CMO & Head of People at BrightPlan, a Total Financial Wellness company.
getty
The mass exodus of workers we’re currently experiencing triggered by the pandemic, known as the Great Resignation, is the result of employees reevaluating what is most important to them. A substantial number of workers have already switched jobs and more are actively searching. Newer terms like the Great Reckoning and the Great Reimagination indicate a bigger phenomenon: Our workplace is forever changed.
Many employees believe their employers are not adequately meeting their needs. While employees are leaving their jobs for a number of reasons, including increased flexibility, improved quality of life and career mobility, a common thread in their dissatisfaction is money related: 65% of the 1,500 employees we recently surveyed are stressed about their finances, with downstream impacts on their physical and mental health. The role of financial wellness is heightened like never before.
The Great Reckoning has created four key challenges for HR and business leaders to solve in 2022: attracting and retaining talent in a hyper competitive labor market, keeping employees engaged in the new world of work, enabling the holistic well-being of employees and promoting a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). To address these challenges, employers must reprioritize company-wide initiatives and make permanent and significant changes to their total rewards strategies.
Challenge #1: Attracting And Retaining Talent
Twenty years ago, can you imagine accepting a job offer and not showing up on your first day of work? Today, this is a genuine concern. One in every four employers report new hire “no shows” on their first day; nearly half (46%) of job seekers admitted to accepting an interview and then not showing up. In addition, one in four employees quit their jobs this year. We are faced with a hiring and retention crisis.
Total rewards — the combination of compensation, benefits and rewards that employees receive — play an important role in driving the employee experience and in attracting and retaining talent. Our survey results also showed 94% of HR leaders believe employers must enact major benefits changes post-pandemic to keep employees satisfied, productive and engaged.
Support specifically for financial wellness has a direct impact on retention. The 2021 PwC Financial Wellness survey revealed that 72% of employees stressed about their finances would leave for another company that cares more about their financial well-being.
Employers can demonstrate their commitment to their people and better attract and retain talent by offering the right mix of compelling total rewards.
Challenge #2: Creating A Positive Employee Experience And Enhancing Employee Engagement
Offering your employees the right mix of total rewards demonstrates your investment in their overall health, well-being and future. It also translates into a more positive employee experience as healthier and happier employees tend to be more engaged and productive.
The first step in rolling out the right mix of total rewards is understanding what your people want in the first place. For example, let’s look at a specific segment of the population: Millennials. During the pandemic, 72% of Millennials reported feeling increased financial stress, compared to 42% of Baby Boomers and 68% of Gen Z. As such, Millennials may be more interested in benefits that help them pay off student debt and support their financial literacy.
It’s not enough to offer benefits if they aren’t the right benefits for your employees. Every employee is unique, and your benefits strategy should reflect that. To help address this reality, some employers are introducing flexibility and personalization into their benefits approach by providing core benefits — such as health insurance, paid time off and a 401(k) plan — plus an additional menu of benefits that employees can select from based on their specific needs.
Challenge #3: Enabling The Holistic Well-Being Of Employees
Pre-pandemic, many companies focused on traditional benefits such as 401(k) plans and healthcare, and in-office perks such as ping pong tables and catered lunches.
Today, what employees need and expect from their employers is support for their holistic well-being. This extends beyond traditional benefits and perks and recognizes the need to care for the “whole person,” including their physical, mental, financial and social wellness. This comes with the understanding that each of these aspects of well-being impacts an employee’s overall health.
Creating a culture of care not only provides employees with much needed well-being benefits but also delivers tangible business impact, as access to enhanced employer-provided benefits has been showed to have a positive impact on performance.
Some examples of benefits companies can offer that focus on holistic well-being include mental health resources, mentoring and coaching, charitable giving, caregiver support, access to financial tools and advisors, and flexible work practices.
Challenge #4: Promoting A Culture Of Inclusion And Belonging
As the racial justice movement put a spotlight on inequities and biases, companies and HR teams doubled down on providing solutions to combat inequalities. Surveys indicate many companies are exploring new partnerships to accelerate DEI and are embedding DEI mindsets into learning programs. While this is promising, more needs to be done.
Inequalities in financial wellness vary greatly according to gender, income, race and access to education. More than 58% of Black and Latino households don’t have enough savings to cover three months of expenses at the federal poverty rate. When controlling for income, men contribute one-third more than women toward their savings and investment goals.
A holistic total rewards approach is a strategic way to address inequities through compensation and benefits. While organizations work to eliminate pay disparities, they can significantly advance their DEI initiatives with high-value benefits and support structures, such as employee resource groups, that address the needs of different employee populations.
Big Challenges, Big Rewards
The Great Reckoning brings with it the opportunity to redefine the employee experience for the future of work. This is about a culture of care that empowers employees to be their best selves and fuels the success of businesses.
Employees want to work for companies that care about their overall well-being and that offer support and benefits for all aspects of their personal and work lives. Companies and HR leaders who answer this call will undoubtedly come out on top.
Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?
