The Momentum team celebrate being named the Best Employee Benefits Product Supplier of the Year, at the 2010 FIA Awards. Back row left is Bertus Visser (CEO: Momentum Distribution Services) and right, Nicolaas Kruger (CEO: Momentum Group). The front row is Johann le Roux (CEO: Momentum Retail), Francois de Ravel (National Sales Manager: MDS Group Benefits), Carol Atkinson (Head: Momentum FundsAtWork Product and Marketing) and Dan Moyane (Momentum Group Communication Executive).
The Momentum Group, walked away with the best Employee Benefits Product Supplier of the Year 2010 Award for their FundsAtWork product, at the annual Financial Intermediaries Association (FIA) Industry Awards.
Commenting on the award, Carol Atkinson, Head of Product Development and Marketing for Momentum FundsAtWork said, “This is a high accolade for Momentum and our team. We continually strive to differentiate ourselves through product innovation, as well as aiming to provide consistently awesome service to our intermediaries and clients. This award, as judged by the FIA members, shows we are getting it right”.
Momentum’s FundsAtWork umbrella fund provides retirement, insurance, lifestyle and business benefits to small and middle sized companies that cannot afford the administrative and cost burden of running their own retirement funds. The FundsAtWork product was launched as part of Momentum’s employee benefits offering in the umbrella funds space in the year 2000. It now has close to R9 billion of assets under management for over 135 000 members.
Some of the features that differentiate the FundsAtWork’s umbrella fund include vast flexibility for individual members when it comes to choosing their individual contribution rate, insurance cover and investment portfolios, along with total transparency of all fees charged. FundsAtWork is able to recognise and respect an individual within larger employer group and facilitate an understanding of their requirements.
An online employer portal makes monthly exchange of information between employer and Momentum as easy as internet banking. Additional online functionality includes a fully transactional website for members, employers and brokers.
Umbrella funds are uniquely suited and play an important role in the South African retirement planning landscape. They ensure that even small employers can enjoy the benefit of providing their employees with retirement, insurance and other lifestyle benefits through a cost effective solution and easy to use administration.
In South Africa, the fluidity of the work force in recent decades has also emphasised the importance of preservation of retirement savings. Employees no longer remain with the same employer for their working life. The FundsAtWork umbrella allows employees to preserve their savings when they leave their current employer’s fund, while providing the option to continue enjoying the same insurance benefits as an individual.
The FundsAtWork umbrella fund philosophy provides flexibility, transparency, ease of use and value for money. This is becoming increasingly important in the current economic climate where employers are faced with other pressures on their businesses and employees can use the flexibility to suit their personal situation.
The FIA awards are presented every year to leading product providers in various categories. The awards are voted on by the more than 15 000 intermediaries who are members of the association.
Atkinson said, ‘Umbrella funds will continue to play a very important role in the employee benefits arena and we believe that more South Africans should have the opportunity to contribute towards their own retirement. Momentum is therefore fully supportive of the social security and healthcare reforms and is contributing to the process by engaging with policymakers, regulators, organised labour and other stakeholders, through the various industry associations’.
In conclusion Atkinson said, ‘Knowing we have been voted as the Best Employee Benefits Supplier of the Year affirms our pursuit of innovation and service excellence and we thank the FIA and its members for this vote of confidence. Our challenge now is to continue on this track and better our efforts for the benefit of both our intermediaries and clients’.