8 Benefits that Match Your Company Culture
As the federal unemployment rate continues to decrease, surviving in the startup marketplace means that your company needs to offer more than a competitive salary and catered lunches to keep up with recruiting needs. But how do you decide which benefits suit your company culture and provide value to current and prospective employees?
In this post, we’re discussing 8 benefits that you might consider as part of your startup perks program.
1) Health
If you’re hiring full-time staff onto your payroll, healthcare benefits are practically a must. Most salaried staff expect at least some level of health benefits whether it’s pharmacy benefit management, dental care, vision, or total health coverage.
2) Vacation bonuses
No matter how much your employees love working at your organization, everyone needs a break from time to time. Not only does vacation time benefit your staff members, but it can also be a good thing for business. In fact, research shows that 78% of managers agree that taking vacation time improves employee’s focus and can help alleviate symptoms of burnout.
So if vacation time can benefit you and your employees, why not encourage them to take a little time off the clock? Offering paid time off is a great start, but giving a vacation stipend can really take your employee benefits program to the next level.
3) Company trips
Your employees spend a lot of time collaborating, strategizing, and working on projects together, but how often do they get the chance to get to know each other outside of the office? A company trip is a great way to reward them for all their hard work and it gives your team members the opportunity to build stronger connections in a whole new setting.
When planning a company trip, you should make sure the destination fits into your budget, has activities for everyone, and is accessible for your entire team.
4) Sponsored gym memberships
Encouraging healthy habits is another great way to motivate your staff members. Contribute to gym memberships, sponsor a relay race, or create teams for a local 5k or half marathon. These activities help your team unwind regularly and can even help to reduce sick leave.
5) Flex hours
One of the most effective ways to create a positive work environment is to prioritize flexibility. Not everyone works the same way, and that’s what makes your team so valuable. Allow your staff to create their own hours (within reason) by offering flexible hours. This way, people who focus better in the morning can get the brunt of their work done with the early-risers, while those who prefer to focus later on in the day can start late and stay late.
If you do choose to offer flex hours, you’ll obviously have to implement some sort of process to monitor your employees’ time. You can use a time tracking system to help you keep tabs on project progress and efficiency.
6) Work from home days
Working in an office environment is great for a lot of reasons: you can easily collaborate, manage staff, and make company announcements with ease. But, along with the positives come a few drawbacks that can have an impact on your company’s productivity—namely office distractions.
Offering a few days a month for your employees to work from home is a great way to reset focus and save your staff time on their daily commute.
7) 401k matching
Along with providing health and time-off benefits, retirement plans are among the other top priorities for employees. If you can afford to match employee 401k’s, this can give your business a major advantage among your competitors when it comes to recruiting.
8) Healthy snacks
If your business doesn’t have a huge budget for employee benefits just yet, you might want to try starting with some more cost-effective initiatives, like stocking your office with healthy snacks for your staff to enjoy throughout the workday.
You can even install a healthy vending machine in your office and offer certain stipends for your employees to enjoy some snacks on your dime!
Takeaways
No matter how big or small your business budget is, there are plenty of ways you can reward your hard working staff. Use these tips to keep your employees happy and your recruiting efforts promising!
