30 Sep 2020

How integrating wellbeing into your reward and benefits strategy can help you win the war for talent

Whether it’s managed by a different department or it’s a more recent addition to the corporate mix, wellbeing is often run separately to an organisation’s reward and benefits strategy. But integrating the two can be incredibly powerful when it comes to attracting and retaining talent.

Rising demand for wellbeing support

Wellbeing is an increasingly important factor when it comes to choosing an employer. Our research found that businesses risk missing out on top talent if they don’t offer support for mental health and wellbeing.

The research, which surveyed 1,000 employees and 1,009 students and graduates from Russell Group universities, found that 53% of them would be more likely to apply to an organisation that has a mental health and wellbeing policy in place, with this rising to 73% among those aged 25 to 34. What’s more, only 29% of respondents said they’d stay in their current role if they received an identical offer from a competitor which provided comprehensive mental health support.

Given the importance employees place on an organisation’s wellbeing support, making it an integral part of the reward and benefits strategy makes good business sense.

Wellbeing as a fundamental part of the employee offering

As well as making it easier for potential recruits to see what’s on offer, it can also speak volumes about what it’s like to work for the company. Putting wellbeing benefits on a par with salary, pension and so on, underlines the importance of employee wellbeing to the organisation. Nobody knows what’s around the corner, so knowing an employer has your back, can make a huge difference.

Bringing wellbeing into the mix can also significantly increase the value of your reward and benefits package. Being able to promote all the wellbeing initiatives your organisation offers, whether as stand-alone services or added-value ones included on other products, will help you stand out when current and potential employees are comparing packages.

Pushing the wellbeing angle can also bring many of your benefits to life. Group protection is a great example of this. Although employees value the financial security these benefits offer, many will overlook them as a result of the ‘it won’t happen to me’ mentality. By promoting the wellbeing benefits that are included on these products – many of which can be used without having to make a claim – they become a much richer and more compelling proposition.

With wellbeing valued so highly by employees, it makes sense to shout about the support and services your organisation offers. Integrating it into your reward and benefits strategy gives it the profile it – and your organisation – deserves.

This article is provided by Legal & General.