Real estate services group Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) believes its sharesave scheme helps it stand out from its competitors. Shameel Ahmed, head of reward at the firm, says: "Most of our rivals are partnerships and cannot offer a sharesave scheme. It's definitely a competitive advantage when recruiting."

JLL introduced its first scheme in 2002, offering a 15% discount on the shares. Now, up to 37% of its employees are enrolled in a scheme. "Comparing this to the benchmark of UK-listed companies, where the take up ranges between 15 to 20%, we are doing very well." Its first five-year scheme matured earlier this year and produced good returns for savers on the back of strong share price performance.

JLL recently launched its first sharesave scheme for staff in Ireland, where 46% signed up. "They had heard good things about the UK scheme, plus we knew how important it was to communicate, communicate, communicate.
"The scheme definitely helps to engage staff. You see a lot of buzz around the time of maturity as they watch the price on a daily basis on the intranet. They can see how their role can help the company's global performance," Ahmed adds.

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