It’s no surprise to anyone that has been trying to hire for the last couple of years – it’s getting harder to find talent and creating an enticing job offer is more complicated than ever. An interview in today’s world is now a two way street with applicants showing up to the conversation with more than just the age old “what’s the salary range” question that we’re all used to navigating. What’s the deal? Why the sudden shift?
It’s simple – they want the total package.
What do I mean? I’m talking about total rewards strategies. Today’s leading organizations are hyper focused on the employee experience, and for good reason. By empathizing with employee’s personal challenges and ensuring that their workforce has 360 degree support – from work to health to home – organizations create work environments that are productive, sustainable and have low turnover.
According to Mercer’s 2023 Global Talent Trends report, only 51% of organizations today have shifted to putting together total rewards strategies and initiatives to meet the growing gaps between the employee experience that workers are looking for and what has been historically readily available. These new offerings are being highly sought after by both those dipping their toes and actively looking for new opportunities in the job market.
Burnout has been felt nationwide, regardless of industry, and people want relatable organizations. They are now considering more than just salary, medical and dental. Whether an organization supports healthy work behaviors like work life balance, work culture, work conditions and professional development, as well as providing personalized support and resources when they need it most, are all finding their way to the top of the list and are often included by job seekers in interviews.
Total rewards strategies and well-being initiatives could very well be one of the highest ROI yielding opportunities that an organization can undertake, with savings coming from higher employee retention, lower healthcare costs and a higher producing workforce. According to a third party claims analysis study with a Fortune 50 client, Sibly, a text-based coaching and benefit navigation platform, found that even with higher medication adherence and removing high cost claimants, support from their coaches resulted in a 14% decrease in medical spend. That 14% reduction in costs can then be reinvested, further enriching their total rewards initiatives and employee experience.
Understanding what a population is looking for or missing is one very real dilemma that employers are finding themselves in. While HR leadership continues to look for interesting ways to communicate available benefits and resources to their workforces, the fact remains that 80% of people don’t even open the benefits emails that are sent out! And surveys, town halls and listening tours of all shapes and sizes, while more effective when conducted by a third party, are still less likely to yield the brutally honest results that most organizations need to hear in order to enact change. The right technology can help.
One way that Sibly has truly empowered organizations is through their real time data insights capabilities. Sibly is 100% anonymous, which means members are able to reach out for help without feeling exposed for needing that support, have the conversations and get referrals to the benefits they need. Data is aggregated and an organization can see exactly what their workforce’s challenges are, showing an extremely personalized map. Additionally, data is monitored by an expert client relations team that looks for data spikes and other anomalies that should be addressed when they appear, like an abnormal level of stress being reported.
Organizations that want to get ahead and lead the way with total rewards strategies and initiatives are deeply aware of the connection between employee experience and workforce productivity. They are building a strong foundation for their workforce and in turn will receive a workplace culture that is dedicated to the organization’s goals.