Priya Krishnan is Chief Digital and Transformation Officer at Bright Horizons.
The best corporate benefit programs are investments in your people—and, in many cases, their families. When employees feel supported, they tend to be more productive and loyal. And that, of course, can contribute directly to the business’ success.
Companies have the opportunity to build the workplace of the future and rise above the competition by offering a range of support programs that attract and retain the best talent. You can show your employees you are listening to them by putting actionable strategies in place that drive meaningful, lasting improvements to the company culture and the bottom line.
In my organization’s experience of partnering with over 1,000 progressive companies in a variety of industries, we’ve learned that companies need to be able to meet the needs of the five generations in the workforce today. In addition to traditional medical, dental and financial supports, this could look like providing employer-sponsored services that support your working parent employee population, as well as resources for those dealing with care for an elderly family member or pet.
It’s incredible what role you, as an employer, can play to make a real, positive difference in the lives of your employees and their families when you offer meaningful benefits for every stage of an employee’s life.
Supporting Working Parents
Working parents with children under 18 make up 40% of the workforce, and many of them need to work to support their families. To do so, they need the right support in place to be productive at the office and feel more “in control” at home. Company benefits and resources can help—from access and financial support to early education and care, to summer camps, tutoring services and college coaching for the under-18 set.
The skills children learn in the first five years of life are critical to long-term success, and choosing the right early education and care program is important to many working parents. While this investment in their children’s future is an important decision, many don’t have access, depending on where they live. Many families live in what’s known as a childcare desert, and there aren’t high-quality options available. For most, no matter where they live, while they know it’s an important investment in their child’s future, they need financial support to help pay for high-quality care.
There may be a few challenges human resource leaders encounter as they think about supporting this critical segment of their workforce. Some of these investments can be costlier than others, even if the ROI is there. For example, an on-site child care center (something we’ve helped clients with) may be a terrific attraction and retention tool for a company in a rural area. This is where the employer can play an important role in supporting current or potential working parent employees. Yet, while the company may have the need, space and capital to offer this type of support, the decision makers might need some convincing to do so.
Growing Supports
Families come in all shapes and sizes, and employers should be offering assistance across all life stages. Elder care benefits are becoming increasingly popular as the workforce needs to care more and more for aging family members. This type of support could include ongoing, personalized guidance from an experienced care coach, who may conduct free in-home assessments and specialized referrals for assisted living facilities—for example, legal and financial assistance. Or employers could provide access to an online platform for coordinating short-term in-home care.
Our four-legged family members also may need care when the adults need to work. We’ve seen employers offer pet care benefits that include access to online support to help families find the right services, including pet sitters, dog walkers, groomers, insurance options and advice. The advantage is that the vendors have been vetted already via background checks. The pet owners can have peace of mind while at work, knowing their beloved pets are well cared for.
How Can HR Leaders Make A Business Case For Their Organizations?
When looking into implementing additional benefits, there are a few steps HR leaders should take as they make the case to leadership that the cost is worth the investment.
First, identify your organization’s HR goals (recruitment, retention, less absenteeism, etc.) and the biggest challenge or pain points to achieving those goals. Often, these answers can be found in discussions with leadership or learned from employee surveys or employee resource groups (ERGs). The key is to get to a dollar value of the impact on the organization of not having the talent. What would be the cost to replace employees and retrain new ones vs. retaining them by providing the support they need? Don’t forget to consider the loss of productivity during the hiring process, as well as the institutional knowledge the organization will be losing.
Next, look at the data. Research companies that have implemented these benefits and assess the ROI they’ve noted. Have they reported measurable gains in employee retention, talent acquisition, productivity, professional development, employee engagement or an improved organizational culture?
Then, consult and/or hire an expert to partner with to develop and then manage the specialized benefit program. Just as you would partner with an outside medical or financial firm if that’s not your specialty, if child care or elder care is not your core competency, you’ll want to partner with a company to implement and manage the benefit. I recommend looking for a partner with a long tenure and a track record of excellence. The goal is to find a partner that knows how to manage the benefit you’re looking for efficiently and effectively, meeting all the requirements and standards of quality, and with oversight in place so employees can be productive and engaged while at work.
Once in place, your organization must market and communicate the benefits available, as they can be impactful if used. Human Resources must regularly remind employees what resources and financial supports are available, and managers should implement reminders at certain stages of change in their employees’ lives or careers.
This is a full-circle moment for HR leaders and their organizations. Listening to your employees, and investing and implementing the supports that “meet their moment” is a powerful way to let them know their voices matter. When your people are thriving, your business is far more likely to thrive as well.
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