Five Compelling Reasons Why Financial Wellness Needs To Be In Your 2020 Budget

Why are management teams at some of the world’s most innovative companies budgeting for a financial wellness program in 2020? Here are five compelling reasons:

1. Financial stress is negatively impacting your people and business right now. 

A 2019 PwC study found that 59% of employees are stressed about their financial situation. That level of anxiety has been relatively constant since 2012. In fact, financial wellness is the No. 1 stressor in the workplace. A recent story in Wall Street Journal poignantly describes the kind of hardship your employees face. Financial wellness combats a very real workplace issue that isn’t always visible to employers. It’s a low-cost program that delivers exponential impact.

2. Financial wellness is the new must-have employee benefit.

The benefits landscape is changing in real time. In our conversations with Silicon Valley companies, financial wellness has emerged as one of the most attractive new employee benefits. It is a benefit that is relevant to all employees, across all ages, genders, roles and income levels. Employers are embracing it for many reasons: To attract and retain employees, significantly reduce costs, improve productivity, and demonstrate they are a corporate leader that cares about all of their stakeholders, not just shareholders.

3. Financial wellness is a differentiator in attracting employees.

Employers are telling us that attracting top talent is their No. 1 challenge in today’s tight labor market. They also say an employee wellness program is a differentiator in overcoming that challenge. That’s because financial well-being is a common denominator across every employee group. It’s one of those universal issues that touches every employee and their family. It’s also why PwC says 65% of employees surveyed use their employer’s financial wellness benefits, and they depend on it for more than just retirement and savings help.

4. The definition of financial wellness has changed significantly.

Financial wellness has been mostly about retirement, insurance or just education. But a financial wellness solution needs to be comprehensive, personalized, actionable and measurable. The BrightPlan Financial Wellness Coach™, the intelligent core of our digital platform, advises on every major aspect of personal finance: smart budgeting and spending analysis, goals-based planning, investing, debt management, estate planning, insurance, and financial education. Unique to BrightPlan, employees can automate their financial well-being through the platform and also work with experienced financial advisers if they want to discuss their situation with a professional.

5. As you consider your 2020 budget, consider a financial wellness program that can pay for itself.

We recently worked with a company with 1,700 employees and projected their cost savings at $624,000 through lower employee turnover and healthcare costs, and improved productivity. In terms of employee turnover -- the biggest controllable cost - employees will leave a company for a $10,000 salary increase, but leave tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table in stock options and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). Financial wellness helps your employees understand the full breadth of your compensation package. It’s a powerful employee recruitment and retention strategy.

Interested in knowing more about the revolutionary BrightPlan Financial Wellness Solution™? Click here.