Right now, the talent market is extremely competitive, and finding the right new hires for your growing team means offering more than just a paycheck. The best people in the workforce are looking for roles that will make the workday feel valuable, purposeful, and worthwhile, and you can give your employees that type of rewarding work experience with the benefits you offer. Let’s take a look at the perks that matter the most to modern employees and the steps you can take to start offering them.
Why Employee Expectations Have Changed
Since 2020, when remote and hybrid work became the new normal for millions of people around the globe, employee expectations have evolved in major ways. As a result of COVID-19’s impact, many top employees expect to be able to work remotely the majority of the time, along with benefits that give them a free and flexible work life that doesn’t interfere with their personal time. Meeting these expectations as an employer can be a challenge, but it’s not impossible if you prioritize properly.
Trust and Freedom: Offering Flexibility
If you want to hire top talent in the 2020s, you’ll need to be comfortable with your employees working flexible hours and having plenty of autonomy. Many prospective employees are looking for a job that gives them the freedom to work when they want — provided that they get excellent work done. Giving your employees this level of flexibility can keep them happy and productive.
In addition, flexibility sometimes comes in the form of “unlimited” PTO. This type of paid time off structure gives employees freedom to take a day off whenever they want, leaving the responsibility in their hands to get all of their work done with the time left. Giving employees this amount of freedom might seem like a leap of faith, but unlimited PTO can work well for some companies.
ESOPs and Equity: Long-Term Incentives for Hard Work
For employees to become truly invested in their work, you may need to get them invested in the company. Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and equity grants can help you get your team more involved than ever by giving them a stake in the business itself. An ESOP can be an especially useful way to do this for more established companies.
With an ESOP, employees become partial owners of your company through a trust-based retirement plan. This type of plan grows an employee’s share over time, giving them even more reason to stick around and keep doing their best work. However, implementing this type of benefit structure takes careful planning. It’s often done best with the help of specialized ESOP advisory firms. The team at a trustworthy firm can help you keep your ESOP legally compliant and make sure that it benefits both you as a business owner and your employees.
Personal and Family Support: What Matters Most
While flexible work schedules and equity in the company can mean a lot to employees, time for family often means even more. Offering employees resources that help them care for their loved ones can build loyalty to your company and, perhaps more importantly, support your team’s overall well-being. These resources can include paid maternity or paternity leave, childcare stipends, and even family planning support, all of which can make a big positive difference in an employee’s life.
Implementing these types of benefits works best when you have expert assistance. Working with a specialist can help you get a sense of the perks that will matter the most to your team and how to introduce them into your company’s structure and culture without sacrificing profits. Balancing work and life is essential for healthy employees, and it’s worth the upfront cost of the necessary benefits.
Benefits Show Your Company’s Values
The benefits that you offer to your team are the way that you express the core values of your company. If you’re stingy about the care and perks that you give employees, it’s a clear indicator that you’re valuing the bottom line over your people. On the other hand, a thoughtful benefits package sends the opposite message, showing employees how valuable they are and motivating them to stick around.
By combining a flexible schedule, unique forms of equity, and family support, you can create a benefits package that goes above and beyond and caters to the best of the workforce. Offering these types of benefits can be a sacrifice, but it will pay off in the long run by helping you source top talent and create a healthy, balanced culture that serves people, not just the dollar.
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