Maji’s mission is to build a financially secure future for everyone. But there’s no ‘one size fits all’ solution; each person will have their own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to their finances, and they may be starting from a different point than their colleagues or neighbours. That makes it challenging for employers to design an effective financial wellbeing strategy that can work for their employees.
That’s why we’ve developed our financial wellbeing healthcheck. This questionnaire diagnoses employee financial fitness across four key areas:
- Financial resilience
- Money management
- Future planning
- Money mindset
Since launching the healthcheck product just a few weeks ago, we’ve had a lot of responses! These allow us to get some initial insights into how employees are doing with financial wellbeing in general, and where they might need more support. This might give you some ideas about getting started with a financial wellbeing strategy. However, it also shows you the power of Maji’s healthcheck tool. With the detailed information it provides about your employees’ wellbeing, you’ll be able to design and track the impact of your strategy over time.
Our insights so far include:
Financial resilience
The Covid-19 pandemic has made us all think about our emergency savings and how well we could survive in difficult times. 77% of our respondents have enough savings put away for over 3 months of expenses, but a change in day-to-day expenditure might be tricky: 96% of our users say they’d struggle if their rent or mortgage went up by over £100!
Helping your employees develop financial resilience could be as simple as opening the conversation about saving and budgeting. But have you considered giving them some more in-depth support? 67% of employees (in a survey by Nudge Global) actually want more financial guidance from their employer. A workshop session on creating a manageable budget or saving plan could work well. Or, with a digital tool like Maji, you can offer engaging financial planning tools alongside useful open banking insights that can highlight where extra spending could be cut down.This could significantly raise employees’ financial resilience and lower their stress.
Money management
Building a regular savings habit can put everyone in a better position to achieve their financial goals. Only 32% of our respondents are currently saving regularly into an ISA, savings account or investment account. Are you giving your people the right information they’ll need to rectify this? For example, the end of the tax year is a great time to discuss ISAs. You could even offer a workplace saving scheme.
When it comes to everyday money management, we know what we should be doing: spending less, borrowing less and saving more. But it’s not always easy, as our statistics show.
Perhaps surprisingly given the healthy emergency funds of our respondents, 64% are often paying more than a third of their income on debt repayments (including mortgage). Managing debts can be stressful, and this can have a knock on effect on work productivity. Do you have a trusted partner that employees can go to for advice on getting out of debt? Signposting them to important support services like StepChange could also be important. Maji’s digital coaching and other educational resources can take this burden off your shoulders.
Future planning
Our respondents feel fairly confident about keeping track of their pensions and planning for the future (they’re using Maji, after all), but preparing for the worst-case scenario seems to be low on most people’s priority list. Only 19% of our respondents have created a will to make sure their assets go where they’re needed, and 18% have sorted out their pension death benefits.
It’s not always nice to talk about death and dying, but it’s important for us all to consider. You could highlight Free Wills Month in your newsletter or on your intranet, to encourage employees to take this vital step. Or, have you considered working with a benefits consultant who could recommend will-writing services to your employees?
Additionally, some employees will benefit from professional financial advice. There are lots of IFAs who’d be happy to partner with you as a trusted advisor for your team. On Maji, we give employees discounted access to vetted professionals, including IFAs, so they can make sure they’re on top of their planning.
Money mindset
Our attitudes and feelings about money can influence so much about the way we act and the choices we make!
Sadly, only 21% of our respondents feel confident about managing and making decisions about their money. 45% of respondents ‘Regularly’ or ‘Always’ feel stressed about their finances.
Clearly, there’s a long way to go. With access to Maji’s financial planning, coaching and educational tools, they’re sure to build confidence in time. And they won’t be doing it alone: Maji will be with them every step of the way.
When it comes to your team, do you know what their stress and confidence levels are like? Using a diagnostic tool like Maji’s healthcheck can be a great way to find out more about what’s really going for your team, so you can plan the most appropriate interventions. It’s the first tool you need to create, refine and measure the impact of a meaningful financial wellbeing strategy.
For a demonstration of how Maji could help you and your team, click here.
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