Per active employee or per head: how will we be charged?
This decides how much you pay for the people who never use the benefit. Providers usually charge in one of three ways.
Per head gives a predictable bill and pays for many people who never sign up. Per active employee costs nothing for the people who don't use it, and the bill grows only as take-up does. Whatever the model, ask how the bill changes when someone joins or leaves halfway through a month.
- Per head: a price for every employee on your headcount, whether they use it or not
- Per active employee: you pay only for the people who have activated the benefit
- A fixed fee for the company, often based on team size, usually with an annual contract
What minimum contract should we accept?
Ask three questions and get the answers in writing: is there a minimum number of people, a minimum term, and a notice period to leave? A minimum headcount can price a small team out, and a long term ties you to a benefit before you know whether people use it.
Ask too about set-up fees, price rises at renewal and what happens to employees' memberships if the company stops paying. A good provider answers all of this on one page. For teams under 20 people, our guide to employee wellbeing for small companies covers the rest.
What will the company see about its people?
The answer you want is aggregate data only. You need to know how many people use the benefit and how much; you don't need to know who trained, where or when. People use a benefit more when they know nobody at work is watching.
- Ask for a sample report before you sign
- Check that figures are hidden for teams so small that a number points to a person
- Ask who at the provider can see individual data, and what it is used for
- Make sure you can tell your people, in one sentence, what the company sees
How much choice do employees get?
A benefit people choose is a benefit people use. Check the range of activities, from gyms and pools to yoga, climbing and classes, and whether there are places near where your people live as well as near the office. Ask whether each employee can pick their own plan, and pay the difference to move up.
If your team is spread out or works from home part of the week, anything tied to one building or one chain will leave people out.
Look beyond access as well. A membership that comes with an app for workout plans, progress and team challenges gives people a reason to keep going after the first month, which is when most benefits quietly stop being used.
Can the provider set up discounts at gyms we choose?
Sometimes the best start is small: a few gyms near the office, chosen by the company, with a discount reserved for employees. Ask whether a provider can arrange this alongside a wider membership or on its own, and who talks to the gyms.
Ask about partner discounts too, on physiotherapy, nutritionists, events and shops. They give the benefit a reach beyond the gym, at little cost to the company.
How do employees sign up, and what happens when they leave?
Signing up should take minutes: an invite, an app, a plan chosen by the person. Every extra form costs you participation. Ask how you add and remove people, and how long it takes: if each change needs an email to an account manager, your list will be out of date by the third month.
Then check the other end. When someone leaves the company, when does the benefit stop, and can they keep it in their own name?
How does Yeki answer these questions?
Yeki Pass, our corporate gym membership, is charged per active employee: one charge a month, only for the people who have activated the Pass, with a list updated every month, and no minimum number of people. You add and remove people in a minute. The company covers the whole plan or part of it, and anyone who wants a higher plan pays the difference.
Employees get an invite, download the app and choose their plan and their places among gyms, studios, pools and sports centres. Plus is included, with team challenges between colleagues and offices and partner discounts on physiotherapists, nutritionists, events and shops. If you would rather start with a few gyms near the office, Yeki also sets up discounts for your employees at the gyms you choose.
The company sees only aggregate numbers: how many people have activated the Pass and how much they use it, never who, where or when. When someone leaves, their Pass stops at the end of the month and they can keep it going in their own name.
