How to help employees make sense of financial benefits
For financial wellbeing benefits to have an impact and be cost-effective, employees must use them. According to research by Sodexo Engage, only 11% of the employees interviewed were engaged with their workplace benefits.
Accessibility and communication were critical factors in this low engagement, but 37% of respondents said they didn’t use their benefits because they didn’t align with their needs.
1. Understand employee needs
Before exploring how to help employees understand the benefits you’re offering them, you need to ensure you’re providing the right ones.
Done well, employee benefits are an investment in people and business that yields a return. Before you start looking at what employee benefits to offer, you need to take steps to discover what your employees need from you.
There are a variety of financial wellbeing benefits available that stretch salaries and make everyday living more affordable. Some benefits enable employees to access their wages before payday, consolidate debts and help them build a savings pot for the future.
There remains a stigma about discussing personal finances and employees may need encouragement to be open about their needs and potential struggles. Anonymised surveys enable your business to collect the information to make data-driven decisions and give employees the confidence to reply honestly.
Once you’ve gathered your employees’ responses, you’ll see where support is most needed and what financial wellbeing benefits will make the most significant impact.
2. Educate and raise awareness
It takes time to research the different employee benefits and providers available, but you can use this period to start setting the scene for your employees.
Start the conversations around financial wellbeing, providing employees with the tools and materials to manage their money better. Bring in external coaches to educate employees and provide strategies they can embed into their lives.
We’re a one-click nation craving speed and convenience. Most financial wellbeing benefits, such as an employee discounts platform, require minor behaviour changes; the sooner you can plant this seed and encourage a different mindset, the better.
3. Make an event of it
Kick-off events are a fantastic way to introduce employees to their financial wellbeing benefits. Use them to create a buzz and to ensure employees understand the true potential of the lifestyle improvements these financial benefits can bring.
Demo the products so they can see them in action, give a tour of the platform so they understand how to navigate it, and, most importantly, ensure employees know where to get support.
The more engaged and aware your employees are, and the higher the uptake of the new benefits, the more likely you are to see a measurable difference in employee wellbeing, engagement, and retention.
If there are taxable elements to the offered financial benefits, ensuring your employees understand them is more important than ever. Provide clear and concise information during the launch, then follow up with one-to-one meetings with managers or HR to ensure the implications are understood.
4. Super users are, well, super
Super users encourage engagement with employee benefits. They’re your success stories, showing their colleagues how they’re embedding benefits into their lives to stretch their salaries while paying for daily essentials.
They’re also a resource for colleagues who need tips on adopting change and can easily signpost people to valuable information or assist in navigating their employee benefits platform.
Your employees will determine the success of your employee benefits strategy - whether it remains cost-effective and sustainable in the long term – so starting with them is essential.
Use data to build a package that meets their needs, then keep the communication flowing. Monitor engagement, giving it a boost when needed, and continually review your offering to ensure it remains fit for purpose.
In partnership with Pluxee UK
Pluxee UK, is a leading employee benefits and engagement partner that opens up a world of opportunities to help people enjoy more of what really matters in their lives.
