Help employees make retirement planning decisions with confidence
When retirement decisions look different for everyone, how can employers best support their employees in planning for retirement?
According to Standard Life’s Retirement Voice 2025 research, conducted among 6,000 adults, many employees may be feeling unsure about their pension savings.
The research revealed that a third (32%) of over 50s with a defined contribution (DC) pension plan say they’re not confident about how to turn their pension savings into an income.
So how can you provide effective support and help employees who are approaching retirement in making those all-important decisions?
Here are three practical steps you can take today:
1. Gather feedback to understandretirement needs
Retirement needs can differ greatly from one employee to the next. It’s not just about pension pot size and their financial circumstances – it’s about recognising that every employee manages their money and makes decisions in different ways.
For instance, some may want to opt for a simple default retirement option, and minimise the time spent thinking about and preparing for retirement. Others may want to explore the different retirement options available and need help understanding what’s right for them.
That’s why it’s important to make your retirement planning support personal.
To do this, it’s a good idea to gather employee feedback. You could send out a survey to those approaching retirement, to understand what their priorities are and what type of support would be helpful.
Based on the results, you can signpost employees to relevant resources, such as Standard Life’s Retirement Hub. This combines information, education, and interactive tools to help boost employees’ confidence around making retirement decisions. You could also signpost to online resources like MoneyHelper, which covers a range of topics around financial planning for retirement.
2. Provide retirement planning tools that offer clarity
According to the Retirement Voice 2025 report, when people who aren’t yet retired think about what they want from their pension savings, the top two answers are a guaranteed income for life (89%) and flexible access to pension savings (79%).
Fix and flex models may be able to provide what people want, allowing them to cover their essential spending with a guaranteed income and take the rest flexibly through drawdown.
Whilst this option introduces more choice, it also introduces further complexity. Many employees may be unsure of how much of their pension savings they should earmark for a guaranteed income and for drawdown.
To help, signpost to retirement planning tools that give employees more clarity and confidence in making informed decisions.
Standard Life’s Mixed Income Builder, for instance, offers a structured way to think through spending needs in retirement. Users can add in details about their pensions and check whether they’re on track to cover their basic costs, based on Pensions UK’s Retirement Living Standards.
3. Make it easier for employees to compare their retirement options
Since Pension Freedoms came into effect in April 2015, people with DC pensions have had more choice over how they can take their pension savings. But with greater flexibility comes greater responsibility over complex decisions.
If your employees are facing multiple pension options and aren’t sure what’s right for them, they may find it helpful to weigh up the pros and cons.
You could signpost to our retirement options tool, which allows employees to compare the different ways they can take their pension. They’ll see how much they’d get from each option, how long their income could last, and the tax implications of taking different cash lump sums.
Getting a visual comparison of all the options in one place can make it easier for employees to see which one aligns best with their retirement needs – and enable them to make confident decisions that are right for them.
Find out how tools like our Mixed Income Builder and Retirement Hub can help you provide the right support at the right time.
For more information on how to support your employees, take a look at Standard Life’s financial wellbeing articles for some ideas and inspiration.
Supplied by REBA Associate Member, Standard Life
Standard Life are part of Phoenix Group, the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business. We both share an aligned ambition to help every customer enjoy a life full of possibilities.
