Where we are now: how employee benefits are adapting in the light of coronavirus
Organisations have had to swiftly adapt to the current climate by offering new benefits to help staff. Many have upgraded their healthcare to include virtual GP appointments to make it easier for employees to speak to a doctor while remaining in isolation.
Lockdown rules have had a tremendous impact on everyone's state of mind and mental health, because of this more and more employers are re-assessing their mental health policies and how they can best support their staff.
So, what is the new reality of employee benefits packages?
Online meetings are the ‘new norm’
Life moves on and our industry sector has shown tremendous resilience to the challenging climate and pushed on regardless, however some benefits have had to make adaptations.
Financial wellbeing and pension programmes have seen a shift from face-to-face meetings and presentations to online meetings via platforms such as Microsoft teams and Zoom.
Companies have had no choice but to use online meetings and have been surprised at how well it works. Utilising this type of technology could not only improve productivity, but also open up a whole new and exciting way of working. It provides a great level of flexibility when planning financial advice sessions for either holistic education or modular benefits such as pensions.
We’ve seen this first-hand from the positive feedback we’ve been receiving from our own pension advice meetings, which have shifted to video calls.
There’s a need for more strategic communications
There is a common theme which is a challenge for all reward professionals, and that is how you communicate with employees during these challenging times. This can be drilled down to a modular level of looking at each benefit in turn or as part of an overarching campaign.
Successful communication strategies have completed an internal audit:
- what is our new key message for each aspect of our reward package?
- what is our best performing media channel for broadcasting our messages?
- are the current communication goals still appropriate?
- how can we best use this time to come out the other side in a stronger position?
Those who are yet to implement a communication strategy may be left behind, and will struggle to see the maximum engagement with their people. As employees are unable to be together, regular and focussed communication is key to keeping that company unity.
There’s more emphasis on employee care and appreciation
Employees are appreciating everything that employers are providing to help them through the COVID crisis. From clapping our amazing NHS and showing appreciation for our keyworkers through adverts and social media, we can clearly see a light has been shown on how we need to ensure we’re appreciating and looking after our people.
Some may have been furloughed, others may be working harder than ever for the greater good of the business – whatever the circumstances, appreciation of your employees goes a long way. This could be small offerings such as a team building conference call to lighten the mood, to more significant rewards such as the introduction of financial education programmes (particularly those which help people with budgeting their money during this climate).
Reward packages in the new world
Coronavirus has sent shockwaves through the world of employee benefits just like any other industry. We think this is an opportunity to turn the current situation into a positive by enhancing and leveraging the things we have control over – such as digital alternatives, building well thought-out communications plans and engaging with employees in a much more detailed way.
Some may have had to be dragged kicking and screaming into a new digital way of working. We think this has acted as a positive shove towards shifting mindsets to improve productivity by moving away from conventional working methods, and to focus on the health and wellbeing of the people that matter most.
Key insights:
- Embrace new technologies and experiment with how they can work for your business.
- Clearly plan and strategize all communications to improve engagement with your people.
- Improve employee interaction levels and show appreciation to your people.
This article is provided by Lemonade Reward.
In partnership with Lemonade Reward
At Lemonade Reward, we take a fresh approach pensions, benefits and employee wellbeing.
