2017 - Page 3 of 14 - Best Money Moves

Can Exercise Make You Rich?

by Nicole Smith | Nov 15, 2017 | Blog

In this week’s Best Money Moves roundup, we take a look at news stories and new research studies that may impact employee benefits and HR issues. We hope you find this news roundup helpful, and we’d love your feedback.

In 2016, the Lincoln Financial Group set out to the identify common factors of people who consider themselves on to be on the financial “right track.”

Of all workers surveyed, nearly 80% exercise at least once a week, a whopping 98% of these “right trackers” say that they’re focused on the future and over half are enrolled in more than three non-medical workplace benefits.

Does your company’s benefits package help provide mental, physical and financial wellness programs for your employees? According to the numbers, it absolutely should. Get yourself and your employees on the right track now.

Matching skills to assignments. One of the most challenging aspects of HR is moving people into the right jobs. Not understanding how an employee’s job skills transfer from role A to role B can significantly impact employee engagement, productivity, and the employee’s overall shelf-life with the company.

But how can you be sure of an applicant’s skillset when often employees themselves are unable to quantify their own skills and experience?

Turns out there are so many tools that recruiters can use to identify the right skillset in order to pair your applicant with the right job and often, incredibly qualified applicants may be applying to role A when role B would be a much better fit. How can you know if and when it’s time for an internal transfer? When should an internal transfer supersede an external applicant? Here are some resources to help you better understand your employees’ and applicants’ abilities.

Is your small business at risk? Your new business needs money to grow but it’s way too easy to get overburdened with debt. Here are some great tips and a printable infographic to help you manage your small business debt, before it’s too late. Practical tips to manage your company’s debt.

Helping employees with open enrollment is good for business. Financial wellness and physical health go hand in hand. It is important to create a plan that caters to your in-office team as well as to your remote employees. Here’s how to help your employees with their benefits selections.

Virtual access has become the standard expectation for almost all roles within the workforce. Learn about new tools that the savvy HR professional can use to keep up with technology and embrace state-of-the-art digital solutions. Tips to boost your digital game.

Will open discussion of workplace sexual harassment bring change? As more employees step forward to share their experiences, companies and lawmakers are implementing sweeping changes to policies and resources. Help prevent and address sexual misconduct in the workplace.

Are your employees eligible for the “saver’s credit?” Also known as the Retirement Savings Contributions Credit, this tax credit can offset all or part of the first $2,000 employees voluntarily contribute to an employer- sponsored retirement plan or IRA. Help your employees save here.

If it feels like you keep losing your best employees, you probably are. Great employees require great work environments in order to stay challenged, engaged and productive. Try out these at-work morale boosters. The most important not-to-do list that you’ll ever read.

Studies show that 80% of employees would prefer add-on benefits over a pay raise. Perhaps it’s time to update your current employee perks and benefits package. Check out this slideshow for some great ideas on how to attract and keep the best employees.

Is your structured payday becoming obsolete? Another new smartphone-app-as-employee-perk will allow your employees to choose when they get paid – and how much. Often, employees need their already earned salaries before payday arrives. Are you ready for the switch?

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.

Could Cloud Computing Help Improve Your Productivity?

by Ilyce Glink | Nov 8, 2017 | Blog

Will cloud computing improve employee productivity?

More businesses are finding that by moving key processes to the cloud, they’re able to operate more efficiently – especially since the option to work remotely has become increasingly popular among employees. By moving documents to a central location online, and automating certain aspects of a team’s workflow, employees are able to complete assignments wherever they are.

Many cloud-based platforms allow groups of people to contribute to the same project at different times, and some of the latest platforms even measure how productive each team and each individual on the team are.

Since online solutions take less time to learn, according to e-commerce company Meylah, companies that switch to the cloud can reach a higher level of productivity sooner. Here are some other ways cloud computing could help your people work smarter.

A lot of things have changed since 1996. In its 2016 Employee Benefits Research Report, the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) looked back at some of the changes in employee benefits and the companies that help facilitate these benefits since the organization started issuing these reports. See what‘s new.

Updating your employee benefits could help you keep your best employees. Whether you go for more traditional perks, such as a 401(k) match, or think outside the box with options such as free intern housing, your team will thank you for it. Learn what innovative employee benefits these 10 top companies are providing.

Your employees are leaving and it’s costing you money. Retention is a growing problem for employers as the economy heats up and unemployment drops. The latest Gallup report found that a record 47 percent of the workforce says now is a good time to find a quality job and more than half of employees are searching for new jobs or watching for openings. Why are your employees seeking greener pastures?

Is your HR department performing at its best? In order to support a company’s business model and goals, HR professionals need to focus on efficiency and delivering real value where it counts. Start with these five essential practices.

Your employees probably aren’t engaged at work. According to Gallup’s most recent State of the Global Workplace report, 51 percent of workers said they weren’t engaged and 17 percent said they were actively disengaged on the job. Here’s what you can do to fix it.

