How Virgin Group Reimagined Benefits by Truly Listening to Employees

For half a century, the Virgin brand has been renowned for delivering unique and exceptional customer experiences. In interviewing Rachel Richards, Reward & People Operations Director at Virgin Group – the HQ of the Virgin brand - it became clear that they take the same approach in how they treat their people, as evidenced in their recent review of their benefit programmes. 

Rachel first heard me deliver a talk on how to run a meaningful benefits review. While it sparked some inspiration, she went back and did it her way. And, being completely honest, I think she took it to the next level - pushing beyond best practice into something truly inclusive and extraordinary. Time and again, Rachel and her team brought Virgin’s values to life, or as I like to say, “brought them out to play”: smart disruption, straight up, heartfelt service, delightfully surprising, and red-hot style.

That’s why I’m proud to share their story here. My hope is that it inspires you as much as it inspired me.

Genuine Listening at the Core

When Virgin Group embarked on its benefits review, Rachel and her team started with a bold question:

“Do we genuinely care what people think, or have we already decided what we want?”

Their commitment was clear: yes, they cared deeply what people thought, and no, they would not come in with pre-set answers. That principle shaped everything that followed. Instead of prescribing solutions, they set out to genuinely listen -  in ways that reflected Virgin’s culture of curiosity and disruption.

Listening Beyond Surveys

Virgin didn’t rely on a traditional employee survey. Instead, they explored fresh, human-centred ways of gathering insight:

• What do you love? Employees shared their favourite benefits using emojis, along with why they loved them and the impact they’d had. This surfaced stories and insights no survey could have captured.

• Blue-sky thinking: Employees were next asked, “If you could have anything, what would it be?” Instead of putting hurdles in the way, the HR team challenged themselves to ask, “Why couldn’t it work?”

• Data deep dives: To complete the first phase of this project, demographic and usage data was analysed to spot patterns, helping design benefits for today’s workforce while anticipating future needs.

Phase Two: Decision-Making Together

After this first round, the team published the findings openly on their intranet, bringing employees along the journey. From there, they moved into phase two: making decisions with employees, not for them.

• Trade-off surveys: Since some benefits would be removed and others added, employees were invited to share their views on priorities. To make it engaging, Virgin gamified the process by giving employees a “fake pot” of points and asking them to spend it. This surfaced genuine preferences while keeping the exercise fun.

• Hackathons: Virgin’s Inclusion Network was brought together to stress-test ideas. Participants selected personas representing different employee groups, then reviewed benefits proposals through those lenses. This uncovered overlooked perspectives and ensured inclusivity.

From Listening to Action

The full process took about six months. While that may sound lengthy, the payoff was huge: because employees were engaged throughout, the final design needed no major fixes. Everyone understood the trade-offs, felt ownership, and knew why decisions had been made.

The outcome? A cost-neutral redesign that consolidated programmes, switched off underused ones, and introduced new benefits that better met the true needs of employees.

Standout Examples

Here are three examples of new benefits that capture the Virgin (and employee) spirit:

1. Loved Ones Leave: A flexible policy supporting care for anyone, not just children or parents. Inclusive by design.

2. Health Inclusion Fund: A safety net for health needs that fall between public and private medical cover.

3. “Screw It, Let’s Do It” Pot: A wellbeing pot of money that employees can spend however they choose, with no approvals needed. Whether it’s a gym membership or a National Trust pass, the focus is on trust and personal wellbeing. Since launch in January 2025, 92% of employees have used it across 500+ retailers, showing how it’s meeting their diverse needs.

What’s Next?

For Virgin Group, this is just the beginning. Benefits aren’t fixed - they’re a living, evolving system. The next step? Listen again. Challenge assumptions again. Evolve again.

As Rachel put it:

“We’ll continue to listen - genuinely listen - to review our benefits and decide where to go next.”

✅ Key takeaway: When benefits design is guided by values and built on genuine listening, you don’t just create better programmes - you create trust, ownership, and experiences that feel every bit as “delightfully surprising” as the Virgin brand itself.