SME Welfare Index awards us 4W Rating

Way2Global and more than 4,500 other Italian small and medium-sized enterprises have taken part in Italy’s biggest company benefit survey. The SME Welfare Index provides a snapshot of the current situation in company benefits in Italy’s SMEs, taking into account the breadth and nature of initiatives, originality and policies in place.

Based on a self-assessment questionnaire, the companies involved in the initiative are given a rating from 1W (for company benefit practices in the initial stages, covering fewer than three of the 12 areas considered) to 5W (advanced benefit practices across more than eight of the 12 areas).
As we’ve seen, there were 12 areas of company benefits taken into consideration. These benefits and services for employees range from social services and healthcare to work-life balance initiatives, financial support and continued development.

Companies who opt into the SME Welfare Index have the chance to measure the sustainability of their efforts, compare themselves to national averages and gain insight into best practices. However, it’s also an opportunity to identify weaknesses, address shortcomings and promote organic growth. The overall aim for companies is to showcase the effectiveness of their models and use this to give them a competitive edge.

The 2019 SME Welfare Index, organised by Generali in collaboration with Confindustria, Confagricoltura, Confartigianato and Confprofessioni and now in its fourth edition, was unveiled at the Salone della Fontane at EUR in Rome on 26 March. Minister for Parliamentary Relations Riccardo Fraccaro was among those in attendance.

The survey, which measured initiatives adopted by Italian SMEs in the key areas of employee benefits and satisfaction, revealed significant improvements compared to years gone by.
More specifically, it appears that in the last three years, companies have both broadened and intensified their benefits initiatives. While large companies (those with over 250 employees) have — for obvious reasons — an edge when it comes to implementing benefits policies, the most rapid growth is actually being achieved among Italy’s SMEs, with twice as many companies being described as “very active” in the field.

Companies are becoming more aware of their role in society and the positive impact that employee benefits can have on economic results. As a result, more and more entrepreneurs are embracing this cultural change. Planning and implementing a structured, long-lasting, strategic company benefits policy is a way of actively engaging with employees and securing positive returns in employee benefits and productivity.

The findings are heartening and confirm our view of the social role of companies while underlining the success of our benefits model. The fact that Way2Global was awarded a 4W rating once again proves the solidity of our benefits policies and practices, which covered over six of the 12 areas taken into consideration and are now deeply rooted within our business model.
It’s great news for us — we’ve always cared deeply about the happiness of our employees and work hard every day to systematically improve our performance in this area. It’s not just because we realise the positive impacts company benefits have on society and business growth, but also because this vision is an integral part of our identity and our Benefit Corporation ethos.

Just like you have to please yourself before you can please others, you also have to improve yourself because you can improve!