What do ‘good’ employee benefits actually look like?

Employee benefits are no joke.

In today’s society, your employee benefits can often be the determining factor for top talent joining and staying.

In fact, research has found that 69% of employees say a wide array of benefits would increase their loyalty, and 80% of people who are satisfied with their benefits report higher job satisfaction.

Great, so you know employee benefits should be a critical part of your HR strategy.

The rest should be simple, right?

In theory, employee benefits may seem straightforward – give people perks that improve their lives.

However, the difficulty centres around the ‘improve their lives’ element, as each employee will have their own unique needs, challenges and desires.

As such, you can’t take a one-size-fits-all approach.

What makes a benefits package truly valuable?

For employees, a truly valuable benefits package goes far beyond traditional offerings.

Today, the most impactful packages combine essential foundations such as competitive pensions, comprehensive healthcare and generous leave policies, with additional benefits that adapt to individual life circumstances and career stages.

Dan Grace, Director of International HR Consulting at IRIS Software Group, told us: “What makes modern benefits truly valuable is choice and flexibility.

“Early-career employees might prioritise professional development funds and student loan assistance, while parents need robust childcare support and family leave.

“Employees approaching retirement value pension top-ups and phased retirement options.

“The key is offering a flexible benefits platform where people can tailor their package to their current needs.

“Mental health and wellbeing support has become absolutely critical.

“Not just Employee Assistance Programmes, but proactive wellness initiatives, mental health days and access to counselling services.

“Financial wellbeing is equally important, with salary advance schemes, financial coaching and emergency hardship funds becoming standard expectations.”

The role of technology  

We’ve found that too often, employee benefits are rolled out top-down without truly determining what people actually need.

Our Senior L&D Advisor, Vanessa Myatt, said: “HR teams can flip this top-down approach by gathering regular feedback through pulse surveys, usage data and even informal focus groups, turning those insights into action.

“But feedback alone isn’t enough. You need the right technology infrastructure to respond at scale.

“That’s where integrated HR and payroll platforms come in; integrated systems enable teams to personalise benefit options, automate updates and give employees self-service access to their benefits, all while keeping everything in sync.

“So, instead of adding more admin, you’re actually removing friction – no more double-entry, no more lost forms and no more benefit misunderstandings.

“Employees can see what they have, understand how it works and make informed choices.

“The result? Higher engagement, fewer queries to HR and a real boost in trust.”

Webinar available now: benefits done right

Ultimately, staff feeling in control of their benefits creates a much stronger, more connected workplace culture.

If you found the above useful but want even more information, Dan and Vanessa recently joined us on a webinar, from which the above clips have been taken, to cover this topic in greater detail and offer even more advice.

This free, practical session covers how you can streamline your payroll and tailor your benefits to dramatically improve employee wellbeing, engagement and retention.

Webinar: Cut through the complexity, support your people better

Listen now