The One with Will from Halfords: Why Benefits Lost Their Way — and How to Get People to Care Again | Ben
The One with Will from Halfords: Why Benefits Lost Their Way — and How to Get People to Care Again
What happens when employee benefits get too complicated, too noisy — and people stop caring?
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About the guest
Will Winter Smith is the Reward Director at Halfords, leading benefits strategy for over 13,000 colleagues across the UK and beyond. With two decades of experience in retail and financial services, he brings a no-nonsense, commercially smart approach to engagement, value, and communication — and isn’t afraid to call out what doesn’t work.
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Summary
In this episode of Friends With Benefits, we explore why traditional benefits strategies are no longer landing with today’s workforce. From private medical that “lost its way” to too many bolt-on products and confusing comms, Will shares a refreshingly honest look at what’s broken — and what actually gets people to engage.
Topics on the table:
- Why private medical benefits have “lost their way”
- Breaking down real barriers to access and engagement
- Cutting through the noise of too many products and platforms
- Why “we’re retailers to our colleagues”
- Communicating benefits like marketers, not administrators
- Making tough ROI calls and stopping what doesn’t work
- How AI fits in (if at all) for reward teams
00:00 — Engagement Is Key
"Engagement is key to everything that we do."
Will Winter Smith, Reward Director at Halford
03:00 — Private Medical Has Lost Its Way
“Private medical has lost its way a little. How much does it really help with that immediacy of need?”
08:00 — Product Overload and Noise
“Every insurance broker, every provider — it feels like everyone’s trying to offer some kind of wellbeing solution. One of the challenges employers have is: which one do you recommend?”
16:00 — Benchmarking and the Same-Same Trap
“I think it’s important to point out that most organizations we talk to are benchmarking what everyone else is doing. You end up with all these same-same programs.”
17:00 — We’re Retailers to Our Colleagues
“Effectively, as reward professionals, we are retailing to our colleagues.”
21:00 — Guerrilla Marketing and Disruptive Moments
“What you’ve really got to do is make your communication stand out. How can you really wow your colleagues?”
25:00 — ROI and Knowing When to Stop
“If it isn’t working and it’s expensive — stop it.”
31:00 — AI Is Like Teaching a Toddler Origami
“AI is like trying to teach a toddler origami. One minute you’re close to a swan — and then it decides it likes the boat and sticks with the boat.”
38:00 — Culture and Trust Around AI
“Some pretty strong comments have been made — things like, ‘I’m not really interested in what ChatGPT has to say about it, I’m more interested in your view.’”
Listen to the podcast on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcast.