Many companies roll out impressive benefits packages only to find that enrollment is lower than expected, and departing employees say they struggled to understand the benefits available to them in exit interviews. Research shows that 71% of employees report dissatisfaction with workplace communications, while 74% believe they are missing out on important information. This communication gap directly impacts retention, with 61% of employees who are considering changing their jobs citing poor internal communication as a driving factor.
The solution isn’t communicating more; it’s about communicating smarter by recognizing the individuality of your workforce and customizing messages to specific groups. A 55-year-old operations manager approaching retirement will naturally have different priorities than a 28-year-old marketing coordinator managing student debt. Yet, most benefits communication treats these dissimilar employees as if their needs were identical.
Why One-Size-Fits-All Benefits Messaging is Failing Your Workforce
In many cases, employees are issued lengthy packets with extensive fine print on premium calculations, coverage tiers, and other plan details. However, this often feels more like noise than useful guidance, especially when it is not geared toward their specific circumstances.
Businesses cannot deny the generational divide. According to SHRM research, 79% of millennial and Gen Z employees prioritize flexible work options, while 64% seek flexible parental leave and 62% emphasize access to mental health resources. Meanwhile, Gen X employees are typically focused on eldercare support and preparing for college expenses. Baby boomers who are approaching retirement need clear information about healthcare bridge options and retirement planning tools.
When you consider these different goals and needs, it is easy to see how benefits announcements that use the same message for everyone miss the mark. By the time employees locate relevant information, many will have already tuned out.
How Role-Based Communication Addresses Real Workplace Needs
Your benefits strategy needs to acknowledge that job roles have distinct priorities. Frontline workers in physically demanding positions will need information about injury prevention programs and disability insurance, while remote employees often seek clarity on telehealth options. Managers need resources they can share with their teams.
This is where employee benefits consulting services can prove invaluable, helping organizations move beyond generic announcements to create targeted messaging that reaches employees where they are.
This is an effort that can pay off nicely. Businesses with effective communication strategies note 4.5 times higher retention, while employees who are satisfied with their workplace communication report being 46% happier at work. These are fundamental shifts in the way your workforce experiences your investment in their wellbeing.
What Personalized Benefits Communication Looks Like
Effective personalization should begin during onboarding and continue throughout the employee lifecycle. In practice, this means that new parents should receive proactive outreach about their parental leave options and dependent care accounts. In contrast, employees in high-deductible health plans should receive targeted education about HSA advantages. Meanwhile, workers approaching retirement should seek consultations on maximizing their final working years.
Modern technology has made it much easier to personalize offerings on a broader scale. For example, consolidated benefits dashboards can highlight relevant options based on the employee’s demographics or life events. This is useful on its own, but it’s even more effective when combined with human touchpoints.
Creating Communication That Inspires Engagement and Utilization
Before drafting communication, carefully segment your workforce, considering actual usage patterns and demographics. Determine which benefits are seeing low enrollment despite broad eligibility, life stage transitions commonly experienced by your workforce, and common points of confusion that arise repeatedly in employee questions.
This insight should form the basis for targeted communication campaigns and focused sessions designed for specific groups. Consider hosting virtual office hours during which employees can seek personalized guidance, and offer decision-support tools that help them compare options to their individual circumstances.
Keep this information accessible throughout the year and not just during open enrollment. Employees must make major medical decisions, experience financial challenges, and start families on unpredictable schedules, and need resources right away when these moments occur. Employee benefits consulting services can help you develop communication approaches that support ongoing engagement rather than annual information dumps.
Keep track of what is working well and which communication channels your employees favor. Survey the workforce to confirm all information is clear, and note when and where they seek help. Use this insight to refine your approach.
Moving From Compliance to Strategic Advantage
At its core, personalized benefits communication requires shifting how organizations think about employee benefits from viewing them in compliance terms to building loyalty, supporting well-being, and showing employees that you care about them as individuals.
Your benefits package represents a significant investment on your part, and personalized communication establishes that investment translates into real value for the people who matter most to your business’s success.
Are you ready to transform how you communicate benefits to your workforce? BBG’s benefits consulting team brings nearly 30 years of expertise in designing communication strategies that connect with employees across roles, generations, and life stages. Contact us today to get started!