How to Build a Financial Wellness Program

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of workplace wellness? Perhaps it’s a program designed to encourage your people to get active and move their bodies daily in support of better physical health. Or maybe it’s a strategy to enhance psychological safety and provide tools for mental well-being in your organization. But there’s another layer to wellness that you can build into your culture in support of a holistic benefits strategy – one that might not be top of mind but is just as important: Financial Wellness!

A structured financial wellness program can help enhance the financial well-being of employees in your organization. If you’re wondering where to start, we’ve got you covered! Let’s explore three key elements that go into the launch of a successful financial wellness program: Assess, Plan, and Educate. 

1. Assess  What level of financial literacy do your people have and what are their needs?

Before implementing a financial wellness program, you need to understand the needs of your people, which can vary by age and stage of life. For example, younger employees might be struggling with student loans or contemplating the purchase of their first home, while an older demographic is likely to be more concerned with retirement savings.

Having a sense for how much (or how little) your workforce knows about managing their finances is also incredibly relevant to how you design your program. Some people are expert investors and highly knowledgeable about best practices for budget management and long-term saving. Others might not even have a basic budget or the right tools to manage expenses.

We’ve worked with an amazing financial literacy specialist to develop a survey for employers that captures the financial concerns and goals of an organization’s employees. The survey uncovers challenges and uncertainties to identify areas where employees need support or would like to learn more. This is a great starting point because we often see that aside from basic retirement savings plans, employers struggle with what financial wellness can feel like for their people. The survey takes a pulse and helps shine a light on what a holistic financial wellness program could include. 

2. Plan  What would a successful and useful financial wellness program look like in your organization?

Using the information you gather in your assessment phase, create a definition for financial well-being in your organization. This can vary person to person, but defining this concept in broad terms will help determine what your program needs for your people to feel a sense of financial well-being. Here’s a sample definition, as an example: Feeling secure about one’s financial future and able to meet their daily financial needs.

Let the definition of financial well-being drive the objectives of your program and then get tactical. How can you meet the objectives of your program and what tools will be needed? What is realistic to implement from a budget, resource, and time perspective? Do you have existing programs or resources that you can build upon? The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada has a useful guide to steer you in the right direction.

3. Educate  What elements of your benefits plan can support your program, how can you promote them, and what other financial literacy tools can you provide to your people?

Take inventory of what is included in your employee benefits plan in support of financial well-being. For example, retirement savings plans can mitigate employee concerns about their future while an EAP often includes free access to a financial consultant. Be sure to communicate regularly about these benefits so employees know they are there in support of their financial wellness.

From there, explore what gaps you can fill – perhaps by engaging with a financial wellness coach or providing your people with a suite of resources to enhance their financial literacy and well-being. There are countless apps and tools to help employees learn the basics of financial management including how to budget, save, and calculate what they need for retirement. Check Money Mentors or Credit Counselling Canada as a starting point or reach out to Shannon for help tailoring education programs based on what you find in your assessment phase. (And, read on to explore some newer and trending types of tools that might help attract young talent in the workforce!)

If you’d like to develop a financial wellness program and want to start with the survey mentioned above (or if you’d simply like to look at how your benefits plan can further support financial well-being in your workplace), Shannon can help! Get in touch for a call and let’s get the right tools in your people’s hands.