Reachdesk Provides Global Benefits While Prioritizing Equity and Personalization

Background

Reachdesk is the world’s number one corporate gifting platform. Their employee base is globally located, with offices in New York, Lisbon, and London. Employees work either remotely or in a hybrid model depending on their location. Reachdesk offered great benefits but was ready to considerably expand its offerings as the employee base grew. They wanted to ensure that they remained competitive in the market and could recruit and retain a strong workforce. 

Reassessing benefits to combat a tight labor market

“We spend a third of our lives at work. That’s a ton of time. Our People Experience team’s mission is to make that time as joyful and meaningful for our employees as possible.” - Chelsea Williams, Head of People Experience 

Hiring during the Great Resignation was challenging and Chelsea Williams, Head of People Experience at Reachdesk, knew that their benefits plan was going to need a revamp to stay in the game.

“To even be invited into the conversation with candidates, you had to have an appealing and comprehensive benefits package,” Chelsea said. 

As a global company, Reachdesk also needed benefits that were equitable across geographies. “We wanted to design our global benefit offerings to not necessarily be equal but to be equitable. We liked the idea of our employees being able to customize them and get the most out of them in their local context,” Chelsea said. 

Reachdesk decided to offer enhanced wellness and lifestyle perks to engage current employees and attract new talent. It’s demonstrated that employees who feel valued personally and professionally at work have higher rates of engagement, and 87% of employees consider health and wellness packages when choosing where to work today.  

Building competitive perks programs

Today, eligible team members receive a pre-funded Visa card to use directly for spending.  Utilizing Benepass’s capabilities for enhanced customization, the organization can offer several unique pillars with different amounts, contribution schedules, and expiration dates. The categories include: 

• Wellness: Fitness, nutrition, mental health, physical health, reproductive health, parental support, and cosmetic care
• Professional enrichment: Classes, courses, books, digital subscriptions, and conferences
• Work from home: Home office furniture, tech accessories, and phone/internet utilities

Funds are not spent until employees make a purchase, allowing Reachdesk to incur cost savings while still offering 100% of the benefit. For example, employees receive $150 per month in the wellness category. The funds then expire at the end of the quarter if unused. 

These perks have acted as a huge competitive edge during recruiting. “I have seen people’s eyes light up. They get excited thinking about the ways that they can use their stipend to explore new programs, classes, or products,” Chelsea said.

Partnering with Benepass

“We see Benepass as a critical component within our HR tech stack.” - Chelsea Williams, Head of People Experience

Reachdesk’s partnership with Benepass has allowed the company to achieve many goals, including: 

Aligning benefits with company values

When examining vendors, Chelsea wanted to stay true to the five principles that guide Reachdesk’s approach to benefits design. These principles are: relevant, easy-to-use, personalized, equitable, and meaningful. With these values in mind, Reachdesk was looking for a vendor that had a great user interface, global parity, and customization that allowed for a more personalized approach. 

“Your definition of wellness could be very different from mine, so we want to allow for that exploration and that personalization,” Chelsea said.

The flexibility offered by Benepass has allowed the People Experience team to say yes to employees nearly every time. “We love that Benepass allows us to say yes to our employees. We are always getting asked, ‘Is this an eligible expense?’ And 99% of the time we get to say ‘yes!’” Chelsea said.  

Creating a user-friendly experience

Benepass’s user-friendly approach has allowed employees to easily log in online or on their phones to check policies, balances, and monitor expiration dates.

“It’s a poor employee experience to have a ton of disjointed systems and tools to use. We wanted our HR tech stack to be very simple and streamlined,” Chelsea said. 

The company’s policies are directly encoded into the Benepass platform, which approves or denies charges based on Reachdesk’s unique benefit template. This simplifies the experience for employees and allows them to purchase eligible items anywhere. 

Providing global parity 

As a small team, Chelsea needed a vendor that could take over most of the administration and was experienced in handling currency exchange and global teams. Benepass’s Visa-backed card and reimbursement-free approach allowed ease of use no matter what country employees are in. 

“Many vendors I explored were very U.S. focused,” noted Chelsea. Benepass ensures global benefit parity by giving all employees, regardless of location, access to local vendors that can provide them with meaningful services and products. 

Scaling benefits as the company grows 

The team also wanted a vendor that was “very innovative and would grow with us in the future,” Chelsea said. “I am excited to learn about the future of benefits through being a partner of Benepass.” 

Benepass’s flexibility has allowed the team to quickly add new programs such as charitable donations to support the war in Ukraine. “It was a shockingly easy thing to ask Benepass to turn a switch on,” Chelsea said. 

Key results

“Your definition of wellness could be very different from mine, so we want to allow for that exploration and that personalization.” - Chelsea Williams, Head of People Experience

• Benefits aligned with company mission: Benepass’s values aligned with the values that Reachdesk holds for HR benefits. 
• Increased flexibility: Giving employees more choice in how they use their wellness dollars has led to higher engagement and satisfaction. 
• Global benefit parity: Global employees can easily use their Visa card to spend funds and receive the same level of benefits as U.S. employees. 
• Low administrative burden: The Benepass platform is easy to set up, implement, scale, and change as needed. Benepass also communicates and supports employees directly, taking a load off the HR team’s plate. The Benepass platform and Visa card eliminate the need for reimbursements and expense report tracking. 
• New tool for retention and recruitment: The company’s ability to deliver flexible benefits has been a great tool in a difficult recruiting market.