes.

Derek Janquart, senior director of global EHS at PepsiCo, explained the company’s motivation for seeking a better solution: “Creating the justification for how we want to move forward in the future with investment in risk reduction technology for our employees really starts with what is the size of that impact?” he said.

Tackling the Problem

PepsiCo’s safety team implemented a comprehensive digital ergonomic assessment program using LifeBooster’s Senz technology, transforming the approach to understanding and mitigating workplace injury risks.

The connection to LifeBooster came through a former PepsiCo employee who had joined the technology company, introducing the team to innovative possibilities for ergonomic assessment.

Rather than relying on traditional manual assessments that yielded less than two hours of data after a two-hour investment, the Senz technology enabled safety professionals to spend just minutes setting up assessments that captured up to 14 hours of consecutive, comprehensive risk data.

The multi-point wearable sensors could easily capture data related to various risks, including repetitive strain, posture issues, heat stress, hand-arm vibration, and lifting hazards across any work environment.

PepsiCo used this technology in what Janquart described as “a research-oriented fashion.” The company had identified a test group performing delivery tasks that involved offloading products from trucks, bringing items into stores, and manipulating products on shelves.

“What we really wanted to do was understand the parts and pieces of the job that held potential for injury. From there, we needed to see how the job itself would be affected by a new or implemented control, meaning a motorized cart.” Janquart explained.

The team designed a comprehensive study to validate the effectiveness of this proposed solution. Baseline data was collected using existing manual delivery carts, then the team introduced the new motorized carts with sufficient time for driver adaptation to ensure inexperience wouldn’t skew results.

Over several weeks, the team gathered more than 1,155 hours of baseline data across 22 delivery routes, followed by another 1,050 hours of data after implementing the motorized carts.

The approach allowed for matched pairs analysis, where the same workers on identical delivery routes were assessed using both manual and motorized carts, providing direct comparison of potential ergonomic risks. This methodology virtually eliminated variables and provided evidence of the control’s effectiveness.

Janquart emphasized the strategic value of this data-driven approach: “Before you make a significant investment in a risk control, this LifeBooster technology gives you the ability to say, in a controlled fashion, ‘If we do this, here’s the likely effect of this investment.’ So, decisions are not made by blindly taking a shot in the dark.”

The comprehensive data collection revealed insights that traditional assessment methods likely would have missed. The analysis examined various factors including worker experience, height, and route volume to understand how different characteristics influenced injury risk and control effectiveness.

“Data becomes powerful when you know how to extract meaningful insights from it.” Janquart said. “The other thing is, as you use the technology a little bit, you become a little bit data greedy. I want to know this. I want to know that.”

This hunger for comprehensive understanding led the team to consider additional data points that could enhance analysis, such as worker rest patterns and sleep quality as predictors of activity levels and fatigue expression.

Success to Build On

PepsiCo’s innovative approach yielded remarkable results that validated both its methodology and investment in new equipment. After implementing the motorized carts, the company achieved a 12% decrease in back injury risk and a 5% reduction in upper extremity risk, representing a significant 10% overall risk reduction across all workers.

Organization: PepsiCo * Location: Purchase, N.Y. * Number of Employees: 319,000 * Category: Transportation & Logistics

Perhaps most impressive were the individual success stories within the broader improvement. Within the 22 assessed routes, some workers demonstrated a near complete elimination of shoulder strain and back strain risks, leading to further investigation to understand what made those particular routes so successful.

Derek Janquart, senior director of global EHS, PepsiCo

The data revealed that risk reduction benefits varied significantly among different worker populations. Newer drivers experienced the greatest improvement with an average 26% risk reduction, while shorter drivers saw a 20% average reduction. This granular insight enabled PepsiCo to make informed decisions about training improvements for newer drivers and prioritize initial deployment locations for maximum impact.

These findings validated the company’s significant investment in motorized carts. With hundreds of sites requiring equipment, the comprehensive data provided justification for a substantial financial commitment while demonstrating meaningful risk reduction for workers.

The program’s success extended beyond immediate risk reduction. Janquart said the technology revealed how ergonomic improvements depend heavily on individual worker characteristics.

“What you may find, for example, is that the risk improvement is better for some people than others,” he said. “So, if you have a control that benefits a shorter individual or a taller individual, those who are shorter or taller may not reap the same type of benefit.”

This understanding informed future control design considerations, helping the company identify optimal targets and create adjustability features for different worker populations.

Employees who participated in the program recommended continued use of the solution to identify other risks and provide comprehensive workplace insights. The organization expects these efforts to translate into reduced injury risk rates, increased productivity, and improved employee morale.

PepsiCo’s commitment to leveraging technology for worker protection continues to evolve. The company maintains an innovation team dedicated to exploring technologies involving artificial intelligence, sensors and other digital solutions to advance worker protection strategies.

“We certainly are considering all kinds of technologies as an attempt to use technology and digitalization to make an advancement in worker protection,” Janquart said. “It’s a big part of our strategy. It all comes down to making sure we find the right application for those technologies to make them effective.” &

The Theo Award celebrates its sophomore year, honoring 32 workers’ compensation programs for their excellence and service to workers across the nation. To learn more about the award and amazing qualities each winner possesses, visit here.

New Jersey WCMCO vs MCO

The importance of care direction and the provider network.

Workers’ compensation is designed to provide medical care and wage replacement to employees who suffer job related injuries or illnesses. In New Jersey, workers’ compensation is regulated by the Division of Workers’ Compensation under the Department of Labor and Workforce development.

