As companies and their team members continue to navigate inflation, higher prices, and the expanding cost of healthcare, benefits enable employees to pay for everyday expenses, save and plan for the future, and counter financial stress. They are an important factor in helping companies meet their goals around employee recruitment, retention, company culture building and supporting diversity, equity and inclusion.

With so much depending on benefits, benefits leaders need to understand not only what's important to their people, but the general market landscape, in order to make an informed decision about what benefits to offer and which providers to work with. Lively’s 2024 Employee Benefits Market Check report presents data and insights from 250 US-based HR and benefits decision makers, which was collected in collaboration with CITE research.

This report includes:

• The “must have” benefits that companies are adding and improving this year.
• The most important factors benefits leaders consider when choosing, switching, or renewing providers.
• Critical action items that benefits leaders, brokers, and consultants can take to understand employee needs and choose benefits that fit.

Overall, we found that when it comes to choosing benefits and benefits providers, employee experience matters above all else. As companies and benefits leaders begin looking ahead to next year and the benefits that they will offer and the providers they will work with, choosing benefits that are for their people to use will make the biggest impact on company culture and employee recruitment and retention.

For benefits brokers, consultants, and providers, deeply understanding your clients’ needs and the employee experience they wish to create, as well as understanding feedback and what employees do and do not like about benefits providers, will help enable you to make stronger recommendations and ensure that your clients, and their people, are happy.