From our experience, the clear communication of an employers benefit strategy is not always successfully achieved, creating low perception of its worth and value to the employee. Many organisations introduce paternalistic employee benefits without any specific drivers for their introduction or success measures as to their effectiveness. Typically, they are introduced for no stronger reason than to deliver against the leadership teams¹ perception- "we need to have them" and an employees expectation-"what benefits do I get?"

It is generally the case that when an individual has enrolled in an employer benefit scheme, the benefits rapidly move from an item of worth to a commonplace item of forgotten value. This is particularly true for protection benefits, but less so for pension. In respect of pension benefits, many schemes once established see very little changes. Fund choices, contribution levels other than annual increases due to salary rises remain static and as a result will reduce its potential projected values to the employee.

With a money purchase pension arrangement, level or limited matched contributions will over time lose their perceived value as they remain fixed. Without the ability to further reward employees in a manner that helps them to improve their benefits and focus them on their true value, dilutes, rather than maximises the effectiveness of benefit spend for the employer.