how companies can attract talent without going all-out on compensation.

Innovative perks serve as an excellent hook to attract new talent, especially for smaller organizations that have to compete with larger, traditional firms and cannot match their heavy compensation packages. However, as the labor market continues to tighten and the global unemployment rate drops thanks to a robust economy, small and big businesses alike are looking beyond a fat paycheck to attract high quality talent.

Here are four ways businesses can attract top talent without breaking the bank:

#1 - think wholesome benefits

According to the 2017 Employee Benefits survey by SHRM, more than one-third of global companies increased their overall benefit offerings in the last 12 months in a bid to attract top talent. Modern-day employees prefer new or additional benefits to a pay increase. Apart from health and wellness benefits, vacation/paid time off, parental leave, performance bonus, and housing and relocation allowance are some of the other key benefits that employees value. According to Randstad’s Employer Brand Research 2017, benefits rank as one of the top three criteria for talent (irrespective of gender and age groups) when choosing an employer.

#2 - promote work-life balance:

Millennials are known to fiercely protect their work-life balance and flexible work schedules allow them the control and time they need to balance family and personal goals, positively impacting work-life balance. 88% of employees rate flexible hours and 80% rate work from home option as factors that can influence them to choose lower paying jobs over high paying ones.  

#3 - put your employer brand to work:

Companies have a market reputation and in today’s era of hyper-competitive labor markets, businesses can use reputation as the weapon of choice to win talent wars. Ericsson smartly leveraged its employer brand strategy to reduce cost per hire by almost 70%.  How can businesses get employer branding right? According to Randstad’s Employer Branding survey 2017, social is the way forward for organizations looking to strengthen their employer brand with over 49% of jobseekers worldwide using social media platforms.

#4 - throw some negotiated deals into the benefit mix

This is a recent trend gaining popularity in the talent acquisition space. Businesses that offer negotiated deals such as gift cards, discount coupons, movie tickets, shopping deals and more help employees to better manage their life outside work. These perks are not just enjoyed by employees, but their families too, helping promote the employer brand and acting as a great talent acquisition tool. A few enterprising start-ups now offer employee rewards platforms that help organizations provide curated deals to their employees, so they can save and earn more.

 

play the leadership card to your company’s advantage

Strong leadership has been proven to attract and retain the right talent. Modern workers look to leaders who value their team’s success over own, communicate clearly and consistently, encourage positivity, and set reasonable expectations. Combining strong leadership with thoughtful and creative perks is a smart way to cost-effectively attract top notch talent during tight market conditions.



Sources:

https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/research-and-surve…

https://hbr.org/2017/02/the-most-desirable-employee-benefits

http://www.humanresourcesonline.net/case-study-reduce-cost-per-hire-70-…