AMV BBDO Launches 'Life Changes' Benefit Scheme for All London Staff

AMV BBDO is launching a ground-breaking new company-wide benefit scheme to help staff through the different life changes they go through during their time at the company. This is part of a new employee value proposition that looks to people through the lens of individual and personal challenges in their lives outside work.

In a UK first, staff will be given a host of innovative benefits such as financial support towards egg freezing or fertility treatment, subsidy for transgender staff towards their transition costs, paid-for relationship break up and divorce counselling, paid 'pawternity leave' to settle in new pets, and £500 a month per child for childcare for one year.

Called the Life Changes programme, it’s a series of services and benefits to better support people to deal with the opportunities and life choices that might impact their everyday lives and hence affect their working lives, and as a result, build, strengthen and enhance company culture and staff attraction, engagement, and retainment.

AMV BBDO CEO Sam Hawkey says: “We recognised our lives had fundamentally changed during the pandemic. There was a greater realisation that two people could be doing the same job but have quite different needs depending on how things were changing in their lives. We recognised through conversation and feedback that, for us to build culture and to continue to excel creatively, we need individuals to be the best versions of themselves at work. So, we identified the types of benefits and services that would support staff to navigate all the curve balls and obstacles they might encounter outside of the office."

The support programme is divided into four key areas: Freedom, Nurture, Transform and Safety.

Under the “Freedom” set of benefits, agency staff can now work remotely for up to eight weeks a year, either because they are originally from overseas, or because they’d like a change of scenery. Staff who have worked for AMV BBDO for five years or more will be rewarded for their loyalty with five weeks paid leave a year, plus the opportunity to take a paid sabbatical for every five years of service. On a similar tip, all employees can take up to 18 months unpaid leave to pursue whatever dreams they have outside of work, whether that’s to travel, study or set up a business. It’s hoped the additional skills and experiences acquired will enhance AMV BBDO’s company culture and business.  

More prosaically, people can also take up to two months paid leave for mental health issues or medical problems, with costs for most mental health management covered by BUPA. In severe cases, AMV BBDO will cover all costs.

In the raft of new measures under the 'Nurture' category, anyone caring for pets, children, teenagers, the elderly, the disabled, the neurodiverse or those with chronic medical conditions will be given access to the likes of parenting coaching, wellbeing training, mental health practitioners, GP services and elder care advice.

People going on maternity leave, shared parental leave and adoption leave will all receive 100% pay for up to six months. AMV is also offering primary caregivers returning from family leave £500 a month net payment per child for one year. And even pet owners are being given one week paid ‘pawternity’ leave, plus a further two weeks working remotely to settle in furry friends.

People going through relationship breakdowns and divorce will be provided with paid-for specialist counselling and guidance and those going through the perimenopause or menopause will get paid-for menopause advice from medically trained specialist. Meanwhile, those trying to conceive are being offered fertility counselling and time off for IVF treatment, miscarriage, adoption, and surrogacy. Staff are being offered a £2,000 subsidy towards fertility treatment such as IVF and egg freezing.

Transgender staff are also being offered counselling, training, and a £2,000 subsidy towards transitioning.

Under 'Safety', entry level staff are being offered a £5,000 interest free loan when they move to London to take up their new role, all staff are being offered responsible advances on their salary to cover emergencies or flexibility in when they get paid and in what frequency, and all staff can access free financial literacy workshops and advice, as well as free mortgage and equity advice and advice around the legal and financial elements of divorce and separation.

There’s also free advice on setting up a business, in AMV BBDO’s strongly held belief that setting up a side hustle encourages innovation and creative thinking, as well as improving and increasing business skills, which is all beneficial to its business and company culture. 

“In time, we will see a natural improvement in retention, greater levels of staff satisfaction and higher levels of wellbeing, but we will of course reach out to staff to obtain their thoughts on how the programme has benefited them."

AMV BBDO, which boasts clients including Bacardi, Bupa, Currys, Essity, Guinness, Macmillan, Mars, Meta, Pepsi, Rexona, Royal Mail, and Smart Energy GB, will be launching the Life Changes scheme from December 2022.