How much attention do companies give to their employees’ well-being? Can flexible benefits become a lever of productivity? Are companies aware of the possibility of getting tax breaks while building their welfare plan?
To explore this scenario, Club Med has conducted a survey in collaboration with GIDP (human Resource Managers Association) to investigate how Bleisure‘s trend – that is, the combination of business and leisure trips – can more and more affect Corporate welfare, in the change of traveller’s habits and criteria for selecting their destinations.
The results of the survey, involving the HR directors of medium-to-large national and multinational companies, have revealed a moving scenario also within corporate realities, where attention to employees’ well-being and time management culture start coming up as hints for welfare plans.
However, while Bleisure is changing business travellers’ habits, who take advantage of their job trip to get a holiday too, only 30% of human resource managers declare to be aware of this trend. It is interesting as well to note that almost 40% of respondents (37.21%) say that, based on their experience, employees add a few extra days to business trips, in pure Bleisure trend. In addition, 42.86% consider the possibility of extending to family members and companions participation in the business event, even if no one claims to have put it into practice.
And if nearly 84% of respondents think that organizing events for their employees can be regarded as an integral part of the company’s welfare program, only 20% of the companies claimed to have implemented incentive-business trips, preferring two-day short breaks to short and medium-haul destinations.
In addition, almost 70% (68.60%) of HR managers consider it interesting to organize events or meetings for employees using less conventional venues than classic meeting rooms, such as pool-side or by ski slopes, albeit stressing that modalities should be carefully evaluated.
Concerning time management, 65.12% of companies acknowledge that 20% of each working day gets to be used by employees for activities outside the business sphere. It is interesting to note, however, that, in the opinion of the interviewees, this doesn’t affect productivity but rather contributes to the employees’ well-being. To confirm this, over half (62%) of this percentage believes that incentive trips can improve productivity and efficiency by optimizing work time.
Corporate welfare issues appear thus to be central to HR managers: almost 80% of respondents (77.91%) state that their company is attentive to its employees’ well-being and personal growth. This is evidenced by a wide range of benefits and tools available to the staff.
The broadest range of proposals includes benefits such as gym subscriptions, wellness centres etc., set up by 42.32% of companies. But some wellness moments such as stretching, yoga, autogenic training etc take place also during work hours. They are made available to employees in 15.38% of enterprises.
12.50% also state that there are lounge and relaxation areas within the company, while corporate travel and health projects weigh at 8.65% each.
Among the less widespread but yet actual proposals there is smart working, used by 5.77% of companies, while welfare benefits include wellbeing-education portals (3.85%), indoor celebrations (1.92 %) and family welfare (0.96%).
As for personal growth of employees, training-upgrading courses top the list, being used by 45% of companies. Runners-up are language courses (37.32%) and specialization masters (13.38%). The remaining 4% concerns more segmented proposals, including subscriptions or tickets for cultural events, international career paths, international development programs, outdoor days etc.
Finally, tax breaks: 70% of human resources managers are not aware of the opportunity to take fiscal advantage of the organization of incentive trips for employees including meeting schedules in dedicated spaces.
This could help companies invest more in this area, thus gaining mutual benefit.