Dive Brief:

• When it comes to global pension and benefit management, multinationals are making steady progress, according to a new Willis Towers Watson report.
• The Current and Emerging Global Benefit Themes survey found that nearly half (47%) of multinationals surveyed say they are in the later stages of development of their global benefit strategies, an increase of 12 percentage points from two years ago.
• Despite that progress, however, over 78% claim they continue to be under pressure to do more with less, and 66% suggest cost pressures will be worse this year. So the report represents a mixed bag for these employers.

Dive Insight

Survey respondents blame strained resources and a lack of strategic focus and efficiency for their struggles. Nearly three in five (58%) say their day-to-day activities limit their ability to add value to their company’s global employee benefit program.

“It’s clear the purse strings are not getting any looser within multinational companies, yet somehow global benefit directors are finding a way to continue the development of their programs,” says Brian Makuck, of Willis Towers Watson.

Even with that negative news, survey results do indicate some optimism over how multinationals are developing their approach to global benefits. Three-quarters claim that involvement of global or regional headquarters in pensions and employee benefits is increasing, while over half believe there is now a meaningful link between the role of pensions and employee benefits and the company’s employee value proposition and values.