Crunchbase Reaches 95% Cumulative Engagement Rate With User-Friendly Benefits

Background

Crunchbase is a provider of private-company prospecting and research solutions. With a diverse, remote-first population of employees working from 16+ U.S. states, Crunchbase aims to offer inclusive benefits that help employees live their best lives—whether that means offering stipends for childcare, pet-sitting services, or coworking space. Through expansive benefits, the company’s goal is to meet employees where they are and allow them to use their benefits on items and services that bring them joy. 

Investing in a user-friendly platform with strong customer support 

“We were searching for something where the system really was much more user-friendly and allowed us the convenience to decide what we wanted as a company to offer to our employees.” - Rachel Davis, Director of Employee Experience and Organizational Development

Although Crunchbase provided a rich selection of benefits, they weren’t always easy for employees to access and use. When using the company’s previous benefits administration platform, employees and admins struggled with lackluster customer support and low responsiveness. Cards often declined, and employees lacked visibility into why transactions were denied. Reimbursements were also tedious to submit, leading to low levels of engagement. 

“It wasn’t a very user-friendly platform,” said Rachel Davis, Director of Employee Experience and Organizational Development. “Most people’s cards would get denied all of the time, and so really it ended up being more of a reimbursement platform. And even then through the reimbursement, it just became a very difficult process that people avoided. They weren’t even using the benefits that we were offering them because the system was so bad.”

As the team began searching for a new benefits partner, they prioritized finding a user-friendly system and top-notch customer support that employees could rely on if they had questions or needed assistance. During their evaluation process, they were drawn to Benepass’s emphasis on transparency, communication, and collaboration. 

“The customer service piece has been phenomenal,” Rachel said. “If our employees get something denied, it’s very clear that it’s because they were missing a receipt or the dollar amount got cut off. They never come to us and ask questions on what happened because the customer service is such a great communication tool for them.” 

Improving engagement with flexible benefits programs 

“We try to make our benefits as expansive as we can so that we can help people wherever they’re at in their life. We want them to be doing whatever it is that brings them joy.” - Ashtynn Lawson, People Operations Manager

The Crunchbase team evaluated multiple vendors for their platform capabilities, ease of use, and customer service. They were drawn to the flexibility and customization Benepass offered—while their previous system limited employees to spend their wellness dollars on specific gym memberships and equipment, employees could now spend their benefit on pet care, childcare, mental health, and more. 

“The system allowed us to open up and expand the offerings that we’re able to give employees,” Rachel said. “That has been very well received by our employees and it’s been great to be able to offer that in such a seamless process for them.” 

 In January 2023, the team rolled out the following flexible benefits to employees:

• Work From Home: Equipment and furnishing, coworking 
• Wellness: Fitness, nutrition, mental health, spa and beauty, parental expenses, and pet care
• Internet & Phone: WiFi, internet, and phone expenses
• Learning and development: Work-related professional development, student loan repayment, travel (airfare, hotel, car rental, rideshare), and food purchases during conference attendance

By the end of the year, 95% of Crunchbase employees had engaged with their Benepass benefits. Employees value the flexibility to tailor their benefits to their individual needs, and the Crunchbase team enjoys giving employees the freedom to spend on items and services that make the most impact on their lives. 

“Everybody’s in a different journey on their lives in a different part of their lifecycle,” Rachel said. “So being able to offer one thing to our employees for them to be able to use for what they currently need has been really great.” 

Optimizing benefits programs through in-depth data

“We are monitoring what people are utilizing it for and then getting feedback from them on what else they would like to utilize it for so we can continue to expand our offerings within Benepass, which is just so seamless to do.” - Rachel Davis, Director of Employee Experience and Organizational Development

The Crunchbase team is always aiming to help employees get the most out of their benefits programs, using Benepass’s reporting and analytics functions to ensure they are meeting employee needs. 

For example, the team finds it helpful to understand how employees are interacting with their various benefits so they can gain insight into how much people are spending throughout the year and if there are times of the year when usage spikes. This information helps the team budget, determine rollover amounts, and provide spending recommendations. 

“The data is useful to have, especially on the learning and development front, to see who’s using it, what departments might be using it more, and if we could give more ideas to managers about how to use it,” said Ashtynn Lawson, People Operations Manager. “Helping those managers decide if there’s certain conferences they might want to go to, it’s useful to have that insight so we can make recommendations of how they can develop their skills more together.” 

In the future, the team is eager to expand their offerings within Benepass and give employees even more freedom over their spending so they can have what they need to enhance their daily lives. 

“We’re going to continue pushing toward the Live Your Best Life motto and continue expanding it,” Ashtynn said. “We want people to be able to use the different benefits in a way that makes their lives better.”

Key results 

“People love their Benepass dollars. It’s just so easy to use. Employees like to use the app or the card and know if they just swipe it, it works.” - Ashtynn Lawson, People Operations Manager

• Increased flexibility and engagement: With more freedom to spend their benefits on items and services that match their individual wants and needs, 95% of Crunchbase employees engaged with their benefits in 2023. 
• Intuitive, user-friendly platform: After switching to Benepass, Crunchbase employees enjoy an easy-to-use platform that provides visibility into transaction decisions and makes it seamless for employees to access and spend their benefits. 
• Excellent customer service: The Crunchbase team trusts Benepass to quickly resolve issues, answer employees’ questions, and work with them to continuously optimize their benefits programs. ‍
• Robust program data: Using Benepass’s admin reporting capabilities, the Crunchbase team gains valuable insights into employee spending behavior so they can accurately budget and improve engagement over time.