The Workplace Financial Health Challenge is a fantastic initiative from JPMorgan focusing on “innovative workplace financial health solutions that can measure the impact and performance of these services within diverse work environments, including underserved populations”.
The application process is now closed and the five winners to participate in the challenge were recently announced.
What I love about the selected group of companies is they each bring their own flavour and combination of people, process and technology to deliver an improved customer experience. It is a harmonic approach that leverages the key strengths of each of the pillars.
The cohorts, outlined here, are as follows:
- Brightside (San Francisco, CA) is a personalized financial health platform providing employees one place to go for all their financial needs.
- HoneyBee (San Francisco, CA) helps employees, regardless of credit history, access an extra week’s pay anytime to help manage unplanned expenses and build credit.
- Manifest (Chicago, IL) makes 401(k) transfers seamless as employees switch positions by standardizing the process and linking providers to dramatically reduce administrative costs, compliance liabilities, and time.
- MedPut (New York, NY) is an employee benefit option that provides 0% financing and bill negotiation services for out-of-pocket medical bills, with no impact to an employee’s credit score.
- Onward (Kansas City, MO) is an employer-based mobile savings and credit app that enables workers to save effortlessly, build financial knowledge, and access responsible credit when emergencies strike.
“This year we were looking for solutions to improve financial health in the workplace,” said Jennifer Tescher, founder and CEO of CFSI. “Engaging with workers in the context of getting paid, buying health insurance and saving for retirement represents a powerful opportunity. For employers, helping improve the financial wellness of their workforce can increase productivity, improve retention and engender loyalty that ultimately accrues to the bottom line.”
Really looking forward to seeing what each member of the lab brings to the table within an area that is currently very much under-served.