MetLife Empowers Employees to Build Financial Literacy
Last week, MetLife announced the availability of PlanSmart Financial Wellness.
This launch follows MetLife’s announcement in March 2018 that it had formed a strategic alliance with Ernst & Young (EY). The offering features a multi-channel experience that focuses on behavioral change, with tools and guidance that empower employees to build financial literacy, confidence and wellbeing.
“Employees are struggling when it comes to their finances – MetLife’s 16th Annual U.S. Employee Benefit Trends Study (EBTS), released last month, found about half of employees, 46%, feel overwhelmed by financial decisions. These concerns can impact other areas of employees’ lives, including their productivity at work. By investing in financial wellness, employers can help their workforce become more engaged and productive” – SVP, Group Benefits, MetLife, Meredith Ryan-Reid.
Building on MetLife’s PlanSmart workplace financial education program, which has offered workshops and one-on-one consultations for more than 20 years, PlanSmart Financial Wellness offers employees an integrated, multi-channel experience, giving them the opportunity to engage in the way that makes most sense to them, including:
- Intuitive digital experience: Powered by EY technology, the PlanSmart Financial Wellness website helps employees create a financial wellness plan, based on their financial needs and goals. Employees can select the goal they want to achieve – paying down debt, planning for retirement—and are provided a personalized plan broken down into bite-sized activities and unlimited access to online resources and tools.
- Phone support: Extensively trained and experienced EY financial planners offer phone-based financial planning. All guidance is confidential and objective.
- In-person guidance: Employees can take advantage of workplace seminars and one-on-one consultations with local MassMutual financial advisors.
The solution’s “smart” platform saves the employee’s activity so they can pick up where they left off the next time they login. Employees are also encouraged to remain engaged and take action through proactive features, such as checkups and reminders. These action steps evolve as the employee’s life and work change, providing a personalized path to financial wellness. And, the experience is connected across channels – action steps started in one channel can be completed in another.
“We believe employee benefits are the foundation for a successful financial future. By integrating the employers’ benefit options at the center of PlanSmart Financial Wellness, this solution connects guidance back to resources available at the employees’ workplace. MetLife has been in the business of improving employees’ financial health for over 100 years, and our expertise in understanding employee needs uniquely positions us to guide employers and employees as they begin to focus on to financial wellness” – Meredith Ryan-Reid.
