Building a Program

Many employers already offer a variety of benefits that could help employees address their financial challenges.

What tends to be missing is a holistic program that ties benefits (both traditional and supplemental) together with multi-channel guidance, tools, and education that empower employees to take meaningful action towards improving their financial wellness in both the short and long term.

Employers have a wide range of options to consider when deciding what financial wellness programs are best suited for their diverse workforce.

What may be right for one organisation may not be right for another, so it is important to take a holistic and employee-centric approach in evaluating potential solutions.

It is necessary to uncover the magnitude to which employees experience financial anxiety and the extent to which those anxieties may be affecting the organisation. Only through a detailed assessment can companies truly identify employees’ priorities and preparedness, including any gaps in knowledge or skills.

When conducting a financial needs assessment, employers should gather demographic data —generation, life stage, family structure, and financial to assess the financial health and coverage of employees. Employers should, of course, adhere to strict dataprivacy practices, keeping sensitive information confidential or anonymised.

This quantifiable data can help employers define their financial wellness program objectives and tailor benefits accordingly to best help their employees.

Boomers who are behind in retirement may need personalised guidance to help them get on track to meet their goals. Gen X employees sandwiched between caring for children and aging loved ones may have a higher need for both child and elder-care.

Gen Y employees starting families and buying homes may need education on how life insurance can provide financial protection and how legal plans could assist with real estate matters and wills. Gen Z employees, more recently out of higher education, may value student-loan (StudyAssist / HELP loans e.g. HECS) reduction programs.

Employers must consider a multi-channel approach, giving employees the flexibility to choose how and when they want to engage and take action — whether it’s online at their own pace, or in-person or on the phone with trained professionals.

Ideally, solutions should integrate existing employee benefits to deliver cohesive education and coaching across multiple channels.

An effective program also breaks down suggested actions into attainable, goal-based steps. Goals need to be manageable, so employees can see the active progress they are making and feel encouraged to continue.

Communications should also be optimised with clearly defined action steps to support ongoing engagement. For instance, if targeting a Gen Y employee who has recently returned from parental leave, employers can highlight the importance of life insurance and legal plans, and then direct that employee to learn more.

Because employees are constantly evolving, it is a good idea for employers to continuously review and evaluate their workforce, its needs and desires while simultaneously implementing a measurement program that helps evaluate their programs’ effectiveness.

While the conventional return-on-investment (ROI) standard of measure, in which dollars invested can be directly tied to cost savings, is important, it provides only a limited view of a program’s success.

Increasingly, companies are using value-of-investment (VOI) to evaluate workplace financial wellness programs. VOI considers more than just hard-dollar savings — measuring elements such as employee productivity, engagement, overall job satisfaction, as well as costs associated with absenteeism, disability claims, and turnover.

Key stakeholders across the company should work together to determine what metrics should be evaluated to assess program success.

There are tangible ways to offer a holistic financial wellness program for employees that addresses and attempts to reduce their stress.

While some stresses are short term concerns such as paying bills or immediate health needs, the bulk directly relate to retirement and a benefits package should aim to address the short-term, long-term, and unexpected needs of employees through the methods discussed.

While the majority of employers agree they have a responsibility for the financial wellness of employees, just 13% take advantage of financial wellness programs offered.

This presents a great opportunity for employers to do the right thing by their staff and stand out from a talent attraction and retention perspective.

Keep in mind these benefits are tied together under a financial wellness program and should be evaluated using the best-in-class measures.

It’s not only an opportunity, but a business imperative that employers take action to reduce employees’ financial stress. Only 72% of employees thought that the benefits they receive from their company improves their financial wellness, so there is a chance for employers to make significant benefits in the lives of their employees.

Employers can differentiate themselves through a financial wellness program that supports employees in their financial decisions to encourage a more engaged, satisfied, and loyal workforce — one that thrives in both work and life.

A well-designed financial wellness program takes a holistic and integrated approach, connecting employer benefits and multi-channel resources to address both short-term and long-term employee needs.

The right mix of resources, education, and communication goes a long way in meeting employees where they are in life to get them to take action.

Ultimately, financial wellness programs help all employees — no matter their confidence level, pay grade, or title — understand their current benefits and individual circumstances to take action and improve their financial wellness, now and in the future.