As the workplace continues to evolve, so do the expectations and needs of employees. A key trend is the move towards personalized benefits, departing from the traditional, one-size-fits-all approach. This shift aims to tailor benefits to the unique needs of each employee.
In today's society, it has become the norm rather than the exception for American workers to live paycheck to paycheck, struggling just to make ends meet. Shockingly, a third of Americans have $500 or less saved, while 8.5% have between $501 and $1,000, and 11.4% said they have no savings. This lack of financial preparation leaves them vulnerable to unexpected expenses and places them at a higher risk of financial strain.
Companies and organizations across America are constantly struggling with two major workplace challenges: attracting top talent, and then, retaining that talent. This is especially true as we go through the Great Resignation when 4.2 million Americans quit their jobs back in October. When an employee thinks about your benefits program, are they content, confused, disappointed, or simply unaware?
Regardless of industry or service, every HR department and Corporate Executive wants to keep their best current and future employees satisfied. In order to push employees to their fullest potentials, leaders in an organization should demonstrate they are making positive strides to better their employees’ lives, both inside and outside the workplace.
Have you heard of, or considered, socially responsible – or, what the industry now calls ESG, investments? These investment vehicles have been gaining a lot of traction this year for focus on sustainable, socially conscious, "green" and/or ethical screens for the companies they own in their portfolio (i.e. mutual fund or ETF) and also for their ability to point of potential financial risks that can't be identified by typical quarterly results. They seek to consider both financial return and specific environmental, governance, and social metrics to help investments do well by “doing good.” In this video, I sat down with Clarice Avery of Natixis Invest Managers. We talked about all the things you should know when considering an ESG investment for your investment line-up. You can learn more at Natixis’ site and ESG101.
It’s a usual weekday morning and you find yourself in an all too common situation that bogs down many executives and managers: Your employees seem unenthused and unengaged at the office. The worst thing you can do is sit there every day, watch this happen, and take no action to determine the root cause. So, what are the best ways to go about re-engaging employees, especially those paramount individuals that you don’t want to lose? Here are a few ideas for you to implement:
Finding the right employees – and keeping them – is becoming increasingly difficult for employers. Unemployment numbers are low which means employees can be more selective in their job searches. Now, more than ever, you must have the right benefits packages in place in order to win in this competitive landscape. And to attract the best and brightest young talent, you have to get creative.
Bethesda, MD (November 19, 2018)—AFS 401(k) Retirement Services, a Retirement Plan specialist in Bethesda, MD, today announces that its Managing Principal, Alex Assaley, AIF®, has been named ‘2018 Top Advisor by Participant Outcomes’ (TAPO) recipient, he was chosen by a group of independent panel of industry experts.
“Are my employees on track for their financial picture?”
It's a question we get asked all the time, and whether you're an employee at an organization, an HR executive, or a Retirement Plan Committee member, everyone wants to know if financial wellness programs are worth all the “buzz”. In this short video, I give my thoughts on why meaningful financial wellness programs are so essential, and I also encourage anyone to check out our 2017 whitepaper, Beyond Retirement: An Examination of Financial Wellness for Employers. This report aims to provide a clearer picture of what an average working American's financial situation looks like and how organizations can create programs to help their employees reach goals throughout their career for today, tomorrow, and their long-term future.
For many companies and organizations, the task of crafting the perfect investment menu can be an overwhelming mission; but it doesn’t need to be. It can be as simple as picking a dish from a menu. A well-made investment lineup is similar to the restaurant menu that offers just the right amount of options to make selecting the perfect dish an enjoyable experience.
When we’re constructing an investment menu for our clients, we advise committee members to build-out their investment menu to satisfy three types of investors: 1) the active investor, 2) the passive investor, and the 3) do-it-for-me investor. First and foremost, committee members need to be familiar with their plan's investment policy statement in order to design the line-up fittingly. Below, we detail a few items often included in a well-rounded investment menu.
Many millennials are looking for their company’s employee benefits program to go beyond the typical healthcare and retirement plan by also addressing other key priorities, such as student loan assistance, financial education, and flexible schedules. While news headlines sometimes turned their demands into stories of “entitled” or “needy” millennials, at the core, their goals are similar to past generations - they want help to take actionable steps towards achieving a healthier lifestyle - mentally, physically, and financially.