4 Killer Benefits That Help Companies Recruit and Keep Happy Employees

To attract the best employees, your company has to provide an incredible working environment with opportunities for long-term career growth.

As Michael Scott, Dunder Mifflin Paper company (NBC’s The Office) was fond of saying, “It’s all about the perks.”

Your company will live and die by employee engagement and the quality of the team you’re able to build.

To attract the best employees, your company has to provide an incredible working environment with opportunities for long-term career growth.

Mentorship Opportunities

As part of the onboarding process for new hires, especially new employees fresh out of college, it’s important that they’re provided a mentor within the organization that can provide them with guidance. This individual should have a strong background in the type of work your new hire will be completing. 

In my personal experience, the best mentors are those who are not within the mentee’s chain of command. The perspective of someone that’s higher up in the organization, but doesn’t provide direct supervision, can be invaluable. It allows for better, valuable discussions without the feeling that what’s said might impact their job performance.

Mentors can be a fantastic resource when it comes time for promotions or major changes in company structure.

Healthy Employees Are Productive Employees

Obesity is a major problem in today’s workplace. Medical Daily reports: “Obesity has a significant impact on health and well-being; it may also burden a person’s workplace abilities. A new study claims that obese workers are less productive, more likely to get injured somehow, and need longer rest breaks than employees of normal weight.”

To help minimize the challenges associated with health complications in the office, whether it’s obesity or heart disease, a comprehensive health program is critical for your employee’s quality of life. A high-quality health and wellness package will include the following:

• Minimal copays for preventive care and medication.
• Employer-sponsored access to a fitness center on campus or membership to a local health club.
• Coverage for an employee’s dependents.
• Dental, Vision and Prescription Drug subsidies.

While these benefits may seem expensive, they are important to employees and the savings associated with a healthy workforce oftentimes completely outweigh the investment. Fortune recently published an article profiling 11 companies that provide 100 percent healthcare coverage to their employees. The interviews with management revealed that these businesses have seen major returns on their investment in their team’s health and well-being.

Flexible Schedules With the Option to Telecommute

The majority of your employees can complete their work from home, or at least work on a schedule that’s more in-sync with their personal productivity cycles. Sitting down with employees and discussing ways to make their work fit their lifestyle is a fantastic way to build trust and give them a sense of responsibility around their work.

For example, many creative people choose to work later in the evening or early morning. When the world is quiet, it’s easier to think deeply about a topic or project and create phenomenal work. As long as the schedule is agreed to ahead of time, it’s easy to accommodate an employee’s desire to work from home, or in their office, but on a different schedule.

Employees who work from home report a better work-life balance. The ability to skip the standard commute is also a great perk; leaving more time for productivity and attending to personal responsibilities.

Streamline HR Interactions

Think about your most recent experience with your company’s Human Resources department. Was it enjoyable, or did it feel like a massive time and energy suck? According to Carl Robertson, Founder of Smart Pension,“The ease with which employees are able to interact with HR has a direct impact on how benefits are utilized and how employees feel about their employer.”

The focus of your HR team needs to be on minimizing both the cost to employers and the amount of time employees need to spend getting simple transaction processed. By streamlining the process, companies are able to increase enrollment rates in programs designed to better take care of their employees. What’s the point of offering amazing benefits if your team isn’t enrolled to take full advantage of them?

For example, CNBC reported in 2015 that employees in the United States are missing out on more than $24 billion in employer matched funding for their 401(k). Why? Either the employees aren’t enrolled, or they’re not contributing the maximum match amount.

If you want to recruit and keep the best employees, you absolutely need to get them enrolled in your various benefits packages. These packages should be built to provide employees with access to the healthcare they need, along with gym access to encourage a more active lifestyle.

Beyond benefits, a mentor within the organization can significantly improve the likelihood that your employees will stick around for the long-haul. If they have someone to model, and the tools they need to succeed, your organization will thrive.

SOURCE: www.business.com