Recruitment & Retention
Principal Financial Group® | January 16, 2024
The picture of retirement is evolving with more Americans turning 65 in 2024 than any year1 before. According to new research from Principal Financial Group®, expectations around how and when to retire by generation vary greatly – placing increased focus on employee engagement and personalized investment strategies to help improve financial security and retirement readiness.
Phased retirement appeals to younger workers who want to retire earlier
According to the Principal Financial Well-Being IndexSM, among Americans in the workforce, gradually decreasing hours is the most desired way to retire (52%) and is most preferred by Generation X (67%) and millennials (56%). Baby boomers and Generation Z report similarities in how they want to retire, with nearly half preferring to move immediately from working full-time to not working at all. This echoes the most common approach taken by current retirees surveyed2, a group in which just over one quarter (28%) either transitioned careers or gradually phased down from their primary career.
“Attitudes and expectations for retirement continue to evolve, and we expect the desire to approach retirement in phases will continue to grow with future generations,” said Chris Littlefield, president of Retirement and Income Solutions at Principal®.
While there are some similarities in how generations want to retire, they have different expectations on timelines and the age at which they plan to retire. The youngest generation, Gen Z, expects to retire at 55 – approximately 10 years earlier than baby boomers (68) and Gen X (64), and four years sooner than millennials (59).
Employees prioritize saving for retirement
The survey revealed employees are focused on balancing basic needs with long-term savings outcomes against a backdrop of ongoing economic pressures that continue to top their list of concerns. Employees of all generations ranked saving for retirement as their top financial priority, followed by affording basic needs and paying off consumer debt3.
"Saving for retirement is the No. 1 financial priority for employees surveyed, which validates that access to workplace benefits and financial wellness programs is helping Americans save for retirement and achieve better financial outcomes,” Littlefield said. “Going forward, increased personalization as well as tailored savings and investment strategies that take into account an individual’s financial goals, lifestyle, health care needs, dependent care obligations, retirement income expectations, and other unique factors will help achieve improved financial security in retirement.”
Retention and recruitment of older employees critical for business success
Employee interest in phased retirement has added value for employers. Most employers (77%) agree that the knowledge older employees have about their company is crucial to their business’s success. Employers concerned with “having valuable employees retire” are more likely to take actions to either retain them or hire employees who previously retired from other companies.
Despite this, not all employers have experience with offering phased retirement. Only 11% of small and midsized businesses4 reported they offer phased retirement job opportunities on a regular basis compared to nearly one quarter of large businesses5. However, interest is there, as 61% of businesses that don’t offer a phased retirement still receive questions from employees about the options.
See all results and insights from the latest Principal Financial Well-Being IndexSM (PDF).
According to the Alliance for Lifetime Income
This wave included a survey of 137 individuals between the ages of 50 and 75 who consider themselves retired or have previously fully retired and gone back to work.
In order to be included in the survey sample, employees must work full-time, and their employer has to offer either health insurance or retirement as an employee benefit.
Businesses with 2-499 employees
Businesses with 500-10,000 employees
About the Principal Financial Well-Being IndexSM
The Principal Financial Well-Being IndexSM surveys business owners, decision makers and business leaders aged 21 and over who work at companies with 2-10,000 employees and offer either health insurance or retirement as an employee benefit. The nation-wide survey, commissioned since 2012, examines the financial well-being of American workers and business employers. In 2020, the Well-Being Index was transformed from an annual survey to a regular pulse, offering three waves, revisiting questions and measuring sentiment regarding timely issues in the small and midsized business marketplace. In the first pulse of the Well-Being Index in 2022, the employee audience was added to the survey to compare and contrast key sentiment from employers. The survey was commissioned by Principal® and conducted online by Dynata from November 6-13, 2023, with a total of 500 business owners, decision makers and business leader participants and a total of 200 employee participants. This wave included a survey of 127 individuals who consider themselves retired or have previously fully retired and gone back to work. The research report focuses on providing a holistic perspective on key trends and timely issues in the small and medium business market.
About Principal Financial Group®
Principal Financial Group® is a global financial company with 19,500 employees1 passionate about improving the wealth and well-being of people and businesses. In business for more than 140 years, we’re helping more than 61 million customers1 plan, protect, invest, and retire, while working to support the communities where we do business, and build a diverse, inclusive workforce. Principal® is proud to be recognized as one of the 2023 World’s Most Ethical Companies® by Ethisphere2, a member of the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index, and a “Best Places to Work in Money Management3.”
Read More
Workforce Management
UKG | January 04, 2024
UKG, a leading provider of HR, payroll, workforce management, and culture solutions for all people, announced that Heartland Motor Company, the family-owned parent company for a group of auto dealerships and car washes, is transforming its workplace culture to create a great place to work by building a foundation of trust and belonging with the help of the AI-powered UKG Pro suite.
