- Morgan Stanley at Work concluded marquee workplace financial
benefits industry event, Thrive, with largest attendance numbers to
date
- Key takeaways show organizations placing greater value on
comprehensive financial benefits, including equity
solutions
- Voice of the Participant 2024 survey confirms equity
compensation remains key driver of loyalty despite knowledge
gaps
Morgan Stanley at Work today announced takeaways from its annual
Thrive conference and Voice of the Participant survey, which
together demonstrate increasing demand for and adoption of
workplace financial benefits among both companies and their
employees. Findings show equity plans in particular continue to
gain popularity as a strategic method to attract, retain and
motivate top talent.
Underscoring this trend, the largest-ever 2024 Thrive conference
in Phoenix, Arizona, saw record attendance from 1,000+ benefits
professionals across public, private, U.S., and Canadian markets.
Attendees came from a variety of sectors including Information,
Health, Energy, Finance and more. Thought leaders presented topics
ranging from financial reporting and automation to non-qualified
deferred compensation and donor advised funds, while attendees
enjoyed the option to earn continuing education credits at 85% of
sessions, witness platform demonstrations, participate in hands-on
labs, and access 11 invited industry partner exhibitors.
The conference also introduced a new charitable giving activity,
Thrive Gives Back, where attendees hand-crafted over 200 backpacks
and reading supplies for donation to local charity HandsOn Greater
Phoenix’s Reading Rocks program, which alongside other initiatives
provides assistance to regional children in transitional and foster
care.
For Thrive highlights, watch here.
Within this widening ecosystem of benefits solutions, research
from Morgan Stanley at Work found more companies are offering some
form of equity compensation benefits (76%, up 12% since 2021)1 as
employee attitudes continue to evolve. Insights from the 2024 Voice
of the Participant study, which expanded to a base of 2.3 million
global stock plan participants at both private and public
companies, reveal:
- Equity benefits and education drive employee satisfaction
and retention: Stock plan benefits are highly sought-after,
with 43% of participants saying equity was a reason they joined
their company, and once participating, most (76%) stock plan
participants are highly satisfied. What’s more, over half (56%) of
stock plan participants cite equity benefits as a reason they
continue to work for their company, and seven in 10 say equity
benefits are important for recognizing their accomplishments at
work—underlining how stock plans can contribute to retention as
well as a culture of ownership.
- Yet U.S. participants seek plan education: 61% of U.S.
stock plan participants say they do not understand how to try to
maximize the financial benefit from their stock plan, showcasing
the need for more comprehensive financial education support. Most
U.S. participants say they would be likely to attend sessions on
the topics of equity fundamentals (69%), retirement (67%), and
advanced investing (64%).2
- Taxes remain a bottleneck: While employees highly value
their equity compensation, many still do not understand more
nuanced aspects such as taxes. In fact, 62% of stock plan
participants say they do not understand the impact of taxes on
their stock plan benefit—which can erode the net value of their
holdings.
- Companies can close gaps and add value through guidance:
Fewer than half of stock plan participants (45%) say they know how
to reach someone if they have questions, and less than a third
(31%) said they have a personal financial plan in place. This
indicates an opportunity to invest in greater employee awareness
and expand access to education, support, and guidance to help
employees connect their equity to personal financial goals.
“We’ve seen a consistent story in the data over the years:
Equity benefits can help drive real outcomes both for companies and
their employees, and have taken on a starring role in company
culture,” said Scott Whatley, Head of Morgan Stanley at Work.
“That’s why it’s so important to strike the right balance between
digital tools and human guidance, and why we have been working hand
in hand with our clients to create bespoke solutions that help
deliver education and guidance throughout their participant
ranks—rising to meet the unique needs of increasingly diverse and
global participant populations.”
Morgan Stanley at Work serves over 24,000 corporate clients and
~12M workplace participants, encompassing over 40% of the S&P
500 and roughly 60% of the Nasdaq 100.3 As announced at Thrive, the
Firm delivered over 1,300 education sessions to more than 125,000
benefits participants around the world in 2023, and is continuing
to roll out tech enhancements and updates—such as expanding
application programming interface (API) integration with leading
real-time compensation benchmarking and planning solutions provider
Pave to Equity Edge Online®. The business remains focused on
delivering a more unified client experience while also bolstering
service levels and staffing for deeper client and participant
support.
“As economic headwinds and tailwinds shift, organizations and
their employees continue to tell us that workplace financial
benefits are both a strategic priority and an effective tool for
pursuing goals, driving results, and remaining competitive,” said
Brian McDonald, Head of Institutional and Direct Businesses, Morgan
Stanley. “Putting clients first is one of Morgan Stanley’s core
values, and for us that means an ongoing commitment to invest in
and deliver our full ecosystem of solutions for comprehensive
support at every stage of our clients’ corporate and individual
financial journeys.”
To learn more about Thrive go here.
Additional findings from the Third Annual Morgan Stanley at Work
Stock Plan Participant study are available here.
- State of the Workplace Study 2024 | Morgan Stanley at Work
- Non-U.S. participants excluded from participant education plan
numbers.
- Statistics refer to equity compensation administration services
for Shareworks and Equity Edge Online®. S&P 500® Companies
Represented includes companies for which Morgan Stanley at Work
provides equity compensation solutions as of March 2023.
Methodology: The data from the Morgan Stanley at Work 2023
Annual Stock Plan Participant Survey comes from an in-house survey
of 2.3 million active global Morgan Stanley stock plan participants
(1.3M U.S. and 980K non-U.S. participants received the survey
email). The survey was conducted on behalf of Morgan at Stanley at
Work using an online survey on September 14, 2023, plus one
reminder email.
About Morgan Stanley at Work
Morgan Stanley at Work provides workplace financial benefits
that build financial confidence and foster loyalty—helping
companies attract and retain top talent. Our end-to-end solutions
support your organization at any stage of growth through a powerful
combination of modern technology, insightful guidance, and
dedicated service; they include Equity, Retirement, Deferred
Compensation, Executive Services, and Saving and Giving solutions.
And while we’re fulfilling your company’s benefits needs, we’re
also enhancing your employees’ financial well-being. Each benefit
solution also includes our engaging Financial Wellness program,
which provides employees with knowledge, tools, and support to help
them make the most of their benefits and achieve their life
goals.
About Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is a leading financial services
firm that provides access to a wide range of products and services
to individuals, businesses, and institutions, including brokerage
and investment advisory services, financial and wealth planning,
cash management and lending products and services, annuities and
insurance, retirement, and trust services.
About Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is a leading global financial services firm
providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, wealth
management and investment management services. With offices in 42
countries, the Firm’s employees serve clients worldwide including
corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. For
further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit
www.morganstanley.com.
Content and services available to non-US participants may be
different than those available to US participants. Morgan Stanley
Wealth Management is the trade name of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
LLC, a registered broker-dealer in the United States.
© 2024 Morgan Stanley at Work and Shareworks services are
provided by Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, member SIPC, and its
affiliates, all wholly owned subsidiaries of Morgan Stanley.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240624582042/en/
Media Relations Contacts: Lynn Cocchiola,
lynn.cocchiola@morganstanley.com Jeanne Joe Perrone,
Jeanne.Perrone@morganstanley.com
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