140 | UK Enterprise Awards 2023 Apr23135 Employee Engagement Experts of the Year 2023 Sodexo Engage is part of Sodexo Benefits and Rewards Services, a leading expert in employee engagement. It has become renowned for providing award-winning employee benefits, rewards, and recognition that make a real difference in people’s lives, both inside and outside of the workplace. Now recognised within the UK Enterprise Awards 2023, we take a closer look at the company’s offering, which is being praised by a range of clients including O2, The Home Office, Northern Education Trust, Futures Housing Group, and many more. Sodexo Engage’s powerful employee experience solutions are developed in partnership with stakeholders, and aim to lift the happiness and wellbeing of individuals, in turn enhancing companies’ objectives and business performance. Operating in 31 countries and supported by 4,200 employees, Sodexo Benefits and Rewards Services is the number two world leader in employee benefit and engagement solutions, making it a trusted partner that brings to life personalised employee experiences at work and beyond. It is a company that takes the time to make sure that it knows its audience and their wants and needs. It has this year observed that employees wish to prioritise the element of choice when it comes to their benefits. In fact, 38% of employees surveyed last year by Sodexo Engage say they would like access to opt-in / opt-out benefits packages, but only 9% have these on offer. Therefore, its products have been designed so businesses can move away from a one-size-fits-all approach to benefits, instead allowing their employees to customise their benefits packages to meet their specific and evolving needs. An example of one of Sodexo Engage’s product offerings is the Incentives Prepaid Card. A flexible incentive programme, this solution is one of the easiest, most effective ways to incentivise and reward team members time and time again. Accepted worldwide, these cards are Visa prepaid and can be used online or instore – and they’re even contactless. This is in addition to enabling cashback and card top-ups, providing as much freedom as possible. It has also seen increased demand for products associated with the Cost of Living crisis, such as the Household Support Card, a Visa prepaid card that allows employees to earn up to 15% cashback both instore and online with over 80 participating retailers. This product enables companies to help their employees with the rising costs of everyday living, and it is being truly welcomed. Sodexo Engage data also shows that 61% of employees would like their workplace to help them more with the Cost of Living crisis. Many are suffering from financial anxiety, and it’s leading to a decline in the nation’s mental health – The Household Support Card is an easy way to help ease the burden. The Cost of Living crisis is a massive discussion point for many within the industry right now, and Sodexo Engage has even recently released an e-book called The Mountain of Lost Benefits, which contains some original data the company has on this topic and what it is seeing within the market. As already mentioned, this crisis is causing mental health issues for some, which they need their employer to help them with. Sodexo Engage has released further data on this here. Clearly, Sodexo Engage is a company that cares a lot about helping people. And this shows internally, too, with it having a people strategy to enhance the employee experience continually and sustainably. This is done by focusing on equitability, transparency, wellbeing, and supporting a healthy work-life balance through three pillars of wellbeing: mental, financial, and physical. 1. Mental wellbeing: Sodexo Engage’s continuous learning culture means that it invests in the development of its people, including providing access to an e-book called ‘The Mountain of Lost Benefits’ which not only has data on what it sees in the market, but what may be having an impact on people’s mental health issues. Sodexo Engage understands that “only 11% of employees make the most of their workplace benefits and rewards,” meaning business can’t attract or keep employees. Backed by 50 years of experience, Sodexo Engage’s Employee Assistance Programme is a huge help for employees across the UK. Its wellbeing strategy hub provides guidance on wellbeing strategies so that its clients can put mental health first not only to reap the benefits of keeping staff, but to enrich their company culture and cultivate an environment of support. Its EAP introduces accredited counsellors to employees so that they may have somewhere to turn, and the entire programme is fully managed by Sodexo Engage, for full peace of mind for everyone involved. 2. Financial wellbeing: Sodexo Engage’s financial wellbeing benefits get to the root cause of discomfort for its clients’ employees. Its financial wellbeing app gives employees the opportunity to access, track, save, and better manage their wages for a better outlook on how to improve financial stability and sustainability. Sodexo Engage also provides educational resources for employees so that they can better manage their money, ensuring transparency, honesty, and reliability. It can offer employee loans through their salaries rather than using loans from the high-street with less range. Alongside these, Sodexo Engage helps with building savings and debt consolidation so that we can all have peace of mind. Sodexo Engage’s other employee benefits, such as online cashback, cinema benefits, gift cards, and eVouchers, speak volumes for the lengths it goes to when improving employee wellbeing. Its online cashback helps individuals to save money every day – easily and without paper vouchers, special codes, or plastic cards. Its cinema platform encourages people to enjoy one of their favourite hobbies, for a fantastic 40% off the full retail price, and individuals can also reward their employees with fantastic discounts via Sodexo Engage’s desktop portal – with eVouchers that are always available on the move. With a whole array of benefits geared towards financial reward and wellbeing of employees, Sodexo Engage helps people to enjoy life so much more. 3. Physical wellbeing: The impact that our physical health can have on our mental wellbeing is worth addressing. Sodexo Engage’s employee wellbeing programmes, such as an online GP, cycle to work schemes, and gym memberships all ensure an elevated level of mental wellbeing and stability. The company works tirelessly to end the stigma around mental health issues in the workplace and that’s why it puts physical wellbeing at the forefront, too. Sodexo Engage is an inclusive company with an efficient and agile operating model. Its core values are ‘Spirit of Progress’, ‘Service Spirit’, and ‘Team Spirit’. It understands that, as an employee engagement business, it is important to ‘walk the talk’, by providing a benefit and reward strategy that serves all of its own employees’ needs, regardless of their role within the business. Indeed, Sodexo Engage practices what it preaches, going above and beyond to ensure its own people are happy and thriving, alongside offering other companies the opportunity to do the same. Thus, there is an inevitably bright future ahead of this company, and we couldn’t be more excited about it. Moving forward, its major focus is on being greener, with its Carbon Reduction Plan (https:// www.sodexoengage.com/blog/boost-the-employeeexperience-by-embedding-your-business-withinyour-community) and manufacturing its Spree cards from recycled PVC (https://www.sodexoengage. com/employee-cashback-card). And there’s more to come – Watch this space!
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