As the corporate legend goes, Google’s internal code of conduct includes instructions to “do the right thing.”
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that Google attracts some of the best talent in the industry and that they’re staying longer than at most of the other tech titans.
Why? Google management has recognized the value of a comprehensive employee benefits package and aren’t holding back to entice the brilliant minds they need. In today’s hiring market, it’s essential to attracting and retaining top talent.
How Google cares for Googlers
Reviews from current and former employees mention the career potential, compensation, and cool offices, but most fixate on the real selling point: the perks. Free food and healthy snacks, transportation to and from work, and generous vacation policies are just the start. It’s not just nap pods or dogs in the office either!
“There are tons of activities on campus, like authors speaking about their books, films after work, and gyms where you can work out – but you’ll need to make sure to carve out time to do these things,” writes one current employee on Glassdoor.
“From food, health care, onsite gym, and so on, you are well taken care off and can focus on work rather than dealing with life’s hassles,” writes another.
Some of the other offerings include:
- Healthcare: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage from day one, plus onsite chiropractic, physical therapy, and massage. Not to mention that making wellness, and exercise easier for employees leads to reducing overall healthcare costs for employers!
- Finance: Access to a 401(k) plan with a reported 50 percent match, up to $8,250 per year.
- Family Support: Paid parental leave between 12-22 weeks, group life insurance, and death benefits (the company pays your surviving spouse an astounding 50% of your salary for up to 10 years)
- Professional Development: Education subsidies, speaker events, and tuition reimbursement
- Work/Life Balance: Encouragement and stipends to pursue side passions, take classes, or volunteer
- Wellness: Many locations also have gyms, pools, bikes, and fitness classes to encourage exercise.
Not every company has the budget to afford such an over-the-top employee benefits program, but even a small business employee benefits program can learn from Google’s approach. After all, wellness benefits are shown to increase employee engagement year after year. If you are still curious, check out this post to learn why employee benefits are important.
Why this works, and what we can learn
With our own customers, we’ve already seen the many ways that thoughtful incentive management and recognition tactics can pay dividends in productivity, job satisfaction, and retention. When people feel valued at work, they’re far more likely to want to stay and be happy to do so.
But the impact starts all the way back at recruitment! In a survey of 2,000 American jobseekers, more than half agreed that a company’s benefits and perks are a major factor in considering whether to even accept a job offer. 86% of large to mid-sized employers offer financial wellness rewards! Here are some common ways to implement employee benefits for mid size businesses. If you are looking to survey your employees, feel free to take advantage of our free employee benefits survey template!
The survey also found that 80% of employees would choose additional benefits over a pay raise, and most millennials and Gen X-ers prefer benefits or perks to pay raises when compared to those in older generations (check out these quirky perks that companies are using to attract employees). At the same time, it’s important to note that perks aren’t enough to create company culture.
But what if you’re not working with a search-engine-sized budget? (Most of us aren’t!)
Other research has shown that more flexible hours, work-from-home options, and corporate wellness programs are some of the most desired options, while still being affordable for employers. You can make a big impact on employee happiness, retention, and even recruitment, by approaching your benefits package with thoughtfulness and a value-add mindset.
Whether you have 80,000 on the payroll or 80, taking care of your employees isn’t just the right thing, it’s good business.
Ready to explore low-cost, high-impact wellness benefits? Talk to our team about how to incentivize your employees through exercise.
