3 min read
When we sat down with Anna Carter, Head of Benefit Programs at Diageo, the conversation quickly moved past theory and into reality — what it actually takes to build a financial wellbeing program that works across the world.
Because this isn’t a simple balancing act.
Your people in London, Lagos, and Los Angeles aren’t starting from the same place. Different systems. Different pressures. Different priorities. But they share something important; a need to feel confident about their money.
So the challenge isn’t choosing between global consistency and local relevance. It’s designing something that delivers both — without losing impact along the way.
Anna shared how Diageo approached this, and what separates programs that scale from those that stall.
The best programs don’t try to reinvent the wheel in every market. They start with a clear, shared foundation — something the whole organization can stand behind. Not one-size-fits-all. Not fragmented. Just a consistent strategy, with clear goals and a way to measure success across every region.
At Diageo, that foundation was built around three pillars: literacy, security, and confidence. Those pillars didn’t change. What changed was how they showed up locally.
A global framework only works if it reflects real lives. Anna described how the same strategy came to life differently across markets: in India, the focus was investing and aspiration; in the UK, cost of living and day-to-day budgeting; in South Africa, building financial resilience.
Same foundation with a different expression. That’s where real impact happens — when people see themselves in the support they’re given. And it’s something fragmented, market-by-market programs struggle to achieve, because without a shared view, you can’t see what’s working — or where to go next.
Five years ago, engagement might have been enough. It isn’t now. The strongest programs are built to show their value — clearly, consistently, and across the whole organization. That means defining success early, and tracking it in a way that makes sense globally.
Diageo reached their engagement and financial health targets within four months of launching across three markets. Within a year, those results grew — even through internal change. Because when a program is built well, it doesn’t rely on perfect conditions to perform.
From Anna’s perspective, and what we see across global programs, it comes down to three things: a strong global foundation, local relevance that reflects real lives, and clear, measurable impact across every market.
Get those right, and you’re not managing a collection of local initiatives. You’re running a global program — with the clarity to show exactly what it’s delivering.
If you want to see how this looks in practice, watch Diageo’s webinar on-demand.