by Lacey Partipilo and Annie Oxenfeld
In this competitive hiring market, it has become more and more important to stand out to potential employees. It’s become harder than ever to compete, and benefits that may have been a draw a few years ago may not seem as impressive to the current candidate pool.
Now is the time to reevaluate your total rewards package to attract the best talent and ensure you are retaining your existing people. Total Rewards encompass the comprehensive package of compensation, benefits, and incentives provided by an employer to recognize, motivate, and retain employees.
Total rewards packages include standard items like PTO and all other paid leave benefits including parental leave, sick leave, vacation time, 401k match, profit sharing, health and wellness plans, and comprehensive paid holidays. Some employers have found success by adding creative perks to expand on their standard offerings with perks such as:
- Stipends for home offices
- Transit passes
- Additional paid holidays
- Profit sharing
- Massage benefits
- Pet insurance
- Paid volunteer time
- Certification reimbursement
- Paid memberships either to gyms or professional organizations
- Daycare reimbursement
- Reimbursement for student loans
- Emergency fund pools
- Mindfulness coaches
At the end of the day total rewards should take care of the total person.
To some, all these perks could seem excessive. Why isn’t it enough to earn a good salary?
Offering additional benefits makes your team feel seen as people. It makes them feel taken care of.
There’s been a priority shift for employees who are no longer willing to simply live to work. They want to work for companies that recognize their individual needs.
How can I put together a great total rewards package for my team?
Step One – Evaluation
The first step to crafting a great total rewards package is to perform a self-evaluation of your company and your team.
Offer your employees a survey to obtain feedback about their needs and values and uncover:
- What they feel would be great rewards.
- Why those particular rewards are important to them.
- How they feel about your existing total rewards package.
Additionally, it can be helpful to understand how your current employes are using the total rewards available.
- Are they taking advantage of them?
- How many employees participate in the programs? Has that changed over the last few years?
You can offer all the cool perks in the world, but they won’t matter if your team isn’t using any of them.
Next, it’s important to look at what other companies in your market and industry are offering.
- How do your total rewards stack up?
- What can you offer that will ensure you remain attractive to potential candidates?
Step Two – Development
Now that you know what people value, it’s time to connect with an HR professional, like the team at Xenium, to craft your rewards package. With an expert consultant, you’ll be able to map out a strategy to implement a program that takes into account your available budget, what new benefits you’re able to add right away, and a roadmap for total rewards.
Along the way, consider these guidelines.
- Don’t be afraid to also add some specialized, high-value perks that are meaningful to your team.
- There may be some benefits that are not heavily utilized, such as Short-Term Disability Benefits, but consider the impact for an employee when they need access to this as the value of the benefit may not be in utilization alone.
- Timing is important and consideration should be given to when and how frequently new perks and benefits are added.
Step Three- Education
Think of education around total rewards as an internal marketing campaign. Put up signs. Create flyers. Send out emails, and make announcements. Host an event to unveil something new so it’s memorable. You need to keep the perks in front of your team.
Once you’ve crafted your plan, you’ll want to be sure to set up a main hub to house all of the information regarding your total rewards and benefits. Ensure you have an owner who will be responsible for updating your portal.
How will I know I’ve made good choices?
It’s important to be patient and give your plan a little time to see what sticks.
Allow some time, preferably a full business cycle, before making adjustments to your plan. Make sure to check back in with your team via surveys to gauge how they like the new benefits, and monitor the adoption rate.
Be ready to adjust and pivot based on their feedback.
In today’s tough market, it is important to reevaluate your total rewards program. With a little planning, input from your employees and assessment of your current offerings you can create a competitive package to retain and attract top talent.
Xenium’s team partners with yours to develop an effective strategy to attract great employees, master the human touch, and pull everything together into a positive workplace culture that generates productivity and growth for your business.
Schedule a call here to learn how Xenium’s Complete HR + Payroll service transforms the human resources experience for both you and the people under your care.