By Frank Mengert, Founder and CEO of ebm

When your business is in a competitive hiring market, it can be really challenging to find qualified job candidates to recruit. And even if you can, the real challenge then begins with trying to create a business environment that encourages these individuals to stick around for the long term.

Employee benefits packages can be a valuable tool for candidates that can add a lot more value to your business while also helping to improve your team’s loyalty to the company.

But offering basic benefits doesn’t have the same impact as it once did. Now, with so many businesses vying for the attention of skilled job candidates, it’s becoming more important to look for ways to make your offerings more appealing by adding unique perks that not every employer does.

Below, we’ll cover seven different offerings that can help you make your benefits packages more appealing while significantly improving your staff recruitment and retention efforts.

Remote and Hybrid Working Arrangements

Traditional 9-to-5 working arrangements are slowly being phased out by more modern thinking on the best ways to keep teams productive. This includes working with outsourced teams and allowing employees to work wherever they’re most comfortable. Today, more employees are seeking businesses that offer remote or hybrid working arrangements, allowing individuals to balance their personal and professional obligations.

By offering more flexible working arrangements, you can demonstrate to potential job candidates that you’re an adaptable employer interested in supporting your employees in achieving a healthier work-life balance. 

It also shows that you naturally trust your employees to remain productive even when working remotely, and focus more on performance rather than enforcing a rigid working structure. 

Additional PTO

Although most companies offer the minimum required PTO amount, adding more paid time off to your employees can be a great way to have your business stand out from others. In fact, many businesses are finding it beneficial not to put a cap on their PTO at all, essentially giving employees unlimited vacation days.

This can be an incredibly powerful draw for great quality job candidates. While an unlimited vacation day policy may not be doable for your business based on its size, it can be helpful to try to offer more than the legal requirements. This shows your employees that your focus isn’t just on your business’s bottom line.

Provide Comprehensive Health Insurance

Healthcare coverage is one of the most fundamental inclusions to your employee benefits plans. For most job candidates, this is a hard requirement they have before they consider applying.

Because of this, offering limited coverage amounts may not give you the desired effect you’re hoping for when trying to compete for job candidates against businesses offering similar perks. However, by looking for ways to add more comprehensive healthcare coverage, you send a clear signal to individuals that you place a high value on their health and the health of their families.

Providing better-than-average health insurance coverage can be a great way to increase candidate interest and another reason for current employees to stay with your company for longer.

Add Benefits That Support Working Families

If your business has a diverse range of employees, chances are they come from various backgrounds and have different living arrangements. This may also include younger employees looking to start new families or who already have young children they take care of.

This can present certain challenges for individuals who need to balance their careers with personal responsibilities. The cost of daycare and other childcare services can also be quite costly for employees, adding even more stress to the equation.

Offering different forms of childcare assistance as part of your benefits package can be a thoughtful and valuable perk for your team. This could take the form of providing subsidies for various childcare centers or offering your teams flexible spending accounts (FSAs) that provide more flexibility in covering childcare expenses.

Invest in Employee Well-being

Investing in your team’s well-being means looking for ways to support more than just their financial health. It’s also about finding ways to support them in multiple areas of their life, including finding solutions that help to support their physical and emotional health as well.

You can do this by offering some more practical benefits, such as subscriptions to mental health and meditation apps, access to financial planning workshops, or even a gym membership stipend. 

Taking these kinds of initiatives helps to reduce their daily stress and can be really important for helping them to avoid burnout. By actively supporting your team’s overall wellness, you can help to create a more resilient and loyal workforce.

Offer Employee Stock Options

Another great way to add more interest to your business is by offering unique perks like Employee Stock Purchase (ESP) programs. These are common benefits offered with a new startup business, giving employees the opportunity to purchase discounted shares in the company.

When you allow your employees to purchase shares in the business, it helps them to feel more connected and interested in the business’s long-term success. It also sends a clear message to employees that you’re confident in the direction the business is going and that you’re willing to share in its rewards over time.

Career Growth Opportunities

If you think about the main reason why most people choose to leave their employers, it’s often because they feel stuck in their current role without having a clear path forward. Many employees today are seeking more than just a paycheck – they want a career that enables them to grow, allowing them to take on additional responsibilities and increase their overall business value.

Providing opportunities for growth can be a valuable company perk that allows your team to develop new skills and prepare for future roles. This can include offering access to free business courses or certification programs that employees can take throughout the year. You could also provide free subscriptions to learning platforms that they can take during or outside of work hours.

Start Attracting More Talent to Your Business

Attracting and retaining more qualified talent on your team requires a strategic approach. 

By following the strategies provided to improve your benefits offerings, you’ll make your job listings much more compelling for job seekers while giving your employees plenty of reasons to stick with your business long-term.

About author

Frank Mengert continues to find success by spotting opportunities where others see nothing. As the founder and CEO of ebm, a leading provider of employee benefits solutions. Frank has built the business by bridging the gap between insurance and technology driven solutions for brokers, consultants, carriers, and employers nationwide.