In this article, we’ll highlight the employee benefits that are gaining traction and share tips on how to offer them effectively.
Employee growth opportunities
One of the most valued forms of recognition is an opportunity for skills growth and career advancement. It’s typically more popular than traditional financial rewards, such as a bonus. However, recent cost of living challenges have forced a shift in preference for some people.
Becoming a learning organisation is a great way to attract and retain employees who are highly motivated and productive. Here are some common strategies:
Job-swaps and cross-functional projects: These opportunities allow employees to observe and try their hand at different roles and areas of expertise, which in turn builds organisational resilience.
Online courses: Access to a wide range of online courses makes it easy for employees to choose the content they value the most. It also gives them complete flexibility over when and where they progress their learning.
Coaching and mentoring: These benefits provide powerful growth opportunities and foster productive relationships. This is particularly true when employees are involved in choosing the targeted growth areas and the person they work with.
Flexible working arrangements
The remote working revolution has continued to grow and has evolved into a wide range of hybrid models that combine in-house and remote working flexibility.
Employees enjoy benefits like shorter commute times, better work-life balance, greater job satisfaction and in most cases improved productivity.
Employers are benefiting from improved employee engagement, retention and attraction. Shifting the focus from attendance to outcomes is more aligned with productivity and promotes better self-management among employees.
Employee mental wellness
Better mental health has become increasingly important to New Zealanders over recent years. In response, successful organisations have designed benefit programmes that typically include:
- Workshops to raise mental health awareness and bring it into everyday conversations
- Leadership training in recognising mental health issues and providing appropriate support
- Regular one-on-ones, so any stress points can be identified early
- Access to an external confidential counselling service
Physical wellbeing programmes
Helping employees to better manage their health has been shown to reduce time off work and boost productivity. It also shows you care about the whole person. Allowing employees to choose from a range of options is more likely to encourage participation. Common examples include:
- Nutrition and healthy cooking classes
- Subsidised gym memberships
- An in-house gym
- Yoga, pilates and other fitness classes
- Stand-up or walking meetings
Affordable healthcare
Access to timely and affordable healthcare is becoming a challenge for many New Zealanders. Assistance with some form of medical insurance can help to reduce concerns and encourage prompt medical care when required. This builds employee engagement and reduces absenteeism.
Group medical insurance schemes often come with a discount and employers can add a further subsidy if they wish. Schemes that allow individuals to self-fund optional add-ons or add cover for family members are ideal.
Financial wellbeing
Recent cost of living challenges have increased financial stress and uncertainty for most people. Helping employees to build their financial wellbeing not only allows them to be more focussed at work, it also helps them to progress their goals.
Financial wellbeing benefits for employees can include:
- Promoting access to online information and tools for budgeting, planning and monitoring financial progress
- Offering information, guest speakers and workshops on budgeting, investments, insurances, mortgages, financing a new family, retirement planning and so on
- Providing access to independent financial counselling services
- Making it easier for employees to raise financial concerns during regular one-on-ones
Next steps
What’s clear is the ever-growing preference for benefits that recognise the whole person and having desirable options to choose from. Including employee feedback in regular reviews of your benefit programme will help to keep it on target.
Some strategies will be more straightforward to implement than others. One of the great things about the Boost employee benefits platform is how quick and easy it is to set up. Boost immediately provides discounts and special offers for a wide range of products and services, and you can add your own benefits. Best of all, the offers cover many of the benefit-types mentioned above, including health insurance, nutrition classes, training courses, life insurance and more. Check out the Boost employee benefits platform today.