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Have you seen this finding from a MetLife Employee Benefit Trends study?
“As the number of benefits offered in the workplace rises, so does employee appreciation, including their intent to stay….”
It begs the question: how can smaller employers compete with larger companies when it comes to their benefit plans?
The need to hire top talent is just as critical for small and mid-sized companies as it is for larger employers (sometimes even more). But your small and mid-sized clients may feel overwhelmed – and perhaps even discouraged – when faced with stats like the average number of benefits offered by business size:
- Small employer (2-99 employees) – 5 benefits
- Mid-size employer (100-4,999 employees) – 8 benefits
- Large employer (5,000+ employees) – 10 benefits
As an employer who wants to attract and retain top talent, are you taking steps to make sure you are able to compete?
Here are three big advantages to bundling benefits for a more robust package— AKA sweet incentives for employees and candidates.
1. Affordable availability
Obvious benefit choices for small to mid-size employers are health, dental, life, and possibly some disability or even vision insurance. Those benefits are widely available to employers under 1000 lives. It’s no secret large employers have buying power and the ability to administer many different employee benefits. One critical advantage of bundling is the ability for vendors to offer smaller employers a similar variety of benefits that larger employers enjoy. This opens the opportunity to employers with as few as 5 employees.
Bundling not only pays off in availability, but also with affordability – more benefits for the money, per employee. It’s like buying in bulk, the volume drives the price down.
2. Opportunities to customize
Another advantage of benefit bundles is the ability to give employees a selection of benefits to meet their family’s specific needs. Rather than focus on the sheer number of benefits provided, you can add value by placing the power of choice in an employee's hands. The ability to customize is appreciated by employees and allows the employer to meet the needs of a diverse workforce (regardless of employee size, differences often exist based on age, stage of life, family status, etc.)
For example, one employee may highly value pet care benefits while another has no use for them at all. Identity theft protection, legal savings, auto and home discounts – each of these appeal to some and not to others. Bundling can help employers of any size offer a plan that can be tailored to what each employee needs and values. Custom choices are a great way to provide a competitive edge to any benefits package.
3. Simplified management & communication
Streamlining a bundled package of benefits with one provider offers the additional bonus of simplifying management for an HR team. For smaller companies, the HR role may be filled by a single person. Any time you can simplify the administration process, HR teams of any size will be happy. It’s what we’re all aiming for, right?
Plus, employees also appreciate the simplicity of having a single provider for multiple benefits. This allows them to communicate with fewer entities which equals less stress for everyone. In fact, another study by MetLife found "when enrollment is simplified, employees are able to discover the immense value of their benefits. As a result, their appreciation can enhance their loyalty and commitment to their company."
One more consideration!
There’s nothing worse than doing the work of putting together a great benefits package only to discover that no one is aware of the benefits – and therefore, they aren’t being used. When shopping for benefits (and benefits brokers), look for those who offer superior employee engagement, simple administration of the benefits, and excellent communication. After all, content is king when it comes to rolling-out benefit offerings.
Large or small, any size company can attract top talent and keep employees satisfied when the right strategies are applied to meet their challenges.
Is growing the business on your goal list? One of the best ways to do that is by hiring and retaining top talent. Bundling benefits can help position you to achieve that goal.
Photo by gina pina
