Phoenix Group, the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business, today announced that it has been officially recognised by the Top Employers Institute as a UK Top Employer for the 10th year running. The award was assessed on a comprehensive range of criteria including Talent and Acquisition, Compensation and Benefits, Culture and Learning and Development. It recognises the Group’s on-going commitment to developing and investing in colleagues, and being a responsible, sustainable and inclusive employer who values and rewards the contributions colleagues make to the business.

The Group has operations in the UK, Germany and Ireland, and employs over 7,000 people, with over 2,800 based at an operational headquarters in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The annual international research undertaken by the Top Employers Institute recognises leading employers around the world; those that provide excellent employee conditions, develop talent and which strive to continuously optimise employment practices.

Sara Thompson, Group HR Director at Phoenix Group said:

“We’re absolutely delighted to have achieved this recognition for the tenth year running. It reflects our ongoing commitment to our enlarged and diverse colleague population, and importantly shows that our commitment did not falter during the pandemic in 2020. It indicates the strength of our organisation’s response. We ensured our employees stayed safe and were set up to work effectively from home, before quickly turning our attention to the realities of working from home. We have placed wellbeing front and centre of our response, which has included introducing greater flexibility and practical support, like additional paid emergency leave for parents and carers during lockdown.

“We have also ensured we’ve maintained a positive and supportive culture which has been key in 2020. Being a UK Top Employer highlights our desire to create a safe environment, in which all our colleagues are given regular opportunities to develop and flourish. We are continually looking to build and develop the talent of our employees to make Phoenix Group the best place we have ever worked, and look to provide colleagues the flexibility they need at this difficult time.”

With colleagues working from home due to the pandemic, Phoenix Group launched a fullyinclusive well-being challenge to inspire everyone to get moving away from their desk to boost physical and mental well-being. Colleagues completed this from 15 locations. This was on top of the extensive well-being programme already in place, which includes Phoenix colleagues having access to a number of trained Mental Health First Aiders within the business who are always there to support colleagues with work or personal issues.

Phoenix is also committed to creating a culture and environment where everyone can contribute to the success of the business and growth – personal, professional, team and business growth sits at the heart of this. A big part of this is investment in colleagues with Phoenix launching earlier this year a new training academy – Flourish at Phoenix. This brings together all the resources colleagues need to grow their own futures and to move forward in their careers and development goals, with investment being made in digital learning platforms.

The Group has a number of colleague-led networks in place, with the common goal of collaboration, providing support and promoting an inclusive place to work. In 2020 the Group added a new colleague network to focus on disabilities, or more importantly, the different abilities that people have, and to provide a collective voice for its employees.

The networks create a platform for colleagues and allies to come together to create an environment where everyone can thrive. The networks in place connect and support working carers, armed forces personnel, gender diversity, young person’s development, cultural differences and our Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender community. Networks are sponsored by members of Phoenix’s executive management team.

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Media enquiries:

Rachel Esland
PR and Public Affairs Manager
Phoenix Group
0131 245 0489 / 07892 705093
rachel.esland@thepheonixgroup.com

Notes to editors

About Phoenix Group

Phoenix has become the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business following the completion of the ReAssure acquisition and is also the largest consolidator of closed life and pension funds in Europe.

Phoenix has businesses in the UK, Germany and Ireland, split across three key business segments: UK Heritage, UK Open and Europe.

The Group specialises in the acquisition and management of closed life insurance and pension funds (its Heritage business). Phoenix is a leader in the safe and efficient management of UK Heritage business. The UK Heritage segment comprises products that are no longer actively marketed to customers and has been built through the consolidation of over 100 legacy insurance brands.

In addition, Phoenix’s UK Open business manufactures and underwrites long-term savings and retirement products to support people saving for their future. These products are actively marketed to new and existing customers, primarily under the Standard Life brand. This segment is underpinned by a strategic partnership with Standard Life Aberdeen following the Phoenix Group’s acquisition of Standard Life Assurance Limited in 2018. Standard Life Assurance is a long-established expert in workplace pensions, personal pensions, long term savings and retirement solutions, and its customers and clients include individual savers and some of the largest employers in the UK, as well as professional advisers. The UK Open business includes a growing BPA business. Phoenix Group also has a market leading brand - SunLife - which sells a range of financial products specifically for the over 50s market.

The European business spans a range of both Open and Heritage products across three segments: Ireland, Germany and the International Bond in the UK. Our focus is on protecting our existing assets, optimising sales and driving efficiencies, which enables us to maximise value in these businesses and provides a platform for potential future consolidation in Europe.

Phoenix Group is a member of the FTSE 100 index, and has circa 14 million policies and over £300 billion of assets under administration.