As businesses continue to recover from the residual impact of the pandemic, a labor shortage stands in the way. Employee hiring and retention is a serious issue that all employers, including the real estate industry, are still facing. To keep up, employers should adjust their perspective of employee needs and deliver benefits accordingly. Employee benefits, health insurance and retirement benefits are a useful strategy for real estate businesses.
Consider the following:
Understand employees, and what they want and need from benefits. Employers can start helping their recruiting and retention by rethinking the employee value proposition, which reflects the organization’s rewards, values and ways the company recognizes employees. Key to reevaluating the employee value proposition is the fact that employees have a different vision of work and rewards than in the past. Persona analyses geared specifically to the real estate industry provide insight into employees, helping customize benefits.
One way that employers will need to compete is a new way of looking at benefits: instead of one-size-fits-all, organizations will need to personalize benefits while taking an active role in in helping deliver them.
Offer value. Because limited medical plans are voluntary, employees won’t bite if there’s no value in the plan. A limited medical plan needs to offer access, cover preventative services and address gaps in care.
Emphasize employee communications. A third-party vendor can handle administrative tasks, but not necessarily employee communications. Employers must make sure their vendor offers strong communication and education capabilities.
Remember that retirement plans are important to retention and financial wellness. Benefits like the 401(k) drive recruitment and employee retention because they uniquely incentivize long-term employment, especially when offered with an employer match. When employees know that their company is interested in securing their financial futures, they’re more likely to stick around and put in their best work.
Focus on a quality employee experience (QEX). Strong financial wellness programs from employers can help workers’ emotional and financial health, leading to greater happiness and productivity. A QEX approach entails fashioning the experience employees will have with compensation and benefits. Workers who have quality experiences are more likely to be loyal and create an organization that is attractive to potential employees. Money and financial security is at the center of QEX.
Employees often need help for things beyond a wage and health benefits. That’s where money and security, financial wellness and QEX intersect.
