Prudential adds value for Singapore SMEs with an innovative digital ecosystem: Pruworks

Pruworks is a seamless digital platform helping SMEs grow their business as well as attract and retain talents.

When it comes to attracting and retaining talent, small-and-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are often at a disadvantage against multinational firms. Large companies can offer attractive employee packages and plenty of other perks, which are often prohibitively expensive for SMEs. To address this disparity, Prudential Singapore has set up Pruworks, a digital ecosystem designed to help SMEs grow their business as well as retain employees.

“SMEs are an underserved market in need of such solutions catered to their size and budget. Many SMEs do not even offer insurance to their employees or have dedicated HR functions looking after employee benefits and engagement. These are must-haves in the modern workplace,” explained Dennis Ng, Prudential’s Regional Head of Enterprise Strategy.

Pruworks is the first platform of its kind ever offered by an insurer in Singapore. This one-stop digital shop gives business owners, HR teams and employees easy and convenient access to insurance, employee benefits and business solutions through a seamless digital experience. This innovative system allows for easy tracking of insurance claims and employee benefits online as well as access to value-added services such as financing options or wellness programmes.

Responding to market needs
A survey conducted by Prudential Singapore in April 2018 revealed that more than 50% of SMEs do not have group life insurance¹, while up to 43% do not have group medical insurance. SMEs surveyed said insurance plans were too expensive for their small company size and that employee benefits were not a priority. This is an alarming trend, given that SMEs make up more than 99% of businesses and employ up to 65% of the workforce in the country.²

“This is why we have partnered business associations and technology companies to bring a range of services that are convenient and cost-effective for SMEs in a single digital platform,” said Ng.

Backed by an initial investment of S$3 million, Pruworks is designed for SMEs with an annual turnover of up to S$100 million and headcount of between three and 200 employees. Since the launch of Pruworks in June 2018, Prudential has onboarded more than 200 SME customers and aims to increase this number to 5,000 by the end of 2019.

To help SMEs protect their employees and business, Prudential offers insurance plans that provide coverage catered to a company’s size, needs and budget. With the assistance of its Financial Consultants, SMEs can choose plans that offer the best coverage to fit their needs.

Through Pruworks, business owners and HR personnel can easily adjust insurance coverage based on employee movement. In turn, employees have mobile access to a benefits portal which allows them to submit and make claims easily and at anytime.

“Prudential is the first insurer to develop an employee benefits platform and offer coverage plans that meet the needs of the smallest of enterprises. Furthermore, as insurance solutions are provided by Prudential itself, we can be more nimble in meeting the evolving needs of customers,” said Ng.

Innovative value-added services also offers easy access to a sales portal where through a simple four-step process, one can select plans, add employees, enter their company information and hit submit. This enables a faster response and easier conversations to conversions by reducing the number of meetings by the customer with their financial consultant. An HR portal is also available to help HR managers take charge of managing insurance policies by providing an overall view of employee coverage.

The system also features an employee portal with mobile-friendly access allowing employees to view their insurance coverage and easily find the nearest panel clinic. They can also submit claims by uploading and submitting a picture of the receipt. Beyond insurance, SMEs can also enjoy complimentary access to the Health Promotion Board (HPB) SME Health+ Initiative that features programmes on chronic disease management, healthy eating, active living and mental well-being.

“We plan to roll out more value-added services on Pruworks in the areas of productivity and innovation, promoting entrepreneurship and addressing the needs of an ageing population. These are all areas that directly affect SMEs as they look for growth opportunities in a tight labour market,” Ng said.

Pull out quote: Pruworks is a digital platform designed to help SMEs grow their business and attract and retain employees.
To find out more about Pruworks, speak to your Prudential Financial Consultant or visit www.prudential.com.sg/pruworks.

1 Group life insurance covers critical illness, permanent disability income, term insurance while group medical provides coverage for hospitalisation & surgical, General Practitioner (GP) outpatient, specialist outpatient and dental services.

2 https://www.singstat.gov.sg/~/media/Files/visualising_data/infographics/economy/singapore-economy22032018.pdf