Corporate welfare, a strategic lever to address the emergency and foster sustainable recovery

Corporate welfare emerged stronger from the COVID-19 crisis and affirmed itself as a strategic lever to address the emergency and foster Italy’s sustainable recovery. This is what emerged from the Welfare Index PMI report on the evolution of corporate welfare promoted by Generali Italia. The 2020 edition includes two surveys on COVID-19 impact and the link between welfare and financial results.

Albeit challenging, the current circumstances see a continuous growth of corporate welfare in Italian SMEs. The 2020 report highlights that corporate welfare improved significantly as a reaction to the COVID-19 emergency: for the first time, in fact, more than 50% of enterprises actively implemented corporate welfare measures, while 79% confirmed initiatives already in place and 28% introduced new initiatives or boosted existing ones.

Moreover, SMEs characterized by a more mature corporate welfare showed greater capacity to react to the economic and health crisis and proved to be a solid reference for the community. Healthcare, safety, assistance, employee training and educational support to families, work-life balance and support to parenting remain the main areas of intervention.

Finally, the Report highlights that corporate welfare helps businesses grow in terms of both productivity and employment. According to the new model of analysis applied to the impact that corporate welfare initiatives have on the balance sheets of 3,000 SMEs, in the last two years businesses that were more actively involved in welfare initiatives recorded the greatest increase in productivity (+6% against +2,1% on average) and employment (+11,5% against +7,5% on average).

Marco Sesana, Country Manager & CEO of Generali Italia and Global Business Lines, commented: “In the new context determined by the COVID-19 pandemic, through Welfare Index PMI we could observe that businesses acted as a social actor and not simply as a market or economic agent. This is because of their presence in the territory and the solidarity they showed to workers and families, which led to the creation of a new subsidiary welfare.” He also added: “The greater number of initiatives undertaken targets Italy’s priorities: healthcare, safety, assistance, training, and work-life balance. This confirms that not only is welfare strategic for business growth, but also that it will be a fundamental lever for the country’s sustainable recovery.”

The presentation event and the full report are available at the following link: https://www.welfareindexpmi.it/