An Any Answers query by HR Zone member Shelagh focused on the value or otherwise of benchmarking rewards; in this feature we round-up our members’ varied advice.
The question:
I want to inform the partners of the business about the most attractive benefit i.e. health cover or holidays etc. We are a small company with 60 employees it’s a fairly mixed workforce, but there are more young employees than older ones. Has anyone carried out any benchmarking on this? Also, how do I prove that we are comparable with other companies in what we offer in terms of benefits?
Shelagh, HR Zone member.
The responses:
Finding out what employees want is the key according to most of our respondents. Rebekah Tipple, HR Zone member says: “I think the key thing to think about is that you make sure your benefits are meeting the needs of your current employees but also that of potential employees.”
Joanne Jeffery suggests that the best way to find out whether your benefits are comparable to other companies is by conducting a benchmarking exercise. Whilst the latest benchmarking exercise she conducted was by her own admission subject to ‘poor feedback’ she did find that participants were more willing to help over the phone.
“I would suggest setting up a standard question to establish what information you require and then try accessing your local council directory and contacting some companies who are in the similar type of business to yourself and asking if they would like to take part.”
Joanne Jeffery, HR Zone member.
Caroline O’Keefe of Thomsons Online Benefits points to their annual reward survey Employee Rewards Watch 2006 which she says takes some of the work away. “As part of this we ask employers to report which employee benefits they are offering and on what basis (i.e. flexible, voluntary etc). A copy can be downloaded from HR Zone’s document library at: http://www.hrzone.co.uk/docs/
But according to Croner Consulting, the solution is not benchmarking at all:
“The key is not offering what other companies are, rather what your own staff want. The development and launch of any benefit programme should be an open process. The best people to ask about choosing the right benefits are those who will ultimately benefit from them.”
Finding out from them say Croner can be accomplished through a short questionnaire.
“This process could be achieved quickly, cost effectively and the results turned around to give you the information you need.”
Croner urges employers not to get too hung up on what other companies are using.
“There are two potential problems with following someone else’s lead. Firstly, your staff and their staff are different and what motivates theirs will not necessarily motivate yours. Secondly, it’s entirely possible that they did not consult their staff. Just because someone else has a programme in place and their benefits look fresh and sexy to you, does not necessarily mean they are working or that they will transfer to your staff.”
And says the consulting outfit, size should not be a barrier to choice:
“Just because you are a small company, does not preclude the possibility of running a number of different benefits that staff can pick and choose from, in fact, if you are looking to please the majority of the workforce that is spread across all age groups, then this is going to be the best way forward. It is unlikely you will please the majority with just one or two choices.”
Tipple says that having an awareness of current issues is also important when compiling a benefits package: “You need to be careful to appeal to a diverse labour market, given that you have a largely young workforce and that age legislation laws are coming at the end of the year. With current media the big thing is pensions but other popular issues seem to be gym membership and private healthcare.”
Croner Consulting.
Find out what other companies offer in our Company of the Week series in which we reveal the benefits on offer at some of the leading organisations in the UK. See
The Employee Benefits Zone to find out more. We’d also like to hear your views on whether you believe benchmarking is the way to benefits success and how your organisation does it – simply post your comments at the foot of this article.
