Benefits platforms are making it easier for employees to understand, access and use their benefits. But new research suggests employers may not be making the most of the insight and communication capabilities these platforms can offer.
Research commissioned by employee benefits specialist Everywhen and conducted by Opinium among 500 UK HR decision-makers in January 2026 found that the most commonly cited advantages of benefits platforms are employee-facing.
More than a third (36%) of employers believe platforms make it easier for employees to see all their benefits in one place, while the same proportion say they make it easier for employees to make use of their benefits.
A further 34% value the ability for employees to access their benefits at any time, while 30% say platforms help employees make more informed personal decisions about which benefits to choose.
The findings suggest that platforms are succeeding in addressing one of the longstanding challenges of employee benefits: making a potentially complex package easier for people to navigate and use.
But the business benefits appear less well understood
The research reveals a less consistent picture when it comes to the value benefits platforms can provide to employers themselves.
Just 32% of employers say their benefits platform enables them to analyse and understand benefits utilisation, while only 28% cite benefits communication as an advantage.
That means fewer than one in three employers are identifying some of the platform capabilities that could help them make better strategic decisions about their benefits investment.
Modern benefits platforms can provide reporting and management information, potentially giving employers greater visibility of which benefits employees are using and where engagement is lower.
This insight could help organisations understand whether their benefits package is meeting workforce needs – and inform decisions about where investment should be maintained, changed or increased.
As Richard Doig, client director at Everywhen, puts it, employers should not underestimate the value platforms can bring “to the business as well as to the employees themselves”.
He argues that platforms can provide greater quantitative insight into employee needs and behaviours, helping businesses make more informed choices about which benefits to offer and where they can achieve the greatest return on investment.
Communication remains a missed opportunity
Communication is another area where employers appear to be underusing their platforms.
Only 28% of respondents identify benefits communication as an advantage, despite the role it can play in helping employees understand the support available to them.
A central platform can provide a single place for benefits information and updates, while also helping employers raise awareness of additional services such as wellbeing support, retail discounts and other value-added benefits that employees might otherwise overlook.
This matters because simply providing a benefit does not guarantee that employees will understand it or use it.
The easier benefits are to find and understand, the greater the potential for employees to engage with them – and for employers to see greater value from their investment.
Better engagement can benefit employers too
The research points to a wider opportunity: benefits technology can potentially strengthen the relationship between benefits provision, employee experience and wider organisational objectives.
When employees understand the full value of their benefits package – including through tools such as Total Reward Statements – they may be more likely to appreciate the support their employer provides.
That can contribute to engagement and loyalty, while a positive experience of benefits can also support recruitment through employee advocacy, referrals and word of mouth.
But these outcomes depend on employers going beyond simply making benefits available.
Is your platform doing everything it could?
For employers already using benefits technology, the research raises a useful question: are you making full use of the functionality you’ve already invested in?
Everywhen recommends that organisations regularly review how they are using their platform, including its reporting, communication and engagement capabilities.
As Doig concludes, a benefits platform should support the wider objectives of the business as well as the employee experience.
The opportunity, therefore, may be to stop thinking of a benefits platform simply as a digital shop window for employee benefits and start seeing it as a source of workforce insight.
Used effectively, the same technology that helps employees find and use their benefits could also help employers understand what their people value, identify gaps in provision and make more informed decisions about future investment.
The challenge is not simply to give employees better access to benefits, but to turn that access into better engagement, better insight and ultimately better decisions about how organisations support their people.
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