Many young adult workers are ignoring or rejecting their health insurance options. We’re in the heart of open enrollment season and millennials are 82 percent less likely to have health insurance. Unfortunately, 25 percent of millennials are more likely to have past-due medical debt. Here’s how to engage millennials and use open enrollment season to your advantage.

Should you be offering more ambitious perks? In today’s tight labor market, many companies are using unique benefits to attract and retain top talent. Learn from these six examples.

Does your startup offer the right benefits? While young companies might not want to spend big bucks on extravagant employee perks like weekly breakfasts or a ping-pong table, businesses are still finding plenty of inexpensive ways to make their teams feel valued. Check out these ideas.

How can HR leverage HCM technology? They have to do what they do best: blend the characteristics of their business and their workforce. Here are three things that could help make up the ideal HCM tech framework.

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.

Making Open Enrollment Easier for Your Employees

by Kathlene Boone | Nov 1, 2017 | Blog

Open enrollment has officially begun. Chances are, you’re a little overwhelmed and your employees are a little confused — but the news isn’t all bad. Making open enrollment easier (and hopefully a bit more fun) for your employees means finding a way to engage your team in meaningful conversations about their needs and show them all the exciting benefits you have to offer.

Try getting creative to juice the “fun” part of the month!

Host a benefits fair in the last afternoon or early evening and encourage your employees to bring their significant others so they can get their questions answered and make important benefits decisions togther.
Create posters and flyers, and then hang them around the office.
Don’t just post information on your company’s website; bring your message into the physical work environment.
Incorporate your important and popular benefits, like health insurance and retirement options into presentation but spend time on new or unique perks you offer, such as flex time, free snacks, wellness (or financial wellness!) programs, pet-friendly spaces and student loan repayment plans.

Open enrollment is also a good time to see how your employees are utilizing and responding to the benefits they already use. Take a look at which benefits are doing well and which are underutilized Pay attention to your employees’ suggestions, and consider refining their feedback for the future.

Here are some other suggestions that can help you make open enrollment easier and more fun.

Which benefits do your millennial employees really want? Millennials have been entrenched in the workforce for quite a while now, but many employers can’t figure out how to convince them to stick around longer than a year or so. Here’s what Vlad Gyster, Founder and CEO of Airbo and Janet McNichol, HR Director of ASHA, had to say.

Your employees don’t feel financially secure about their retirement. A recent study by Northwestern Mutual found that 58 percent of U.S. adults cited health care as their chief retirement concern, which is a 13 percent increase from the previous year. Learn more.

Many millennials don’t understand how to build a budget. That’s a big problem, especially since people in this generation are frequently saddled with thousands of dollars in student loan debt. Regardless of age, studies show most workers want help from their employers learning about money. Here are some financial questions your young employees might ask.

News on 401ks! As tax reform winds its way through Congress, 401k are said to be targeted for significant changes. One proposal reduces the amount of money an employee can stash away in a 401k plan tax-free from $18,000 per year ($24,000 if you’re over the age of 50) to less than $3,000. Best Money Moves believes that maximizing a 401k, which is a benefit most employers are already providing, is one of the best things employees can do to stabilize their finances and reduce financial stress around retirement. We’ll keep you updated on the latest discussions around 401k plans in the upcoming tax reform bill.

How can a digital and holistic wellness program help you improve the lives of your team members? When employees have 24/7 access to tools and information right in the palm of their hands and employers are getting real-time data, everyone wins. See the other ways digital wellness solutions are changing things for the better.

Why is financial wellness more important than ever? According to Bill Chetney, founder of GRP Advisor Alliance, it’s because 64 percent of workers couldn’t even cover a $1,000 emergency without going into debt. Learn how financial advisors are joining this important conversation.

Your employees want help coping with stress. More than 75 percent of workers in a recent Harris Poll online survey said they consider resiliency programs valuable, but only 25 percent of workers said their employers offer them. Could a stress reduction program work for your people?

People aren’t spending enough time considering their benefits. In fact, according to a recent Prudential study, 23 percent of employees spend less than 30 minutes thinking about the perks offered by their employers. Here are five ways to change that.

Are your employees fighting anxiety? Often overlooked, anxiety can have a major effect on your employees’ stress levels, negatively impacting productivity, health care costs and employee retention. Here’s how you can help.

Are you using the latest HR Tech? Technology is always changing, but some trends were everywhere at the annual HR Tech Conference in Las Vegas. Check out the top 10 HR tech trends.

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.

Upgrade Your HR Tech and Switch to the Cloud

by Kathlene Boone | Oct 25, 2017 | Blog

Why should you shift your HR tech to the cloud? Because it could make your life easier.

Cloud-based platforms offer HR (and often employees) much more flexibility, so it’s no wonder that 40 percent of the 300 companies recently surveyed by PricewaterhouseCoopers have already switched. But for the 60 percent that haven’t quite taken the plunge, PwC consultants had some advice.