With a mission to create remarkable experiences for its people and the communities it serves, Heartland Motor Company partnered with UKG to empower frontline staff through innovative technology that gives employees a voice to communicate and collaborate with each other and leadership.
“I’ve never experienced an HCM solution with as much engagement power as UKG,” said Tina Barte, vice president of HR for Heartland Motor Company. “UKG has generated amazing outcomes for our people with technology that allows us to meet them where they are by soliciting feedback — and then taking action on that feedback — to elevate our culture and build trust as well as a deepened sense of belonging.”
Since going live on Pro, Heartland has received positive feedback from employees through regular surveys powered by modern AI and natural language processing (NLP) technology that help the auto dealer understand what is working and where there are opportunities to create an even better experience, no matter where employees are located.
“We consistently receive glowing feedback on our onboarding process, driven by our UKG suite, and how the automation of previously manual tasks shows respect for our employees’ time,” said Barte. “We can also automatically schedule performance reviews in UKG and deliver meaningful manager feedback, which has been a big driver of employee engagement. Additionally, we’ve used the responses from exit surveys to raise our wage scales and change our vacation policy and benefits so we’re better supporting our people.”
To further engage employees, in line with its great place to work mission, Heartland recently upgraded to UKG AI-powered workforce management, which gives employees access to mobile-first technology that provides greater flexibility and work-life balance.
“Our employees love the ability to clock in and out of shifts with their phones, which is something we didn’t have with our prior solution,” said Barte. “For our HR team, UKG makes leave tracking easy for FMLA and other types of leave.”
Barte noted that Pro makes work easier for all by empowering employees in every role to focus on meaningful work for themselves and the business, which has led to an overall increase in retention and engagement.
“With UKG HR service delivery, we know we are processing every employee inquiry, and with document management, we have created a centralized electronic system that administrators and employees both find easy to use,” said Barte. “UKG has done a phenomenal job launching products that make life easier for everyone and allow us to communicate clearly with employees in support of our great workplace culture.”
“Great workplaces like Heartland Motor Company prove that innovative HR technology increases productivity, lowers turnover, and grows the bottom line,” said Hugo Sarrazin, chief product and technology officer at UKG. “Most importantly, the power of AI, coupled with a deep focus on creating a workplace where all people feel heard, valued, and a sense of belonging, leads to incredible people and business outcomes.”
About UKG
At UKG, our purpose is people. We are on a mission to inspire every organization to become a great place to work through HCM technology built for all. More than 80,000 customers across all sizes, industries, and geographies trust UKG HR, payroll, workforce management, and culture cloud solutions to drive great workplace experiences and make better, more confident people and business decisions. With the world’s largest collection of people data, work data, and culture data combined with rich experience using artificial intelligence in the service of people, we connect culture insights with business outcomes to show what’s possible when organizations invest in their people.
Read More
Payroll
When I Work | January 08, 2024
When I Work, a market leader in shift-based workforce management software used by more than 200,000 workplaces worldwide, is excited to announce its new product, When I Work Payroll. When I Work Payroll is designed to make it incredibly easy for small businesses to run payroll. Because the employee schedule and time tracking data are on the same platform with payroll, businesses can pay their hourly workers quickly, with a single click. There's no data entry or uploading timesheets, so there's less chance for errors, letting small business owners spend time on their customers, instead of being stuck in the back office.
"It's been great to have all of our scheduling and payroll information in one place. We don't have to verify numbers in two places anymore—we're able to verify and run payroll in 10 minutes now," said Tim Hogg, owner of Tressia, a popular North Carolina restaurant.
Payroll from When I Work is comprehensive. Your employees track their time by clocking in and out of the mobile app and our payroll software calculates all the data in real time, including hours, breaks, overtime, and paid time off. When I Work automates payments and tax filings to make everything transparent. Employees can update their own payroll forms and personal information through the app. The system automatically handles taxes and sends direct deposits. When I Work also files your payroll taxes with the IRS.
"We consistently hear stories from small business owners about the countless hours they spend manually syncing and reconciling errors between systems," said Kavitha Radhakrishnan, Chief Product Officer at When I Work. "Our customers want an easier alternative to legacy payroll software, and they have a long history of trust with us, so we created Payroll for them. Now our small business customers can focus their valuable time on what they do best—building their teams and running their business."
About When I Work
When I Work is a market leader in shift-based workforce management software and delivers a powerful, employee-first experience that creates happier and more productive teams. Trusted by more than 200,000 workplaces worldwide, When I Work puts scheduling and collaboration at the center of workplace operations and brings empathy, agility, and consumer simplicity to the small business workplace.
Read More