A critical component of a successful workers’ compensation system lies in how medical care is delivered and managed. This is where the distinction between a Workers’ Compensation Managed Care Organization (WCMCO) and a traditional Managed Care Organization (MCO) becomes especially important. Horizon Casualty Services (HCS) is an affiliate of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey; however, the product that HCS delivers to its clients – a robust occupational health network – is different than the medical products that Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey delivers to its members.

A WCMCO is specifically designed to address the unique needs of the workers’ compensation system. A traditional MCO operates in the group insurance space focusing on providing access to routine and preventive care and managing complex health care needs in the right setting, while a WCMCO is structured around the effective and appropriate management of occupational injuries. A WCMCO focuses on timely treatment, appropriate return to work strategies, and regulatory compliance within the workers’ compensation framework. While both types of organizations manage provider networks and oversee care delivery, a WCMCO must adhere to different standards and legal obligations specific to workplace injuries. A WCMCO must focus solely on the claimant’s injury and not take into consideration the claimant’s other health conditions.

Provider networks play a pivotal role in the effectiveness of the overall workers’ compensation process. These networks are composed of physicians and specialists experienced in occupational medicine and trained in the documentation and protocols necessary for managing work related injuries. HCS partners with providers on education, a critical component to maintaining its prominent status in New Jersey. Using specialized oversight strategies also ensures providers meet performance benchmarks. This includes regular quality audits, outcome tracking, adherence to evidence-based guidelines such as ODG, and prompt communication with all parties involved in the claim.

WCMCOs focus on return-to-work outcomes, or the complexities of workers’ compensation claims management. The HCS provider network has been cultivated over the last 30 years to streamline and identify the best occupational health providers in New Jersey. HCS established and maintains its own Outcomes Focused Network (OFN) which ensures claimants will receive optimal care.

Heidi Coluni, Director of Provider Network Services, HCS

Heidi Coluni, Director of Provider Network Services, HCS, added “When I joined the organization almost 5 years ago, I did not realize how different a WCMCO operates from an MCO and the utmost importance of having the right provider in place the very first time an injured worker is seen. The OFN that my team has built over the years under Maura Berger, RN, ensures that our clients have access to not only providers, but access to providers who understand the difference between an injured worker and an insurance member.”

“I quickly learned that it’s nearly impossible to treat an injured worker like a member, so I dropped my MCO mindset,” Coluni added.

One of the most important advantages of having the right provider network in place is the ability to direct care from the outset of a claim. In New Jersey, employers have the right to choose the treating physician for workers’ compensation claims. This means that if a robust and high-performing provider network is already established, the employer or insurance carrier can quickly direct the injured worker to a highly qualified, in-network physician who specializes in occupational injuries. The early intervention is critical for several reasons:

1) Getting the injured worker to the right doctor early improves diagnostic accuracy and treatment outcomes. A provider familiar with work-related injuries will not only treat the condition effectively but will also be equipped to assess work restrictions and recovery timelines.

2) Early and appropriate care can reduce the likelihood of complications or delayed recovery, which in turn lowers the cost of the claim.

3) Timely and transparent communication from the provider helps claims adjusters make informed decisions quickly, preventing administrative delays and ensuring that benefits are delivered without unnecessary interruptions. Collaborating with providers ensures that notes are delivered promptly, and causality statements are clear right from the start.

Moreover, the direction of care at the beginning of the claim helps establish a framework for consistent, goal-oriented treatment. With the right providers in place, treatment plans are more likely to align with return-to-work goals and avoid unnecessary procedures or referrals. This coordination promotes accountability between workers, employers, and insurers.

The structure and oversight of medical provider networks are essential components of the workers’ compensation system in New Jersey. By leveraging the strengths of a well-managed provider network, employers and insurers can ensure that injured workers receive prompt, effective care from the right specialists. This early direction of care not only enhances recovery outcomes for the injured workers but also contributes to the overall success and efficiency of the workers’ compensation claim process. HCS is well poised to offer its workers’ compensation clients and prospective clients a network of professionals focused on occupational health throughout New Jersey.

For More Information

To learn more, email Jed Hoban, HCS Business Development Executive, at [email protected] or visit or visit https://www.horizonblue.com/horizoncasualty/.

About Horizon Casualty Services, Inc.

HCS, in business since 1994, is a leading PPO in New Jersey WC and PIP. HCS has a 100% direct-contracted provider network that includes almost all New Jersey acute care hospitals. The network delivers significant overall savings and, with its deep focus on precision, an extremely low appeals rate. Its PPO results, combined with its Healthcare Value Strategy and Outcomes Focused Network, enable insurers to be the best at delivering quality medical care to claimants at the right cost — clearly a win-win for all. HCS and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

This article was produced by the R&I Brand Studio, a unit of the advertising department of Risk & Insurance, in collaboration with Horizon Casualty Services, Inc. The editorial staff of Risk & Insurance had no role in its preparation.

Horizon Casualty Services Inc., an affiliate of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, in business since 1994, is a leading PPO in New Jersey workers' compensation and personal injury protection. The company's 100% direct-contracted provider network includes almost all New Jersey acute care hospitals, significant overall WC savings and, with its deep focus on precision, an extremely low WC appeals rate of 0.2%. Its PPO results, combined with its WC healthcare value and OFN strategy, enables insurers to be the best at delivering quality medical care to claimants at the right cost — clearly a win-win for all.

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