Through a series of briefings, either face-to-face or online, Blue Sky engages with companies to help empower their employees to create greater financial independence for themselves and improve productivity for the business.
If only we had all been taught more about money in school. Yes, everyone feels the same.
A fundamental aim of education is to prepare young people to operate effectively and efficiently in adulthood. This hasn’t happened on the money front for many of us.
The manifestation is that for many people of all ages there is a fear around money and a lack of confidence which often leads to inertia or the wrong behaviours and poor decision-making. Yet for those who understand money, it may not be the route to happiness either, but typically it is the gateway to independence and greater choices in life and so our team at Blue Sky firmly believes that education is the key to empowerment.
Data shows that one of the biggest causes of absenteeism at work is anxiety about money. It therefore makes sense for employers to facilitate and help improve their employees’ financial well-being as in the long-term, this will improve productivity too.
Research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that 29% of employees said money worries had negatively impacted their productivity. In addition, an average of 4.9 worker days are lost each year as a result of money worries, and financial-related absences are costing large organisations an average of £323,390 a year.
Benefits to all
Yet, it’s not just about productivity. We work with companies who wish to support their teams on all aspects of financial well-being – simply because it is the right thing to do. We as employers have influence, and we should use it wisely and for the greater good of our people, and communities.
Most companies now offer a pension scheme but in a recent report by Standard Life, it’s clear that 50% of employees say they find information about pensions overwhelming and 41% don’t know what to do with it.
Standard Life’s Retirement Voice 2022 report uncovered that the 72% of employees do little or no planning for their retirement. Offering a pension scheme is different to actually planning for retirement!
So, our questions for employers are:
- Do you care about your employees’ well-being?
- Do you believe that a happy workforce is a productive workforce?
- Do you agree that improving financial knowledge is good for business whilst also believing your business should be a force for good to the wider world too?
- Are you ready to lead the change?
If you’d like to discuss empowering your employees, please contact Blue Sky on 01202 756560.
