5 Steps to Effectively Communicate Your Employee Benefits Programme

Companies spend a good deal of time and money crafting relevant compensation and benefits packages for employees – but are employees aware of what their companies offer? 

The surprising answer: not really. 

Worldwide, about 49% of employees don’t understand their benefits, according to a survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans.

In Singapore, data suggests that a communications gap lies between what companies offer and what employees think they are getting. For example, 70% of Singaporeans consider compensation as the top value proposition when choosing potential employers, but perceive that companies did not prioritise it for their employees. It is no wonder that 63% of Singaporeans say they would switch jobs for better salary and benefits. 

This gap can lead to major consequences, including disengagement and attrition. To avoid this, companies should craft a good employee benefits communications programme that keeps employees informed, targets their needs, and helps increase employee engagement and satisfaction. 

Here are five steps to do just that.  

Step 1: Strategise, not just deliver

Before embarking on an employee benefits communications programme, organisations must take a step back and assess their employee benefits package, which – in most cases – may be a holdover from a previous leader. To evaluate the effectiveness of the current employee benefits programme, organisations should ask:

• Are the company’s benefits still relevant to their employees' needs? Howden can help objectively review the programme with fresh eyes, deep experience, and updated market knowledge. 
• Next, what are the important details to communicate? These include key policies, enrollment dates, and benefits.
• Who are the audiences who will receive this information? These are not only employees but also beneficiaries and the company’s legal team. 
• What are the critical challenges for the programme? Are employees sufficiently informed, or is the benefits team routinely swamped with questions (a sure sign that information needs to be better cascaded)?

Clearer thinking on the benefits you offer can position leaders to deliver a stronger communications programme through proper budget allocation, designating the communications key point-of-contact, and devising a strategy that targets information gaps. 

Step 2: Keep it simple

While companies hope employees internalise information about all the benefits available to them, the truth is that employees do not think of benefits as much as management would like them to. When the time comes to actually claim benefits, employees are confused, leading to underutilisation.

How do benefits leaders keep employees informed? Don’t overwhelm them with a flood of data and details. Instead, keep communications on benefits simple, straight-to-the-point, and short. 

Set the stage and tell employees why this information matters: stick to basic facts and add video or graphics to engage their attention and explain more complex details. Bite-size chunks of information are more easily ‘digested’ by employees and can help with recall. It is even better when the information is specifically relevant to them, which leads to our next point.

Step 3: Tailor-fit communications to employee segments

Aside from competitive salaries, companies also need to holistically support employees’ physical, emotional, and mental well-being to keep a thriving and engaged workforce. More companies are rising to this challenge, investing in total well-being benefits. 

However, employees in different stages of their lives want different things. The top five most desired employee benefits, revealed in a survey of Singaporean employees, should not be taken as equally desired by every employee. A gym membership (# 2 in the survey) may not appeal as much to a working mother as flexible working hours (#4). 

When explaining benefits, communicators should tailor information to what matters most to employees, segmenting the populace into employee groups, and tweaking the messaging accordingly. Some information, such as enrollment periods, should be cascaded to everyone, while others – such as announcing a childcare allowance or a tie-up to offer discounted gym membership – should be highlighted to different employee groups, according to their interests and demographics.

Step 4: Consider where and how often you communicate

To successfully reach all audiences within the company, determining where information is communicated (the channels) and how often (the frequency) also matters. Do not expect employees to retain information released on a quarterly or yearly basis. Instead, plan for regular communications, with some releases addressed to the general population and others to specific segments to allow for better information retention. 

A mix of digital and in-person channels stands the best chance to be viewed by more employees. Pair email postcards with town halls, standees in the cafeteria, and announcements in bulletin boards in high-traffic spaces to reinforce messaging. 

Don’t forget other information channels, such as the benefits repository, usually stored in the organisation’s intranet; or an external website that is accessible to both employees and beneficiaries. In either case, make sure the information is well-written and properly indexed to help readers easily find the details they are looking for. 

If this feels too overwhelming, providers such as Howden can create handbooks and run workshops to train your benefits team on how to deploy an effective communications programme.

Step 5: Get employee feedback

Provide a channel where employees can share their honest thoughts; this will give benefits practitioners valuable insights on employees’ perceptions and needs, like if they find the current benefits package relevant or if the communications strategy is hitting the mark. 

Use surveys, focus group discussions, anonymous feedback channels, and one-on-one interviews for a richer view into employee sentiment.

Contextualise employee feedback with analysis of provider reports to unlock information on the benefits that employees use most. To dive deeper, Howden provides claims analytics to unearth insights and solve pressing questions on employee benefits utilisation.

Communication is crucial

When it comes to employee benefits, crafting a solid package is half the battle. Communicating this in a timely, relevant and targeted way to ensure all employees are well-informed is key to having an engaged population and reducing attrition.