5 min read
In our first ever in-person client conference, ‘2023: The year of the ultimate financial wellbeing program’ we welcomed 5 HR leaders to join us in an engaging panel discussion in front of a live audience. They discussed how they use nudge within their organizations, including sharing some of their top tips for introducing financial education into their benefits programs.
It’s clear with the rising awareness of financial education in the workplace, that the need for financial wellness for everyone is becoming more apparent.
Key highlights from the panel discussion:
Amy Vokes, Compensation and Benefit lead at Siemens -
Top tips on: Supporting your people through the cost of living crisis.
Amy Vokes told the audience “It’s important to prove the value of your offering, how can you introduce what’s new and still remind people what you already have on offer.”
Siemens have a number of benefits in place for their people, from hardship funds to allowances for working from home. They regularly communicate to their people about nudge and the money masterclasses available to them.
Every quarter, Siemens roll out 3 money masterclasses with nudge. This benefit allows them as employers to ask specific questions to their employees. From the feedback Siemens have received from their masterclasses, they saw that 70% feel more connected to their employer now through using nudge.
Tim Colvin, Head of Pensions and Benefits at Entain –
Top tips on: Inclusion in the workplace
Entain’s financial wellbeing strategy is suited to a wide range of demographics. It was important for their financial wellbeing strategy to be adapted across their varied demographics to ensure everyone, regardless of background, location or salary, felt supported for a brighter financial future.
Tim Colvin stated “We wanted to try to make things fair and have everybody have the same benefits. While in the past there may have been certain benefits for certain demographics, it was a priority that the financial wellbeing benefit platform is there for everyone."
Anton Seatter, Director of Employee Solutions at JTC –
Top tips for: Getting buy in for benefit spend
A challenge JTC faced was getting buy in for any benefit spend and navigating difficult questions was a big part of that process.
Their client base has broadened in recent years, clients across all sectors and all levels of financial literacy and age groups.
They noted that from data they have on a growing population of millennials, the sub 35 age bracket are less engaged in their pensions because they’re not at an age yet where they are thinking about retirement.
Seatter stated “Our business case was how we engage with members, and how we help them help themselves.”
There is a need for financial education to understand your life savings. So far, engagement scorings have gone up and they’ve seen pension contributions go up since they launched nudge. They stated also that receiving a regular nudge helps them remember there is a pension there.
Andy Dunlop, Head of Engagement at Nestlé -
Top tips for: Using engagement as a key metric for success and building trust
Nestlé drove engagement for their financial wellbeing offering by recognizing they have really diverse demographics.
Dunlop stated, “The need to bridge a trust gap between employees wanting an employer to offer financial education and once it’s provided, knowing it’s coming from the right place was apparent from the start”.
“You need to ask 3 key questions: What is financial wellbeing, why is it important and where does nudge fit in?”
Promoting nudge across 14 different sites, from factories to espresso boutiques they used existing employee groups to drive engagement. These groups consisted of wellbeing champions and pension reps to link nudge with pensions. They built trust by existing groups and networks that get value out of nudge to promote it and reassured their people of the confidentiality of nudge.
Bryony Owtram, Pension and Benefit Manager at Phoenix Group -
Top Tip: Make financial inclusion a core pillar of your sustainability strategy.
From sustainability being on the consumer, it’s now shifted to companies. Owtram stated “Companies have to have ESG in your strategy”.
Phoenix Group have made commitments to put as much as possible into ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) funds. One of the pillars of their sustainability strategy is about engaging people in better financial futures and a third of strategy dedicated to that.
Of the 17 goals they’ve set, 7 of them they believe can be reached through financial education, equality education, reduced inequalities, and economic growth. While Phoenix Group were researching pension issues, they noticed a massive pension gap which they are now addressing through awareness of nudge.
Want to hear more about how nudge could help your employees? Get in touch