Member Article

Don’t Choose Any Portal in a Storm!

Developing and coordinating a range of employee benefits for your workforce can seem like a headache for many employers. So how do you provide a range of benefits which suit your particular mix of personnel, explain what’s available and keep up with the communication and administration?

Larger organisations will do so through their Human Resources department and may even employ a Benefits or Reward Manager specifically for the job. For SMEs however, this does not make financial sense.

Technology has of course moved on leaps and bounds in the last few years; there are multiple ways of reaching out to employees besides the traditional methods of sticking a poster on a noticeboard or sending an email. You will need to use as many communication channels as possible to increase employee engagement and improving take up of staff benefits. The latest and best way for organisations, whether large or small, to manage employee benefits is with an online portal. The portal unifies employee benefits and saves employees the hassle of having to find information on intranet sites, the websites of individual benefit providers’ and noticeboards.

Busy Bees Benefits’ recently-launched portal ensures employee benefits are accessible by all staff, particularly those whose role does not allow them access to a computer regularly during the working day. Even those without a PC at home can access the Busy Bees Benefits portal on a smartphone or a tablet.

Providing access to the portal helps employers fulfil their responsibility to communicate benefits equally to all staff, which is a requirement of many schemes under HMRC rules.

The Busy Bees Benefits portal includes access to salary sacrifice schemes for childcare vouchers, mobile phones, cycle to work, car leasing, earn and learn workplace training and workplace parking. Other benefits include discount gift cards, retail discounts, and reduced prices on essential life costs such as car maintenance and producing a legally-binding will.

Employees will be able to see the savings made with some of the benefits they already access. They can also find out which other benefits their employer offers that they could sign up to. This is important as it takes account of major changes during an employee’s working life such as buying a car, starting a family or planning for later life as they can opt in when they require a particular benefit. This improves the take up of employee benefits with no extra effort on the part of the employer.

Employees can also see information about other benefits which the company doesn’t currently offer. One of the most difficult things for a company to achieve is a tailored benefits package to suit as many employees as possible. By having information about the range of benefits at their fingertips, staff can then request those that suit them personally, removing the legwork for companies. It also helps employees to understand, appreciate and value their benefits as the portal acts like a bespoke one-stop shop. To reinforce this, it can include the company’s own branding.

Distinct from other benefits providers, customers of Busy Bees Benefits can access the portal free of charge. Some companies charge clients a four-figure sum just to provide access to such a service.

Importantly for employers, the cost of providing employee benefits to their staff is reduced by providing access via the portal. The benefits are provided at a very competitive service charge and require minimal administration.

Benefits need to be meaningful and useful to employees. The combination of salary sacrifice benefits and deals on everyday lifestyle costs on offer at Busy Bees Benefits provides something for every employee.

So to take your company’s employee benefits by storm, switch to using Busy Bees Benefits’ portal. For more information, contact Busy Bees Benefits at 0330 333 9100

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by John Woodward .