SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Leadership — tracks feedback from more than 200,000 business leaders. We run the poll question each week in our newsletter.
How attractive is the employee benefits package offered by your organization?
- Extremely: It’s best in class 8.61%
- Very: Our benefits are better than most companies 38.23%
- Somewhat: Our benefits are middle of the pack 32.15%
- Not very: Our benefits are lacking in a few key areas 12.91%
- Not at all: Our benefits are bare-bones 8.10%
Benefits make a difference. 47% of you say you have a solid benefits package. Congratulations. Make sure your employees understand the value of those benefits when they evaluate other job opportunities. It’s easy to focus on just cash compensation but benefits are a huge difference-maker and might help you retain your team members in a competitive market. For those with weaker benefits packages, is it a function of poor benefits or a lack of knowledge of what you have? Spend some time with your HR team and have them walk you through your entire benefits package. The better you understand it as a leader, the better you can take care of (and retain!) your people. If your benefits truly are weak, bring it to the attention of the HR team and let them know it impairs your ability to source and retain great talent. If enough leaders raise the issue, something might change.
Mike Figliuolo is managing director of thoughtLEADERS, which includes TITAN — the firm’s e-learning platform. Previously, he worked at McKinsey & Co., Capital One and Scotts Miracle-Gro. He is a West Point graduate and author of three leadership books: “One Piece of Paper,” “Lead Inside the Box” and “The Elegant Pitch.”