The 2022 Benefit Communications Report: New Insights into What Works! report highlights the key findings from a comprehensive study of the attitudes and values of HR and internal communications professionals–straight from them! Participants helped us examine how these vital professionals feel about their work, their value to their organizations, and the importance of employee communications.
What we learned may surprise you—and it will definitely inspire you to leverage benefit communications as a strategic tool in recruitment and retention efforts.
Regardless of industry or organizational size,
HR professionals strongly believe benefit communications matter:
87%
Employees should be able to get their answers to their benefits questions quickly
81%
Year-round employee benefit communications plans are important
87%
The best employee benefit communications strategies encourage two-way communications
77%
Well-designed and engaging employee benefit communications generate returns on investment
The more time and resources HR professionals have, the more equipped they are to get returns on investment.
The survey revealed HR professionals’ attitudes about benefits communication fell into one of three groups:
Accomplished:31%
About them: Feel valued by their organizations—with time, resources and support to do their jobs well
Their challenge: Keeping employee and employer health care costs down
Aspiring:40%
About them: Believe benefits are vital to engaging and keeping good employees
Their challenge: Minimizing employee confusion, improving onboarding and measuring effectiveness
Struggling:29%
About them: Lack support from their organizations and their providers, making them feel like HR is a thankless job
Their challenge: Helping employees fully understand their benefits and personalizing communications
A communications budget is a must-have to engage employees in benefit programs and get a return on investment.
62%
of organizations have annual benefit communications budgets less than $250,000.
70%
utilize both internal resources and external partners to support their benefit communications efforts.
Email reigns, but it should not be used in isolation—and new trends are emerging.
94% of respondents say their organizations primarily use email to communicate benefits, but only 20% measure email open rates.
Metrics are hard to come by—but becoming increasingly important to leadership.
About the respondents:
- All work in marketing or HR for organizations that provide benefits and are actively involved in employee benefit communications
- 71% are Managers or Directors
- Average employer size: 8,181
The study reflects a 95% level of confidence, shining a statistically reliable light on key insights into the attitudes, challenges and needs of these unique groups.
Benefit Communications Report: Insights Into What Matters
We have a pulse on the state of benefit communications, and you can too! Learn the top three challenges facing employee benefits professionals, common communication tools, and how to measure success.