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- Offer Perks for Retention?
Want to know what will help you stay competitive when you recruit as an employer of choice? Perks and benefits can help you attract and retain superior employees, even when a pay raise is not possible.
Accountemps, a provider of staffing services for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals, conducted a recent survey that zeroed in on perks employees want. Conducted by an independent research firm, the survey about perks includes responses from more than 1,400 CFOs from a stratified random sample of U.S. companies with 20 or more employees.
Results From Survey About Perks
The CFOs were asked, "What perks, if any, is your company offering or planning to offer in an effort to attract and retain employees?" Their responses included:
- Subsidized training/education - 29%
- Flexible work hours or telecommuting - 24%
- Mentoring programs - 24%
- Matching gift programs - 13%
- Free or subsidized lunch or snacks - 11%
- Onsite perks such as childcare, dry cleaning, fitness center, cafeteria - 11%
- Subsidized transportation -10%
- Subsidized gym memberships - 9%
- Sabbaticals - 8%
- Housing or relocation assistance 7%
You may want to take a look at whether your benefits and perks are staying comprehensive and competitive to retain and attract superior employees.
Image Copyright Chris Botha
More About Perks
- Become a Sage
I find myself dwelling on success this week and information that talks about what it takes to succeed is drawing my attention. Successful people practice life-long self-development. Studies show that successful people have similar characteristics.
- First, they are self-confident without being arrogant. This comes from being self-aware and more.
- Second, they are willing to grow by challenging their limits of knowledge and experience.
- And third, they are willing to reflect and learn from experience.
Find out how to continue your life-long self-development in Becoming a Sage: The Keys to Life-long Self-development. Written by Susan McKeone of Sage Management Consulting, this article is worth your reading time.
More about how to provide ongoing training and development for you and for your employees.
Find out how you can become a learning organization.
Image Copyright Bobbieo
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- Mental Prep for an Internal Job Interview
Lots of reader questions lately have grabbed my attention. I want to share them for the common good. Perhaps other readers have found themselves in similar situations and positions. As always, your comments and thoughts are welcome and encouraged.
Reader Question: I have a question for you which I would appreciate your thoughts on. I have a presentation to make to an interview board followed by a job interview tomorrow for a position which I am afraid I will not be seriously considered for. I am not being defeatist; it is just that I am fully aware who is earmarked for the job. I have in fact been told as much. I do, however, want to give a good account of myself, but I am finding it difficult to motivate myself. What do you recommend?
My Response: Here's the most important thing you need to remember. Even if the position has someone else's name written all over it, organizations use internal job interviews in multiple ways - ways that you can take advantage of to further your career aspirations. Find more of my job interview purposes response for this reader.
Image Copyright Dean Sanderson
More About Internal Job Interviews
- Employee Motivation: Off-Topic
It's a perfectly gorgeous, warm winter day where I am. Employees are planning vacations and selling available tickets to winter and spring sporting events. The soccer team needs a new organizer since the current guy is relocated to Europe as a company evangelist and needs to pass the torch. People are looking for colleagues to go in on purchases of sides of beef.
One employee needs a recommendation for a good deck builder. Another couple offer articles to read that are sort of related to our industry - but not quite. A few hilarious emails on company-specific topics such as bacon and pies (you'd have to work here) fly by. And, oh, wow, the events in the local community for families for this weekend is out early for planning this week. New baby pictures are frequent these days with our young staff.
How do I know all of this? Our company has an email list that is labeled "off-topic." It deals with all employee issues, insights, and interests that have little, and sometimes nothing, to do with work. Selling Girl Scout cookies for your kids? Have extra food left over from a department celebration or birthday? Passing out food related to your nationality on a national remembrance day (thank you Walter, for the paczkis every year)? Here's the place to let all staff know.
When the idea of an off-topic email list to all employees was first suggested, some of the executives groaned with concern. They added up the hours of all employees accessing such a list and the potential for abuse - sexual harassment suit, here I come. And, they made a novel decision. They decided to trust their employees to use such a list wisely.
And, the employees have, and the executives use the email list, too. Employees can opt out of receiving the emails, but it's a useful tool, and it's a marvelous peek into and preserver of the company culture. Try one.
Image Copyright David Lees / Getty Images
More About a Work Environment of Motivation
- What People Want From Work: Motivation
- How to Create a Motivating Workplace
- You Can Make Their Day: Ten Tips for the Leader
- Laughing Your Way to Organizational Health
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