Benefits 2021: Mental health and financial health are top of mind for PepsiCo, Nvidia, and other major companies

If companies like PepsiCo, Principal and Nvidia serve as an example, then across the economy organizations are expanding and recalibrating benefits packages and policies for 2021, responding to the new remote nature of work and the global COVID-19 pandemic.

For these three companies, the focus was on mental health and financial health moving into 2021, as well as more virtual services, executives at each of them said. “We plan to expand and enhance our mental health support and financial well-being programs,” says Sergio Ezama, SVP and chief talent officer for PepsiCo and chief human resources officer for PepsiCo’s Global Functions & Groups. “Mental and financial wellness have been two areas where we see the most need due to the continued economic uncertainty surrounding the pandemic.”

PepsiCo’s priority was echoed by Deepa MacPherson, wellbeing manager at Nvidia, the Santa Clara, California-based tech company that specializes in graphics processing for the gaming and professional markets. “We’ve focused more closely over the past year on overall well-being and mental health,” she says. “Our plan is to bring in more mental health resources for specific groups that may have individualized needs, including employees with disabilities, the LGBTQ community, Black employees, and working mothers.”