The survey results tell a familiar story: Canadian organizations know what employees want but struggle to deliver it within budget. Flexibility and personalization top the list of improvement areas, with 59% of respondents identifying it as their primary gap.
While organizations calculate the upfront costs of implementing flexible benefits programs—the HR resources, technology platforms, vendor integration—there is also the ongoing cost of rigid, “one-size-fits-all” approaches to consider. Those hidden expenses add up: paying for coverage some employees don’t value, failing to provide what others actually value, in addition to turnover costs when people leave for benefits that better align with their preferences and lifestyle choices.
This is where perks programs come in, though not in the way many HR leaders might expect if they haven’t considered how they can support holistic wellbeing.
The middle ground
Between traditional benefits that everyone receives and fully flexible cafeteria-style plans that only 17% of organizations offer sits an overlooked option. Perks programs — when properly positioned and anchored to wellbeing — work as a strategic part of an organization’s Total Rewards. Not just perks as something to add in, but perks with purpose.
This matters because perks programs are the sweetener that addresses the flexibility gap and complements your existing wellbeing offers. They provide choice at a fraction of the cost, extending value across all life stages, career phases and workforce segments, including full-time employees, part-time employees, contractors and gig workers.
The math is straightforward. For example, when an employee saves $800 annually through discounts on auto and home insurance, fitness memberships, and everyday purchases like food and gasoline, that’s $800 more available for savings or toward things that matter to them and their family. No payroll increase required.
The 68% of survey respondents who identified flexible benefits as important for retention understand this. What fewer organizations grasp is how perks programs deliver that flexibility without the complexity and costs that keep cafeteria plans out of reach.
The key to successful perks programs
To start, you need to pick the right perks program. WorkPerks by Venngo is the premier service of its kind in Canada, and it was designed to support holistic wellbeing and deliver real value. WorkPerks is an evolving marketplace with many ways to save, including travel, entertainment, tech and more.
After 25 years, Venngo knows the biggest challenges for a successful program are communication and comprehension. Busy employees need WorkPerks fully integrated as part of their overall HR communications and processes. The survey found only 52% of HR professionals rate their benefits communication as effective. Employees need to be served information that is relevant to them personally. AI technology is here to help.
Successful programs require real integration. That means embedding WorkPerks signup and communications into onboarding, yes, but it goes further. It means highlighting brands that support women’s health initiatives during relevant internal communication campaigns. It means showing how perks can stretch health-care spending dollars during benefits re-enrollment. It means treating perks as a living part of Total Rewards, not a static discount list.
Basically, you are creating a workforce of perk champions who know the value of stretching every dollar and supporting their financial and overall wellbeing. WorkPerks extends to household family members too, so they can create good habits around saving money.
Research shows engagement with annual benefits updates can be as low as 30% to 40%. A fully integrated approach to communicating about wellbeing and how perks support that strategy is fundamental to success.
Something for everyone
What the survey couldn’t fully capture is how perks programs affect workplace culture. When done right, these programs signal something beyond their dollar value: the organization cares enough to provide flexibility for individual needs, not just what the majority requires.
Choice is good, and allowing employees to save on what matters to them at their life stage demonstrates a culture of care and meets the needs of your staff in a very practical way.
This hits differently across workforce segments. While contractors and gig workers may not qualify for extended health coverage, including them in perks programs creates inclusion and belonging. The survey found that 70% of organizations now offer remote or hybrid work, creating dispersed teams where traditional culture-building struggles. WorkPerks reaches all segments, including family members, at no extra cost, helping to maintain connection.
Recognizing that people have partners, children and aging parents who also benefit acknowledges employees’ lives beyond work. It’s a small gesture with an outsized impact.
Building the case
For organizations considering perks programs, the business case rests on three things: cost-effectiveness, measurable results and strategic positioning.
Unlike traditional benefits where the organization pays claims, perks programs like WorkPerks use collective buying power to secure discounts that employees access directly. The organization pays a low annual fee covering the administration, communication and program support, SOC 2, and all contracts, while employees capture the savings.
Even modest investments can deliver significant perceived value as savings add up across categories and with all family members participating. Partnering with a dedicated Customer Success team ensures your perk program achieves full adoption and delivers measurable success. Their expertise in onboarding, engagement and outcome tracking helps maximize value for both your organization and your employees.
Track the right metrics: how many employees use the program monthly, which categories get the most activity, and what estimated or actual savings employees realize. This data justifies continued investment and helps refine your approach. More importantly, it gives you tangible and intangible ROI when leadership questions the program’s value.
Position WorkPerks as an extension of your commitment to employee wellbeing and it goes beyond financial wellness and saving money. It supports physical wellbeing (e.g., fitness clubs, yoga classes), social wellbeing (e.g., a night out at the movies, fun family outings like Ripley’s, the ROM, family vacations, concerts) and mental wellbeing (e.g., numerous mental health and counselling programs).
A one-stop shop for all workers that supports holistic wellbeing benefits both the business and its people. When employees feel financially, physically, mentally and socially supported, they’re more engaged, productive and loyal. This translates into stronger performance, lower turnover and a healthier workplace culture — creating a win-win for staff and the organization.
Getting communication right
Even the best program delivers zero value if employees don’t know it exists or lack understanding of how to use it. That’s the central challenge.
Technology helps — program administration is getting easier with AI — but it won’t fix a flawed communication strategy entirely.
Effective communication moves away from making employees hunt for information. Instead, deliver personalized, timely messages based on what they’re doing and their life stages. For example, when someone searches for health offers, suggest complementary wellness resources. When they’re having a child or buying a home, highlight relevant perks categories.
The survey found organizations use multiple channels: onboarding sessions (62%), benefits provider materials (52%), intranets (49%) and newsletters (49%). The issue isn’t having enough channels. It’s about message relevance and timing.
Real examples work better than category lists. Share how colleagues saved money on cell phone plans, a weekend getaway or found fitness equipment deals. These stories make abstract benefits concrete and show people it’s normal to use the program. Sharing savings stories internally on Slack, Teams and other internal channels will encourage usage and awareness.
What’s ahead
Looking forward, 31% of survey respondents identified flexible and personalized benefits as most likely to grow in importance over the next two to three years — the highest percentage among all categories. Organizations that dismiss perks programs as peripheral miss how they deliver exactly what employees increasingly demand.
The workforce is changing fast. By some estimates, 40% will be poly-workers, gig workers and remote workers. The future workforce will be global, more diverse and include five generations expecting personalization and wellbeing support.
Traditional benefits designed for full-time permanent employees working on-site can’t meet these diverse needs. Perks programs extend value across all segments. They provide choice without requiring everyone to value the same things.
The competitive edge belongs to organizations that see perks programs as strategic, not superficial — as essential to modern Total Rewards, not nice-to-have extras.
Moving forward
The survey revealed only 6% of organizations are very satisfied with their benefits program’s comprehensiveness. That gap creates opportunity.
Perks programs won’t solve every benefits challenge. They don’t replace core health coverage or eliminate the need for mental health support. But they fill a gap and complement your wellbeing strategy, providing flexibility and choice at a reasonable cost while supporting diverse needs across life stages.
For the 41% of organizations planning to expand perks in the next year, success depends on positioning and a fully integrated communication plan, not just implementation. Programs launched with a clear strategy and ongoing management deliver value. Programs launched in isolation and communicated once join the graveyard of underutilized benefits employees technically have but never use.
The real question isn’t whether organizations can afford perks programs. It’s whether they can afford not to, given the pressure to deliver flexibility without budget increases, retain talent in competitive markets and show real commitment to employee wellbeing.
Leadership responds to two things: staying competitive for talent and spending dollars cost-effectively. Once they understand that perks programs deliver flexibility while maximizing Total Rewards value, traditional approaches that ignore this gap become harder to justify.
Canadian organizations stand at a turning point. They recognize what employees need. They understand the importance of flexibility. The gap is in execution — finding cost-effective ways to deliver choice without overwhelming complexity.
Perks programs, when strategically anchored to wellness and actively managed, are one answer. Not the only answer, but an important piece of the flexible benefits approach that modern workforces will truly value.
