The 2020 Gallagher Employee Benefits survey found that although employee benefit arrangements in asset management are typically better than average across UK industry sectors, many companies acknowledge there is still room for improvement in the employee experience they deliver.
Increases in assets under management and competition for prime talent in the sector has highlighted the need for firms to place greater emphasis on investing in their people. A third of all survey respondents indicated that they plan to make changes to their employee benefits offering – with 90% of these intending to enhance their existing benefits*.
1/3 of asset management companies are looking to make changes to their employee benefits offering
With these results indicating a strong commitment by firms to shake up their employee reward offering, there is no room for complacency – companies who want to survive and thrive must regard their employee value proposition (EVP) as a continuous investment.
Specialist reward consulting can give firms the edge
For asset management companies serious about investing in a long-term employee benefits strategy it pays to partner with a specialist in this sector. Gallagher offers a full suite of end-to-end employee benefits solutions, from ideation to delivery/implementation and ongoing management. As such, over 300 asset management firms in the UK already trust us with their employee reward offering.
One of the areas we can focus on in the first instance is salary and benefits benchmarking to help companies identify where they are positioned among their competitors and highlight areas where review may be necessary. Working closely with our clients, we can then design bespoke employee benefits solutions that can help them compete for the sector’s top talent as well as increase the engagement of their existing employees.
Maximising benefits spend
Bringing a firm’s benefits offering up to date can also lead to significant cost savings. Recently we have worked with a large global investment manager who engaged Gallagher to help them align their benefits offering with market practices and deliver solutions to better serve their people. Following an initial high level audit we identified that their healthcare plans were outdated and costly, and their life insurance and pension plans had not been reviewed for some time.
Our specialist consultancy, technical oversight and strong negotiations resulted in significant savings for the client of over £60,000 as we brought their programmes up to date. This included overhauling their employee healthcare offering where we were also able to deliver fixed pricing for our client for two years to help them through a period of uncertainty.
Focusing on the ‘people experience’
In addition to reviewing and redesigning the more traditional employee benefits such as pensions, life insurance and healthcare, our survey also identified the need to address the areas of flexible working and mental health in the asset management sector. These are areas where firms can potentially improve employee wellbeing and strengthen their overall employee offering.
Gallagher’s Rewards & Benefits consultancy centres on the full spectrum of organisational wellbeing by strategically investing in people’s health, talent, financial security and career growth potential – in other words, the whole ‘people experience’. Asset management companies who take this holistic approach to employee wellbeing will likely attract, develop and retain the people they need to help them thrive.
*Source: Gallagher Benefits Strategy & Benchmarking Survey Report 2020
