How to Measure the Success of Your Employee Benefits Package

We all know how important it is for businesses of every shape and size to offer employee benefits packages to their team. Not only can a robust benefits package attract the top candidates in your specific field, but they also provide a level of security to your current employees during their tenure at your company.

Just as it is important to provide your employees with benefits, any business owner needs to measure the outcome of their benefits packages to see if they are truly successful. The reasoning for this is simple; taking time to look deep into your benefits offerings will help you formulate a clear strategy going forward for certain objections and business goals.

However, many business owners forget this step simply because they don’t understand how to collect the data in question. Here we will explain the specific elements of a successful employee benefits plan.

Focus on an Outcome Rather than an ROI

As a business owner, we know it is habitual to focus on the ROI when tracking your key performance indicators (KPIs). However, when it comes to tracking the success of your employee benefits, you need to focus on the outcome of your efforts rather than a specific number.

Sure, you can rely on the number of new hires or your percentage of employee retention, but these numbers won’t tell you the whole story of what’s going on with your employees. Instead, you’ll want to track a specific outcome that can’t be tangibly measured with a number.

Outcomes, instead of a specific KPI, are much easier to track, because you can answer your question easily. So for example, you can ask yourself, “Has the overall employee satisfaction of my team increased?” and the answer is either yes or no. There’s no need for complex, confusing metrics when you focus on an outcome.

No two businesses are the same, meaning no two goals are going to be the same. When determining what goal to target, we suggest taking a hard look and finding out what is important to you as the business owner. Here are some common outcomes to consider.

Employee Happiness and Job Satisfaction

Employee benefits aren’t just perks given to an employee for a job well done. Instead, they are a measure of stability for the employee’s health, well-being and sense of security. When an employee knows that their medical insurance is subsidized, they have ample paid days off for dealing with personal matters and that they have a growing retirement savings account, they will feel less stressed as a whole.

It is important to note that employee happiness is directly correlated with increased job satisfaction. When an employee doesn’t have to spend all their time worrying about the next medical bill or how they will save for the future, they will be able to dedicate themselves fully to the job at hand.

It is easy to track employee happiness and job satisfaction via monthly or quarterly anonymous surveys. You will need to ask specific questions on the survey to gauge accurate responses, such as:

• Do you feel valued at work?
• Are you motivated to come to work every day?
• How would you rate your work-life balance?
• Do you believe there is clear communication and transparency throughout the organization?
• Do you feel as if your voice is heard?
• Do you feel like there is room for personal growth and development opportunities?

The answers to these questions will be very telling about how engaged your employees feel at work. You will be able to measure the success of specific employee benefits based on the answers given, such as opportunities for further growth, work-life balance, paid time off and overall daily stressors.

Employee Turnover

If employees don’t feel valued at work, their productivity may decreases or they could quit. While there can be some external factors to an employee leaving, look for patterns when employees resign that can hint at something larger as the issue.

For example, are multiple employees leaving all at once? During their exit interviews, are they all expressing their frustrations at the same thing? If so, it may be time to dig in deeper on those concerns, which could result in a change to your benefits package. Remember, not only do you have to attract high-quality candidates with strong benefits, but also you have to retain them with a comprehensive, sustainable package for years to come.

Employee Absences

While it is normal for employees to fall sick from time to time, if you are noticing that more employees are taking time off than normal, this can be a cause for concern. Your benefits strategy could be to blame. Or, if you have not emphasized flexible work schedules, your employees may feel burnout quicker than normal, requiring more absences so they can focus on their mental health. This is more important than ever now, especially as most organizationa have  pivoted from normal business operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Takeaway

When it comes to measuring the success of your employee benefits package, it is incredibly important that you look at the big picture. Take a step back and see how your employees are feeling when it comes to their job satisfaction, overall happiness and mental health.

Are your turnover metrics directly related to employees not feeling valued in their workspace? How you answer will provide a better insight into the overarching success of your employee benefits plan, as well as the viability of your business as a whole. Often, a broker can assist in an objective assessment and strategy for your organization.

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