For starters, the firm said in its report, companies need to consider whether cloud providers can meet their individual needs. Software functionality is important, but at the end of the day individual organizations must allow their unique practices and policies to take center stage when choosing a vendor. Security is also a concern for HR departments, which handle sensitive employee data like addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. What else does PwC recommend? Take a look at this slideshow.

Why are your millennial employees so stressed? Only 20 percent of them are satisfied with their financial health, according to financial services technology company Fiserv’s Expectations and Experiences Survey. Read more from Fiserv’s senior vice president of marketing and strategy innovation.

The right employee benefits will make your people want to stick around. In fact, according to Glassdoor, four out of five people would prefer having great benefits to getting a pay raise. See why employees prefer perks to cash incentives.

Your employees are not saving enough for retirement. Could a financial wellness program help them dial back their stress and create the future they want? Only if the program helps address the pain points of each individual. Learn how to get started.

What’s the best way to attract and keep millennial employees? One survey found that 85 percent of millennials, both in the workforce and in school, are more willing to work and stay with a company that has a student loan assistance program in place. See the data here.

Physical fitness and good nutrition aren’t the only things keeping your employees healthy. In a PwC survey of working Americans, 45 percent said dealing with their finances is stressful. Here are four reasons people need financial wellness in the workplace.

Sometimes it’s hard to tell which HR trends are meaningful. While some advancements can dramatically improve workplace processes, others can seem like unnecessary disruptions. How can you tell which trends will stand the test of time? Here’s what the pros say.

Your employees are thinking about their money at work. According to the American Psychological Association, 46 percent of people admit to spending two to three working hours per week on personal financial matters. See what you can do to help your workers focus.

Employees want more than a competitive salary. Understanding which benefits to offer your team could mean the difference between keeping them for the long haul and losing them to a competitor. Content marketing agency Fractl’s recent employee benefits survey asked participants to rank 17 perks from most to least important. Check out the top four.

Many Baby Boomers are struggling with rising healthcare costs. That means more older employees are working well into what could have been their retirement years. What does that mean for employers? It’s time to be proactive.

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.

It’s a Team Effort: How Engaging Employees Boosts Financial Wellness

by Kathlene Boone | Oct 18, 2017 | Blog

Are you getting the most out of your financial wellness program? New research shows that engagement rates are a better indicator of success than ROI.

These days, it’s common for companies to have some sort of financial wellness program in place. But the existing programs aren’t always effective at improving retention, increasing productivity and lowering healthcare costs. Benefits executives are starting to see why: Many employees don’t know these programs are available, and when they do, they don’t always find them relevant or engaging enough to use regularly.

So what can you do?

“Maximizing ROI starts with knowing your employee base – age, career stage and income ranges,” says a new report by market research firm Ernst and Young. “But fostering engagement depends on more than demographics. It requires a deeper understanding of workforce psychographics [such as] how employees think and feel about money.”

By taking the time to consider employees’ emotional and intellectual responses to financial stress as well as their demographic information, employers put themselves in a better position to address the unique financial stressors their people are facing. Holistic solutions aren’t just better for employees, they’re also ultimately better for your business.

See what else Ernst and Young had to say.

Do your employees feel valued? The 2017 Getting Paid in America survey revealed that employee access to pay and benefits information could help. Read more about empowering your people.

Your employees want meaningful work. According to a new study, that means employers need to clearly communicate the company’s mission, provide opportunities for growth and foster coworker relationships. Learn how integrity and transparency impact employee experience.

Budgeting doesn’t have to be complicated, even if we are getting into the holiday gift-giving season. In fact, helping your workers simplify the way they approach their money will reduce their financial stress in the long run. Here are 3 simple budget saves employees can put into place today.

How happy are your hourly workers? Successful businesses know what causes workers to leave, and work to keep their employees. Check out these five ways to boost employee retention.

American workers don’t understand their benefits. In fact, 76 percent make benefits decisions without understanding their plans, according to the 2017 Aflac WorkForces Report, and it’s getting worse. See the data.

Which benefits are at the top of your employees’ wish list? Forty percent of workers told Glassdoor that affordable healthcare is the number one perk. Here are four more.

Who are your company’s rising stars? As companies prepare for year-end performance reviews and think about goals for 2018, these emerging leaders are waiting in the wings hoping to show off what they can do. Look for employees with these four qualities.

More than half of employees with access to financial wellness programs say the initiatives have improved their health. But, according to a recent study from UnitedHealthcare, some employers aren’t stopping there. Read these five tips for starting a program that really works.

HR professionals are always looking for ways to optimize day-to-day tasks. Tech startups are actively responding to these needs, and providing innovative solutions that benefit employers and their teams. Keep an eye on these 10 HR tech companies.

Have something to add? Email info@bestmoneymoves.com.