How can I support my employees in retirement planning

Recent research has shown that around two thirds of UK employees would sacrifice a proportion of their pay in return for more personalised employee benefits – with the majority citing retirement planning as a key need.

The workplace is becoming a far more complex place, especially in this relatively new era of home-based working where work and home life tend to blur at the edges.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that the flexibility of being able to dip in and out of domestic life during the working day without disrupting productivity or responsibility has given them a small insight into what post-career life might be like.

This, in turn, has prompted many who are reaching their career midpoint and beyond to seriously consider what their needs might be in retirement and how best to achieve a career exit in the best possible financial position.

A key barrier is the lack or absence of support from the workplace in helping to identify what any given individual’s financial needs may look like and then supporting strategies that allow realistic financial planning.

At the same time, financial education and financial wellbeing are emerging as key considerations for businesses when it comes to managing staff retention and ensuring the best possible welfare for their workforce.

There has for some time been plenty of evidence to show that individual financial circumstances are a key contributor to stress and anxiety which, in turn, impacts adversely on productivity and, as a result, on career progression.

But until very recently there has been a gap between the recognised benefit of firms providing financial education and wellbeing support and the provision of tangible solutions to deliver it.

So, what can organisations do in this space to help deliver value beyond salary and company loan schemes?

There are a number of options.

1. Appoint a financial education and wellbeing partner

Few organisations have the in-house expertise to be able to deliver reliable, informed financial advice to their employees, and so the most prudent solution is to work with a specialist provider to deliver a range of education and practical support services.

There are many financial services companies that now operate in the financial education (FE) and financial wellbeing (FW) space.

These range from wholly online self-service offers to more traditional in-person services backed by some form of online or digital toolkit.

Online services offering module-based learning and fact-finding have the benefit of allowing employees to access education and information resources at their own pace and at times that suit them.

This also enables them to find generalised product options that may meet their immediate and future needs. The downside is that they are then left to find an independent financial adviser (IFA) or broker who can source products that are specifically tailored to their personal circumstances.

Alternatively, some financial services companies can offer impartial advice along with a brokerage service to access products on behalf of an employee. Others offer impartial advice but a limited range of owned products that may not offer whole of market choice.

2. Offer FE and FW sessions, supported by access to printed or online resources

If a tailored approach isn’t deemed either suitable or manageable, then regular on-site FE or FW learning workshops are a good way to start the education process and allow employees to find specific financial solutions to help them plan for the future.

Backed with approved and regulated information toolkits, this can be an effective way to offer your employees much needed support without having to manage an external partnership.

3. Build FE and FW into your benefits strategy

Financial wellbeing and education benefits you as an organisation as much as it does your people. With an experienced HR team or external HR consultant you can begin to identify other ways in which you can help your employees to work towards retirement.

These may include the introduction of phased retirement, increasing pension contributions for employees reaching a certain point in their career journey or simply providing free access to a pension specialist at an appropriate time.

Understanding your people’s future needs is as important in maintaining and safeguarding an engaged and loyal workforce as paying a fair salary and ensuring personal staff development is a priority.

If you’d like to find out more about how Constantia Consulting can help you or your HR team to build financial education and wellbeing into your benefits strategy, please get in touch for an informal chat.