Engineering financial confidence: 30% increase in retirement contributions

• Industry: Technology
• No. of employees: 15,000 +
• Countries: 160+

The challenge

Siemens builds the technologies that shape what comes next, and it expects the same forward thinking from how it looks after its people, across a workforce of thousands of people in more than 160 countries.

One problem stood out. Analysis showed 83% of employees were on course to fall short of a comfortable retirement income, and saving for retirement was their single biggest financial worry. Siemens had invested heavily in pension communications before, but behavior hadn't moved. Left unchecked, that risked an aging workforce unable to retire and fewer pathways for the younger talent coming up behind them.

Siemens wanted a partner who could fix that and build something durable enough to keep flexing as the world of money kept changing.

The solution

Siemens chose nudge for impartial, personalized guidance, free of any product or provider bias and localized to each market.

The partnership started with the retirement problem. Working with nudge, Siemens applied behavioral science to redesign its retirement scheme, introducing enhanced company-matched contributions aimed at the groups who needed them most. It paired that with highly personalized prompts, tailored to each person's age, salary and contribution level, so the message landed differently for a graduate than for someone a decade out from retirement. Siemens also lined up its internal campaigns with nudge and its pension provider, so people hear one consistent message at the points where a decision actually gets made.

That foundation proved its worth as conditions shifted. When the pandemic and then the cost-of-living squeeze changed what employees needed, the program was already in place to respond, with virtual masterclasses and timely guidance building resilience through each new pressure rather than scrambling to catch up.

Since 2018 it has matured into an always-on part of Siemens' wider people strategy, sitting alongside physical and mental wellbeing and built around the moments that matter in a working life, from onboarding and early careers through to benefits windows and retirement planning. An early careers money masterclass now runs as a module inside Siemens' development program for new talent.

To reach a workforce this varied, Siemens leaned on its employee networks, channeling guidance through communities so it felt relevant rather than generic. Behavioral-science-led prompts, masterclasses and webinars keep people coming back, and the program is refined continually against real engagement data. 

The results

• 2,500+ employees increased their retirement contributions
• 30% increase in contributions from a third of employees
• 68% of employees feel more connected to Siemens as an employer
• 73% feel more confident about their financial future
• 72% felt more able to achieve life goals
• 16% less likely to leave if using nudge
• 97% all-time interaction rate
• 91% platform usage among registered employees