Purpose – the hidden piece to a successful retirement

 

When asked about retirement, 30% of employees think of financial worry and security, while 42% say their financial situation will shape how ready they feel about leaving full-time work. This is reflected in the support employers offer, with 69% of organisations surveyed providing pension or financial advice.

Beyond financial security, there is a strong desire from employees looking to the future around what retirement looks like and means for them.

The dimension employees say is missing

When we dug into what shapes readiness for retirement, a different factor kept surfacing: purpose. Roughly a quarter of employees told us that having a plan or sense of purpose directly influences how ready they feel to step back from full-time employment, and among those who already feel ready, that proportion is even higher.

Over a fifth of employees worry about what they'll lose when they leave work: their routine, status, the daily social contact that comes with being part of a team. These are people whose professional identity has been built over decades, and who are uncertain about what will replace it.

This is important as it is reflected in retirement support and the gap between what employers believe they're providing and what employees actually experience. Nearly half of organisations claim they offer support with purpose and identity, but more than a third of employees say that finding a new sense of purpose is still being missed in how their exit is handled.

This signals that support which exists on paper isn't landing in practice.

Why money alone doesn't make someone ready

Financial readiness is the foundation, but it's not the whole structure. An employee can be financially secure as they approach retirement and still feel unprepared to walk away from full-time employment. Without a sense of what they're retiring towards, the financial safety net becomes just that, a net, not a direction.

This is where the concept of whole-person support comes in. It means going beyond pension packs and financial seminars to addressing the questions that money can't answer: how do I define myself when I'm no longer defined by my job?

Organisations that provide support that addresses grapples with this question through coaching, workshops, mentoring, or peer networks, can help turn financial readiness into genuine readiness.

Retirement is becoming a transition, not an endpoint

People’s perception of stopping work when they retire is also changing. Our data suggests that when employees describe what they associate with retirement, the most common word is freedom, not rest, not winding down. Their plans are active, not passive, and nearly three in ten are already exploring new interests and directions as part of their retirement.

This aligns with what we see in other stages of people’s careers. Among professionals who have used career transition services following a redundancy, 58% of them have pivoted in their career to something different. The same is true for those exploring their options as they approach retirement. Finding a sense of purpose and identity is reshaping how they view work after full-time employment, which could be in the form of a blend of part-time work and personal pursuits.

Organisations that understand this shift can help their people plan for a meaningful next chapter, rather than treating retirement as a single date on a calendar.

What HR leaders should take from this

The financial side of retirement support is largely in place. The opportunity now is to widen the lens and address the ‘softer’ issues associated with retirement. If employees say purpose is being overlooked despite employers believing they're providing it, the issue may be one of depth and visibility rather than intent.

Download the full report to explore the complete findings from our survey, including the five principles for getting retirement right.