Funding for Financial Education from Generali Employee Benefits UK

1 March 2019

Generali Employee Benefits UK today announces that it has partnered with three providers of Financial Education - Close Brothers, Neyber and Wagestream - to help ensure that cost isn’t a barrier to employers putting in place essential employee wellbeing services.

This move comes as part of our Wellbeing Investment Matching initiative. Where an employer has identified a wellbeing shortfall and would like to implement a new initiative with a view to improving outcomes – anything from Virtual GPs to Mental Health coaching and now Financial Education – Generali will work with the employer to help make this happen.

We will consider contributing financially to initiatives offered by our fully accredited selection of Wellbeing Investment Matching partners.

The services offered by the three financial education partners include - but are not limited to - the following:

  • Close Brothers: services focused around life-stage or specific financial planning topics, including: full education programmes from hire to retire that include all 7 areas of financial wellbeing; retirement planning; e-Learning Education Hub, an annual calendar of personalised nudges to drive engagement and support for tactical exercise such as reductions in Annual and Lifetime Allowances.
  • Neyber: onsite education tailored to need, plus an online Financial Wellbeing Hub with expert tools and tips tailored to life-stage and financial situation, from debt management and buying your first home to later-life planning.
  • Wagestream: the ‘Just In Time’ financial education app in conjunction with The Money Advice Service offering expert tools, tips, articles and advice.

This latest move from Generali comes at a time when there appears a disconnect between actual employee needs and the employer perception of those needs when it comes to Financial Education.

A study by Close Brothers1 reveals a disconnect between people’s needs versus employer support. Their UK Financial Wellbeing Index shows employees are “worryingly susceptible to financial shocks and ill-prepared for their financial future”, reporting a poor overall financial wellbeing score of just 53.6 out of 100. Yet over half of employers (55%) don’t offer any support at all to improve employee financial wellbeing. In response to these findings, Close Brothers has developed an innovative app for individuals to test their own financial health and for employers to diagnose, measure and benchmark the financial wellbeing of their workforce.

Meanwhile, research by Neyber2 found that 63% of UK employees have been affected by financial worries in the last year, with 35% feeling stressed and 26% losing sleep as a result. Consequently, when it comes to financial health, only 50% of employees said their company cares, in comparison to 62% who think it cares about their mental health and 60% about their physical health.

Brendan Kelley, Head of Partnerships, Neyber commented: “We’re very excited to be part of such an integrated offering, providing much needed support and education to bolster the financial resilience and wellbeing of UK employees. This unique partnership will ensure that employers working with Generali can offer an inclusive financial wellbeing programme which will cover the complete workforce demographic and personalised to meet their specific needs.”

Peter Briffett, CEO and Co-Founder Wagestream, said: “By welcoming Wagestream as a Wellbeing Investment Match partner, Generali are helping us to promote the negative impact that the payday poverty cycle and workplace debt are having on employees’ financial wellbeing and business productivity.

“It’s so exciting for us that, as one of the largest insurers in the world, Generali is showing what a forward-thinking organisation they are by embracing the profound impact that a flexible income has on the lives of everyday workers. We look forward to partnering with them and their customers to tackle the negative effects of the monthly pay cycle.”

Jeanette Makings, Head of Financial Education at Close Brothers, added: “What defines financial wellbeing and what it represents to organisations and their staff has changed rapidly from being relatively one dimensional to something that’s holistic and multi-faceted. The Wellbeing Investment Matching initiative offered by Generali is a fantastic opportunity to help ensure that cost isn’t a barrier in implementing financial education; making it accessible and affordable to everyone.”

Simon Thomas, Director - UK Employee Benefits, Generali, said: “We’re excited to work with new and innovative partners, including some Financial Education heavyweights. All have something very different to offer employers, allowing for true tailoring to need.

“Physical, mental and financial health are interlinked and it seems employers are well aware of this, yet all too often the financial aspect takes a back seat to physical and mental health support. Our goal with Wellbeing Investment Matching is to help more companies tackle wellbeing issues in a very targeted and effective way. Cost shouldn’t be a barrier but, as our own research3 of multinational employers last year revealed, it too often is. We found that while around half have a budget for wellbeing, the other half don’t. Some are thinking along strategic lines, others are just reacting to problems as they arise. A minority simply don’t have the time and resource to do anything.”

For an overview of the full range of services offered by Close Brothers, Neyber and Wagestream, plus more information on the range of providers and services included as part of Generali’s Wellbeing Investment Initiative, click here

 

 

1. Financial Wellbeing Index 2019, Close Brothers, 2019 [link]

App https://wellbeing.closebrothersam.com

2. The DNA of Financial Wellbeing: Book 1 - Money & mindset, Neyber, 2018 [link]

3. Multinational employee benefits, wellbeing & total reward 2018/19, Generali Employee Benefits UK, Nov 2018 [link]