Step 3 – Create Key Messages
This is your total rewards tool kit. Each bullet represents a “proof point” that can be woven into your total rewards communication. Once you know what is in your tool kit, you can then develop key messages framed within the context of the overall business strategy, HR strategy and organizational culture.
What now? Videos, posters, emails and booklets? Maybe—but they can be very expensive and, in some cases, just not financially feasible for some companies. Often, the most compelling and cost-effective tool for communicating total rewards is the total rewards statement.
Over the past few years, more and more companies have been preparing total rewards statements for their employees. The statement provides a personalized snapshot of the value of all forms of compensation, detailing pay, benefits and other programs supported by company dollars. Where employees contribute to the program (such as medical insurance co-pays), it shows the portion the employee pays. The statement is designed to express the total investment that the employee and the company make in employee benefits.
Step 4 – Measure Success
Once the statements are rolled out and employees have had a chance to read them, it’s important to find out how effective they were. This could be done through a survey or poll asking the following questions:
• Was the information presented in a user-friendly, understandable way?
• How does the total rewards statement compare to other communications?
• Do you have a better understanding of your benefits?
• Will you change the way you use your benefits based on this information?
• Do you feel a stronger connection to the company?
Consider developing a survey that asks these questions in a few different ways in order to get the most accurate data possible. This post-communication survey is invaluable when it comes to improving your total rewards statements to meet changing employee needs and demonstrating ROI to executives.
Take, for example, the case of a large international food company. The company posted double-digit growth every year, based almost entirely on well-timed and well-executed acquisitions. When I arrived, the company had so many divisions and “child” companies that it was confusing for employees. One morning, I was preparing the CEO for a town hall meeting with plant employees from a group that was acquired three years earlier. When the CEO entered the plant, he looked out over the factory floor and saw employees wearing the company name—of two owners ago!
Clearly, it was time to do something to bring the workforce together. Creating a cohesive culture was a huge task that involved many areas, but the total rewards statement was the most important tactic in helping align employees with a single company. Total rewards statements were sent to employees in November, with a follow-up survey in December. The survey completion rate was an impressive 99%. Here are some of its findings.
• 96% said the statement was the most important communication they had received since the acquisition.
• 98% felt better about how the organization was communicating.
• 82% felt a stronger connection to the organization.
• 98% had a greater understanding of the value of their benefits.
• 80% said they were more likely to stay with the company after seeing the total rewards statement.
But measurement of the ROI of total rewards doesn’t stop when you roll out the statement; it is an ongoing process. Many companies add a targeted question or two to their annual employee surveys to gauge if, and how quickly, employee attitudes and engagement levels are shifting. You can also look to year-over-year benefit participation statistics to see how the total rewards statement is affecting participation and then make adjustments to boost participation in a particular program.
Why do total rewards statements work so well? They are compelling, as each statement is personalized with HR data collected on that specific employee. Clearly laying out how the employee is compensated helps to demonstrate the true value of the employee/employer relationship. There are no canned videos of executives reading scripts; the numbers are all there for employees to see.
Key messages about underused programs can be embedded in the statement. Messages about wellness and overall work/life balance can also be embedded in the statement and aligned with company-sponsored programs such as employee assistance programs or fitness club memberships.
The concept of total rewards has moved well beyond the buzzword stage. Well-planned and executed total rewards communication can give companies a strategic advantage in attracting and retaining talent. Personalized total rewards statements are cost-effective, proven methods of improving employees’ perceptions of the value of company benefits and increasing participation in company plans.
David McCullagh is a senior communications consultant with Buck Consultants, an ACS company.
david.mccullagh@buckconsultants.com
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© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the December 2009 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine.