The following information is from an interview with Lacey Halpern, Human Resource Business Partner at Xenium.
It’s not realistic for all companies to provide employees with benefits like Google does with outdoor terraces, play rooms, or gourmet cafeterias and coffee bars. However, with a small budget and input from employees, you can provide unique perks in addition to structured benefits that will add a competitive edge to your total compensation package.
How to Get Started:
Start by identifying what your employees want – what they need to make them feel better about their job and what they wish they had to make life outside of work more enjoyable. While you may choose to conduct a survey to gather this information, it is important to understand that it’s impractical to set a goal of satisfying everyone. Work with your budget to provide a variety of perks that are beneficial to the majority, and start small – don’t offer the world. By creating small offerings to start, your business may be better able to evaluate what is working and what is motivating.
Once you have selected the perks that work best for your employees and your company’s culture, it’s very important to communicate and educate employees about your program. This can be done from the very beginning when attracting talent, making the job offer and competing for talent, during the onboarding process and throughout the employee’s career with your company. Remind them to take advantage of these benefits at company staff meetings, 1:1 meetings and any other internal communication such as an employee blog, bulletin board, company newsletter or email reminder.
“Employees won’t leave an organization if their basic needs are met, they feel valued and respected and are engaged in their work. By using interesting and meaningful rewards, you can create a system that will retain talent.”
Here is a list of customizable perks to spark ideas as you create a list of your own!
- Food – Free food is always popular among hard working employees. Occasional catered lunches, scheduled weekly treats, coffee and a stocked fridge with healthy snacks in the break room is a great way to keep employees satisfied and energized. Provide a company sponsored lunch and play a movie or bring in an informational speaker a couple times a year for entertainment and education.
- Wellness – Customize your Wellness Programs with engaging activities that meet the needs of your employees and encourage healthy habits. Organize a weekly running club or pedometer challenge to promote team building and exercise throughout the work day. Check out our Wellness Bingo template to get started now!
- Work/life Balance – Employees appreciate the ability to adjust their schedule to accommodate their commitments outside of work. A compressed four-day work week, the ability to work from home, and rotating days off within a department or work group have become popular options that employees are looking for. Flexible work schedules that offer autonomy can support their needs outside the workplace, and allow them to be more focused on their work when they are “on the clock”.
- Education – Inspire employees to participate in continuous education through a company sponsored and reimbursed book club, discounted or reimbursed membership to an association applicable to their job, education reimbursement or mentorship program. While not all employees are driven to climb the corporate ladder, many want opportunities for cross training and education to further their current roles.
- Community Service – Allow employees paid volunteer time to give back to their community, organizations and causes they are passionate about. Consider offering employees time during their work day to volunteer and organize outings in the community to give back.
- Recognition – Take the time to acknowledge celebratory moments throughout employees’ careers from birthdays and anniversaries to promotions and other accomplishments. Announce these achievements in a company-wide email or during a department or all staff meeting. Take this a step further by decorating the employee’s workspace, giving them a small gift or even a paid day off!
- Rewards – Rewards that come from one another and not always from leadership can be very empowering. Encourage and allow your employees the autonomy to share their gratitude with one another through nominations for employee of the month that relate back to the company values and culture. Start a spot bonus program by identifying nominal amounts or budgets that each employee has for the year to thank a hard working coworker with a cash reward. Develop a tracking system to ensure the program is tax compliant.
- Retreats – Schedule time once or twice a year for a company retreat to a local destination. These outside events can be used for informational purposes or simply for fun! They should be planned with your employees in mind, maybe even specifically tied to one department, and can range from an informal happy hour to a fancy holiday party.
- Free Services – Free or discounted services are appreciated by employees and encourage work/life balance. Some ideas include a gym membership, Netflix account, magazine subscription, tickets to local games, massages, childcare, Costco membership, Trimet or dry cleaning services. The options are endless!
As you can see, it doesn’t take a huge budget to engage your people. Get creative, get intentional, and get started!