Employers should try to understand what benefits employees value most in order to design a cost-effective reward package, according Michael Rose, director of Rewards Consulting.
Speaking in a master class on total reward at Employee Benefits Live 2009, Rose urged employers to create a benefits package that was the best fit for the organisation, not simply best practice.
“The first thing everyone asks is ‘what’s everyone else doing?’ But it should be about what will work with their organisation’s strategy and culture,” he said.
In order to discover which benefits are most valued, Rose recommended regular, targeted staff surveys. These must work in tandem with annual surveys to find long-term trends and also, if handled well, exit interviews.
“If you construct a survey and send it out you can get real-time results to find out what is valued most in your organisation and maximise them. You can also then take out those that aren’t valued to save costs,” he said.
Find out more about Employee Benefits Live 2009
