Is it time to review your whole employee value proposition?

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals have arguably never been more important than they are right now. The social aspect of ESG is one that businesses need to pay particular attention to, according to the CIPD. It emphasises that most firms have well-developed environmental and governance strategies, but they need to invest just as much in their social strategies.

HR teams will be best-placed to bring the social aspect of ESG alive, not just by shaping the people agenda but also by making sure companies are playing their part in creating thriving and sustainable communities.

This will be vital as organisations emerge from the pandemic. A lot of employees now prefer some form of hybrid working, and expect employers to be more accommodating. The balance of power in the workforce was reset during the pandemic, and organisations that don’t offer a form of hybrid working may need to review their employee propositions to attract and retain the best people.

Employers that seek their employees’ views as to the sort of benefits they would value, and review their employee benefits to ensure their offering is market competitive, will find themselves better placed than those that do nothing. A more attractively structured and well communicated benefit package, for example, could be motivating to many employees.

Flexible benefits allow people more choice as to how their benefit package is put together, which could be a good option for organisations with a wide range of age groups represented among their employees.

Employees at different stages of their lives will have different priorities, so it pays to take that into account when structuring your benefits packages. One size will not fit all.

Long-term incentive and share schemes also continue to appeal to all types of workers. Reminding employees of what these schemes provide them by way of a total-reward approach has never been more important as the struggle to recruit and retain continues as we come out of the pandemic. Turnover and availability of staff hasn’t been this much of a challenge for businesses for some time.

Non-monetary offerings, such as allowing employees to buy extra holiday or take volunteering days, may help to attract and retain people who have come to value their free time more highly over the last few years. A growing number of workers appreciate an employer that invests in both their wellbeing and in its own corporate responsibility.

Improving and revising your total benefits offering can also go some way to addressing your organisation’s desire to shape its people agenda.

To find out more about what you can do to enhance your employee proposition, please contact Kerri Constable.