If You Aren’t Paying Attention to Total Rewards, Candidates May Not Pay Attention to You

Whether you are on board or not, more and more organizations are adopting Total Rewards as a way to look at compensation. As a reminder, a Total Rewards program looks beyond just dollars and cents of a paycheck, and includes benefits, work-life balance, recognition for performance, development and career opportunities, and of course compensation.

The nonprofit HR association that focuses on Total rewards, World at Work, recently reported two interesting trends that – should you wish to be competitive in landing the best candidates – you need to take a look at inside your company.

Sign-On Bonuses Programs Are On the Rise
In both pervasiveness and the amounts sign-on bonuses are, WorldatWork’s “Survey of Bonus Programs and Practices 2014” show sign-on bonuses at an all-time high. Sign-on and retention bonuses are also back on a growth curve after decreasing over the past decade.  Both would suggest that securing and keeping key talent is increasingly difficult.

What about spot (point-in-time) recognition bonuses?  The survey showed they are given as recognition (90%), an acknowledgement for going above and beyond (85%), and project completion (72%).

Work-Life Balance Requires Flexibility
A recent Harris poll showed that more than half (52%) of U.S. workers feel they would be more effective in their jobs if allowed a more flexible work schedule. Flexibility could mean structure as many working parents (46%) simply desire a predictable work schedule. Nine in ten Americans say employers should make every effort to allow employees to set a schedule that meets their specific family’s needs – as long as the work does indeed get completed.

In general, two-thirds of American workers say their company is getting better about being flexible.  Which leaves at least one-third of businesses lacking in the desired flexibility by today’s employees and with them, today’s top talent.

Bonuses and schedule flexibility are just two elements to examine within a Total Rewards program in place or merely on the drawing board.  Stay tuned for some exciting announcements in the coming weeks regarding how Willory can help maximize your company’s Total Rewards to keep and attract the best talent.