Friends with Benefits: Episode 1 – The one where David and Carl started a podcast about employee benefits

Summary

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In the very first episode of Friends with Benefits, Carl and David kick things off by diving into the tangled world of employee benefits and why it’s getting harder for companies to get it right.

They share their own career journeys, but more importantly, they lay the foundation for the conversations to come: honest chats with reward leaders, brokers, and consultants who are shaping the future of work.

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Topics on the table:

• The growing role of AI in HR
• Personalisation vs. standardisation, can you do both?
• Why global economic pressure is forcing companies to rethink their benefits strategy

From global regulations to shifting employee expectations, they unpack the pressures facing today’s HR and reward leaders, and tee up what listeners can expect from future episodes: fresh thinking from across the benefits landscape, including brokers, consultants, and in-house experts.

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02:00 – Why This Podcast Exists

They share the need for more open, practical conversations in the reward space.

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“We want to create a forum that brings down paywalls and shares what’s really happening.”

“We nerd out about this stuff in our spare time—why not share it with the world?”

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03:00 – The Complexity of Benefits

A discussion on how surprisingly complex benefits are, especially at global scale.

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“Every day is still a school day even after 25 years.”

“We underestimated how hard it would be to solve this.”

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04:00 – Why Benefits Are Under-Leveraged

Despite being a top people cost, benefits are still undervalued by the C-suite.

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“It’s remarkable how many companies still treat benefits like a checkbox.”

“Benefits can be 10–30% of payroll and yet, some reward leaders don’t even know what’s in their plans.”

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06:00 – The Role of Employee Expectations

They explore generational shifts and rising expectations for more personalised, supportive benefits.

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“There’s now an expectation that employers will meet people at their life milestones.”

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08:00 – What’s Coming Up on the Podcast

Teasers for upcoming guests.

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“We’re not just speaking to big names we’re talking to the people doing the hard work.”

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10:00 – Themes to Watch For

They spotlight major topics to be covered in future episodes:

• AI in HR
• Proving ROI
• Personalisation vs. Standardisation
• Engagement and education
• Healthcare inflation
• Broader reward strategy

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“You can’t talk about ROI unless you give people real choice and help them use it well.”

“If you offer flexibility, you have a responsibility to educate.”

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17:00 – The AI Question

How AI could reshape employee benefits—from backend automation to smarter employee support.

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“Agent AI could change how people access and use benefits—it’s not about replacing people, it’s about making them more impactful.”

“Imagine logging in, saying ‘I hurt my ankle,’ and the AI takes care of everything—that’s where we’re heading.”

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21:00 – Benefits Confessions

The hosts share personal stories from early missteps in their careers.

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“I once priced a football club’s benefits 500% higher…because I’m a rival fan.”

“We were naive in the early days—we didn’t realise how messy benefits really are.”

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23:00 – Closing Thoughts

Listen to the podcast on Spotify, Youtube, Apple Podcast.