New York, NY, November 15, 2018 – As part of its broader strategic plan and continued commitment to participant education, UBS Equity Plan Advisory Services (EPAS) announced the release of a robust financial wellness digital content offering to participants1.
Earlier this year, EPAS announced the launch of a reimagined and education-focused digital user experience to their 800,000+ participants. This evolution anchored on improving the overall user experience, serving up simple, relevant, engaging and interactive educational content and focused on empowering participants to use their awards to have a greater impact on their financial lives. This new enhancement further expands the resources available to participants1 while also positioning the firm to deliver on a broader workplace wellness solution to employees.
Bringing the power of financial wellness to participants1
The firm gathered qualitative data from its corporate clients and participants to determine their needs and wants, which helped to inform and validate its strategy. This also included researching a wide-range of HR related topics, such as factors that drive employee retention, motivation and length of service.
"Our findings were clear. Clients were extremely interested in providing non-monetary benefits such as greater access to financial literacy trainings, personal finance tools and general education that could help advance their employees' overall well-being. Their feedback was instrumental in shaping a multi-faceted learning experience for participants1 regardless of income, age, and current financial acumen," said Michael Barry, Head of UBS Equity Plan Advisory Services at UBS Financial Services Inc.
In addition to showcasing the firm’s own thought leadership, EPAS sought out a slate of non-traditional content partners to collaborate with including Napkin Finance®, Aon Equity Services and Imprint, to create a variety of content that gives participants interesting, yet simple ways to get practical knowledge about equity compensation and their money. The primary aim of this new content offering is to make the financial lives of participants' better, by connecting them with the information they need to boost progress to their broader financial goals.
"Collaborating with UBS to bring their vision to life was a great opportunity for us. We appreciated the chance to further our mission of explaining financial concepts in a unique and simple way, and empowering people to take charge of their finances," said Tina Hay, Founder of Napkin Finance®.
The new content experience delivers a variety of videos, infographics, articles and gamified content to encourage engagement and empower employees1 to learn more about topics such as planning, budgeting, saving, managing debt, investing, retirement and more.
"We know that people have an avalanche of information coming at them, so an important consideration in the content we serve up was to make sure it was relevant, "snackable" and easy to consume," said Peter Vincent, Head of Employee Wealth Services at UBS Financial Services Inc.
The workplace of the future
The debut of the financial wellness digital content is only a step towards a broader workplace financial wellness rollout that goes beyond equity plan participants. Beginning with this launch, UBS intends to deliver a comprehensive set of workplace wellness services and tools to the firm's existing corporate client base of over 10,000 clients, and plans to expand to prospective clients. The full offering will provide participants1 access to personalized financial assistance from licensed UBS Financial Advisors, starting with a wellness assessment followed by ongoing help to meet their unique needs. It will also include seminars and webinars to educate employees1 on a wide range of topics focused on building personal financial knowledge and healthier financial habits.
The workplace financial wellness launch is another milestone in UBS Wealth Management USA's broader commitment to expand services, solutions and tools to its clients, their employees, and the firm's Financial Advisors. Other strategic announcements and partnerships include: SigFig to develop a digital advice platform; Solium to deliver an industry leading platform for Global Equity Plan Administration; BlackRock to offer Aladdin Risk for Wealth Management for UBS Financial Advisors; and Broadridge to create a next-generation wealth management industry platform.
Notes to Editors
About UBS Equity Plan Advisory Services
UBS Equity Plan Advisory Services (EPAS) is a business unit within UBS Financial Services Inc. EPAS currently serves more than 180 corporate clients representing more than 800,000 equity plan participants in 150 countries. It provides both partial and full plan administrative services to corporate clients and access to advice1 and education to equity plan participants. According to third-party independent research, EPAS is ranked #1 for its ability to customize educational materials for participants, support participant education regarding plan details and value and its ability to add value through sharing best practices and suggesting solutions2.
About UBS
UBS provides financial advice and solutions to wealthy, institutional and corporate clients worldwide, as well as private clients in Switzerland. UBS' strategy is centered on our leading global wealth management business and our premier universal bank in Switzerland, enhanced by Asset Management and the Investment Bank. The bank focuses on businesses that have a strong competitive position in their targeted markets, are capital efficient, and have an attractive long-term structural growth or profitability outlook.
UBS is present in all major financial centers worldwide. It has offices in 52 countries, with about 34% of its employees working in the Americas, 34% in Switzerland, 18% in the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Africa and 14% in Asia Pacific. UBS Group AG employs approximately 61,000 people around the world. Its shares are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Media contact:
UBS Global Wealth Management – Americas
Laura Hastings
+1 212 882 5705
