Improving Financial Wellness and Retention Across HII’s 44,000-Employee Workforce

Client Background 

HII is America’s largest shipbuilder and a global, all-domain defense provider. With a more than 135-year history of advancing U.S. national defense, HII is united by it’s mission in service of the nation, creating the advantage for it’s customers to protect peace and freedom around the world. HII’s diverse workforce includes skilled tradespeople; artificial intelligence, machine learning (AI/ ML) experts; engineers; technologists; scientists; logistics experts; and business professionals, all at varying life and financial stages.

About Our Aerospace & Defense Client 

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Going Beyond the Paycheck 

HII prioritizes employee financial wellness, previously offering two 401(k) loan options. However, leadership recognized that this approach was unintentionally hindering employees’ ability to retire on time. 

In support of long-term financial stability and retirement readiness, HII reduced the offering to one loan, and this left a gap for employees with varying financial needs and borrowing abilities. To provide inclusive benefits that went beyond the paycheck, HII partnered with Purchasing Power.

Purchasing Power’s unique employee purchase program has helped employees responsibly stretch their budget further when facing large, unexpected expenses. They can buy what they need when cash, access to affordable credit, or taking on more debt are not viable options, leading to reduced financial stress and increased employee sentiment.

Purchasing Power is easy to implement and supports day-to-day financial wellness without compromising long-term goals.

“We’re not just here to provide a paycheck; we want to be the best employer we can be.”
— Kimberly Csan, Corporate Director of Benefits, HII

Making a Difference in the Lives of Employees 

HII is deeply committed to making a meaningful difference in the lives of its employees, on and off the job site. Recognizing that financial stress can impact both well-being and performance, HII has made financial wellness a core part of its employee experience.

“HR leaders should be coming to the table each day, going ‘What can we do to make a difference in our employees’ lives?’” Kimberly Csan, Corporate Director of Benefits at HII

Today, HII and Purchasing Power partner together to provide a dependable solution to help their teams create healthier spending habits, provide access to essential goods and services, and improve overall financial wellness. With transparent pricing, no interest, and simple payroll deduction.

Here’s what employees in transportation and logistics say about the value of Purchasing Power:^*

NPS SCORE: 52 

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The Value of Purchasing Power at HII 

To launch Purchasing Power and gain program adoption, HII and Purchasing Power teams focused on engaging internal campaigns, centered on helping employees understand how the program could meet immediate financial needs without jeopardizing their long-term goals. 

The value to HII? Employees who say they are less likely to use retirement savings, a higher engagement among the population who needs our program the most, awareness of the program at their time of need, and employees who use Purchasing Power are less likely to leave HII. 

• By providing access to essential goods and services through Purchasing Power, HII employees who used the program said they were 72% less likely to borrow from their retirement savings. 
• Purchasing Power and HII have worked together to ensure that employees who need it the most stay aware of the program, and now 19.3% of the highest-benefit population use the program. 
• And HII has seen a measurable impact on its retention, with employees using Purchasing Power being 14.5% more likely to stay.

^{*2024 Transportation & Warehousing Purchasing Power Value as a Benefit Survey responses.}