Giving Them a Reason to Stay: Benefits that Help Retain Employees

Benefits, from healthcare to 401(k) matches, can help your business attract recruits, but what benefits help you retain the rock stars on your team? Our human resources experts share some of the benefits that can help you keep your employees happy.

Skill Development is Never Underrated

A benefits package that shows employees they are appreciated can be a powerful tool in retaining your best and brightest. But never under estimate the power of education. An important way to keep valued employees on the payroll is to offer career development opportunities. Consider offering tuition assistance or reimbursement for classes where they learn new skills, or can expand into stronger leaders. Try to reimburse the cost for professional organizations or industry events and conferences. Your employees have goals and want to create a plan for their future. If you are a facilitator for those goals – your employee can see your company as part of their future as well.

Culture is Key

Another important aspect to keeping valued employees is your culture. Your culture is something you grow and create over time. Developing a supportive and positive culture takes work that’s sustained by building trust within your team, and creating honest and transparent conversations.

Employee recognition can also go a long way. Applauding employees for their good work and creating an environment where employees view themselves as partners in growing a thriving organization can make a difference. Keep in mind that employee recognition can go beyond electronic communication. You may consider adopting bonuses or other forms of recognition for professional or company milestones. Maybe one of your employees has been with you for ten years, or the company hit a particular growth benchmark quickly. Recognizing achievements is a great practice for growing a community-driven and motivated culture.

Think Beyond Compensation

Your employees are doing fantastic work and you may decide to spread the wealth, so to speak. Profit sharing gives employees a direct share in your profits, which can be a great motivator when growing your business. If a raise or promotion is not on the table this year, you might also consider offering stock options. This helps reward your employees when your company performs well. Other options include flexible work arrangements, more paid time off or maybe even a company-sponsored trip away for the weekend. 

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Creative

You should consistently re-evaluate your benefits to ensure you’re supporting your employees with the resources you have. Listen to what prospective employees are telling you during their interview process, and ask them what benefits are important to them. This can give you some insight into what candidates may look for in their benefit packages and how you can best support them.

A good time to evaluate your benefits is during open enrollment to ensure you’re offering the right mix and getting a good deal from your vendor. Learn more about the signs it’s time to upgrade your employee retirement plan.

PRO TIP: Don’t assume that your employees know what benefits are offered or how to access them. Many learn about their benefits during on-boarding, when they are taking in a lot of other information. Be sure to remind employees periodically about what benefits they can enjoy.

At Rockland Trust, we truly believe that each relationship matters, and have been named a top place to work by the Boston Globe for twelve consecutive years and a best place to work by the Human Rights Campaign for six consecutive years. We work hard to believe in our employees and offer benefits such as child care reimbursement, a wellness program, and our Rising Star career development program.

Just like you, we are a business that employs New Englanders. We understand what you’re going through and would love to help your business meet its financial goals. Our Learning Center features more content to help keep your business on track financially.

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