EXCLUSIVE: Jonathan Smith (pictured), relationship director at vehicle solutions provider Zenith, will detail how delegates can make the right choices around car benefits, as well as outlining current and future shifts in the market, at Employee Benefits Connect 2019.
The session, titled 'All-employee benefits: What is the right solution for your employees?', will form part of the engagement conference stream on Wednesday 27 February 2019.
Smith will be discussing legislative and consumer shifts and how they are changing the way car benefits are used. For example, he will look at the government's clean air agenda, and how this might affect schemes.
He said: "[I will be looking at] where there is demand, why the demand is there, and what is actually being demanded, both now and in the future. There has been a massive amount of legislative changes, and that's having a push and pull effect among certain groups."
Smith will be outlining some of the typical employee profiles that various car schemes might work best for, while also discussing the theme of individuality, range and the increasing demand for subscription-style packages among younger generations.
"There's not so much a perfect person or a perfect scheme, there are aspects of each that will be attractive to different employees," said Smith. "There are merits to each, and a sensible solution is to have a range of these schemes that run side by side. It's almost down to individual circumstances of employees, as to what will work best, so as an employer, the best thing you can do is have a range."
One of the aims for the session is to help dispel some of the widely held misunderstandings about elements such as salary sacrifice, and to help employers understand how to do the best due diligence on potential products. Smith also aims for attendees to come away from the presentation with an increased awareness of the changes taking place and the options available to them.
"If you're not having these types of conversations, as an employer you're likely to be left behind in terms of putting a benefits package that is attractive against your competition," Smith explained. "The hardest part at the moment is staying on top of it, because there's so much change it's hard to know which direction to go in."
Employee Benefits Connect 2019 is open to all senior in-house HR professionals and will take place on Wednesday 27 February 2019 at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge.
