How respondents usually source benefits technology
They go direct to a provider 52%
Via a broker 36%
Via a pensions provider 3%
Other 9%
Sample: All respondents (225)
What respondents look for in benefits technology
Ease of use 88%
Functionality 81%
Low cost 62%
Integration with other systems 61%
Data security 58%
Data analysis 52%
Automation 46%
Communications support 44%
Governance 36%
Outsourcing 8%
Sample: All respondents (225)
When respondents last overhauled their benefits portal to take advantage of new developments in technology
In the last six months 18%
In the last year 19%
Between one and two years 16%
More than two years ago 20%
Do not know 27%
Sample: All respondents (197)
Text to accompany above three graphs:
As technology continues to develop at a rapid pace, respondents appear to be overhauling their benefits technology to take advantage of this on a regular basis. Just under a fifth (18%) have done so in the last six months, while 19% have done so in the last year, and 16% between one and two years ago.
This is a clear shift since we carried out the inaugural Benefits research in 2004. Thirteen years ago, 30% of respondents said they had implemented or upgraded the technology they used to administer benefits in the previous few years, although a further quarter that had not done so said they intended to over the next two to three years.
More than half of respondents (52%) prefer to source benefits technology directly from a provider, rather than going via a broker (36%).
Functionality and ease of use top respondents’ list of criteria they look for in benefits technology, cited by 81% and 88%, respectively. Low cost and the ability to integrate with other systems are also both fairly high priorities, for 62% and 61%, respectively.
The benefits technology used by respondents that they would rank as very valuable
Intranet 39%
Reward portal including flexible benefits 32%
Reward portal 26%
External website owned by provider or consultant 25%
Smartphone or tablet apps 18%
Fully integrated portal (global) HR hub covering all aspects of HR including all benefits offerings 15%
Text (SMS) messaging capability 4%
Wearable fitness technology 3%
Gamification technology 2%
Augmented or virtual reality 1%
Sample: All respondents (203)
The segments of respondents’ employee base that are most likely to use each type of benefits technology provided by their organisation
Those aged under 35 Those aged 35-44 Those aged 45-55 Those aged 55+
Do not offer
Intranet 70% 70% 57% 46% 14%
External website owned by provider or consultant 49% 49% 44% 33% 35%
Reward portal 38% 37% 28% 21% 52%
Reward portal including flexible benefits 34% 38% 29% 21% 55%
Fully integrated portal (global) HR hub covering all aspects of HR including all benefits offerings 22% 20% 15% 11% 72%
Text (SMS) messaging capability 22% 17% 13% 9% 72%
Smartphone or tablet apps 40% 31% 16% 11% 55%
Wearable fitness technology 17% 12% 7% 3% 79%
Gamification technology 15% 6% 2% 2% 84%
Augmented or virtual reality 13% 5% 1% 0 86%
Sample: All respondents (179)
Text to accompany above two graphs:
Overall, respondents perceive more traditional, established forms of technology to hold much greater value for their organisation than some of the newer technological developments to enter the market.
On a rating scale of one to five, with five being very valuable and one not being at all valuable, respondents primarily score intranet sites, reward portals, both with and without flexible benefits, and external websites owned by a provider or consultancy at the higher end of the rating scale. Of the newer forms of technology, smartphone or tablet apps are continuing to gradually rise in perceived value.
When it comes to the segments of respondents’ employee base that are most likely to use each type of benefits technology, intranet sites are the most commonly used across all age groups.
