The employees at Flight Centre Canada spend their days creating personalized vacations for others, so when it comes to their own needs, they want the same detailed attention. And that’s exactly what they get with the company’s customized health, money and career guidance programs: Healthwise, Moneywise and Careerwise.
“[The programs] are 100% about them,” assures Kim Knapp, national leader, HR, with Flight Centre Canada. “We don’t paint everyone with the same brush. We have to have standard systems across the board, but with Healthwise, Moneywise and Careerwise, we make it individual.”
Wise Guides
Healthwise is the core of the organization’s wellness program. An employee gets a one-hour on-site health and lifestyle consultation with a personal counsellor. The session includes physical testing, nutrition and well-being education and advice, and ergonomics assessments. Once the testing and assessments are complete, the employee gets a calculation of his or her Healthwise index, which is used as a benchmark. Employees also get specific guidance on how to put their health and fitness goals into action.
“You may want to run a marathon or just walk up the steps without getting winded,” says Knapp. “The counsellors guide you on what actions you need to take.”
To help employees on their health and fitness journey, discounted gym memberships, personal training sessions and in-person and over-the-phone nutritional services are available. For those who are interested in playing sports, Flight Centre subsidizes company teams.
Moneywise and Careerwise are both programs with the same personalized service as Healthwise; however, they cater to those who are looking for financial advice and career planning. In all three programs, extensive follow-ups are done to motivate employees, ensuring that they are taking steps to achieve their goals and staying on track.
All three of the “wise” programs are popular with employees, but consultants for the financial and health programs have had more requests recently. With the turbulence the economy has been experiencing, that isn’t a surprise to Knapp. “The Moneywise people, at the moment, have been run off of their feet. There is a lot of demand there. And a lot of people are stressed, so they are making appointments for Healthwise consults.”
Aruba, Anyone?
While these programs are very popular with employees (approximately 90% of employees use the Healthwise and Moneywise services, and 65% use Careerwise), another popular perk of working with Flight Centre is the opportunity for travel education and discounts.
As part of the company’s education policy, employees can take packaged trips offered by preferred providers to experience various destinations. “They visit the hotels, eat at the restaurants, do different tours [and] use the transportation, so when they are selling something, they have first-hand knowledge,” ex-plains Knapp. In fact, the company gives employees paid educational days to take advantage of these opportunities—over and above their regular vacation days. Additionally, the educational trips are often subsidized by Flight Centre.
Since vacations and travel are the company’s bread and butter, it seems only natural that Flight Centre has a generous vacation policy. The number of vacation days earned in the first and second years is standard, but employees in their third year with the company receive four weeks of vacation. In their eighth year, they are able to take five weeks off.
But according to Knapp, while employees like the time off and the discounted or subsidized travel, it’s the personal attention and guidance they receive in the company’s programs that keeps them on cloud nine.
April Scott-Clarke is assistant editor of Benefits Canada.
april.scottclarke@rci.rogers.com
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© Copyright 2009 Rogers Publishing Ltd. This article first appeared in the June 2009 edition of BENEFITS CANADA magazine.