Maslow in iProfesional: corporate benefits, key on Children's Day
iProfesional highlights how corporate benefits have become a key tool for companies to support their employees on special dates like Children's Day.
Article published in iProfesional in August 2024.
Why corporate benefits are key for Children's Day gifts
While inflation has been slowing its pace, salaries have not recovered their lost purchasing power. That's why this year, corporate benefits can be the key to purchasing gifts or outings to celebrate boys and girls on their special day.
In previous years, leading companies with best practices leveraged this calendar event to show appreciation for their team members' children and build talent loyalty. Others went further, planning activities—usually with a recreational focus—to deliver added value to the families of their internal audience.
But with the loss of real wages over consecutive years, the benefit policies that many companies offer are no longer a "perk" or extra—they've become central to family budget planning. Through the perks they receive, employees have been able to cover periods with major expenses, or even their monthly grocery shopping.
"This year we're observing a very particular situation: 92% of employees in Argentina are worried about inflation and are struggling to make ends meet. We're no longer talking solely about wellbeing, wellness, or growth; now the focus is on monthly survival, a trend we've clearly identified," said Luciana Psenda, Marketing & PR Manager LATAM at benefits platform Bonda.
She confirms that company initiatives used to be more recreational, especially for Children's Day and other special occasions, but now beneficiaries are directly using them to cover essential expenses. According to Bonda's findings, 50% of the investment goes to supermarkets, while 30% is used for SUBE card top-ups, fuel purchases, and payment of essential services like electricity, gas, water, and monthly phone bills.
Maslow as a personalization platform
Diego Boryszanski, CEO of Maslow, a benefits personalization platform, agrees that "more and more companies are recognizing specific dates and celebrations as opportunities to show appreciation for their employees." In such cases, they contract platforms like these that, by segmenting the employee group with children and their ages, offer a digital solution that saves time and money on operational and logistical work—for example, delivering a gift.
Company examples
One company embracing this trend is Santander bank, which set up a toy store in its main building on Garay Street in Buenos Aires to facilitate early gift shopping. There were over 270 items available for purchase with bank benefits. Verónica Climent, Head of People Management and Security at Santander, mentioned that "as part of our flexible benefits program, we set up a toy store for 2 days in our Garay corporate building." The toy store was also made available on the virtual benefits platform.
Another example is Unipar, a chemical and petrochemical company, which offered discounts at toy stores, clothing retailers, bookstores, and restaurants within its benefits program. Natura and Avon Argentina also provided vouchers for employees with children between 0 and 12 years old, plus an extra day off during the celebration month.
Mario Falguieres, Chief People Officer at Blue Star Group, mentioned that for several years they've organized special activities with their internal #BSGkids community, including an annual Family Day inspired by the Olympic Games.
And from Supervielle, Casandra Giuliano shared that they decided to shift their focus: "Currently, we approach the topic by thinking about the childhood of each of our employees—we revisit that important part of their lives and 'gamify' it to generate interaction and a sense of pride and belonging within the Supervielle community."
What's clear is that Children's Day is increasingly being considered another opportunity for companies to connect with their employees on aspects that can add value to their personal lives.