Leadership & Management, Employee Wellbeing, Retention Strategy, Employee Experience
Key Takeaways:
- Employee benefits: The most effective benefits are practical, inclusive, and shaped around what people actually need in daily life.
- Fairness at work: Benefits build more trust when they are accessible to everyone, not limited by role, tenure, or personal background.
- Personalized perks: Tailored support and flexibility help employees feel valued as people, not just as workers.
- Leadership support: Managers play a key role by applying benefits with empathy, discretion, and respect for individual circumstances.
- Well-being programs: Health coverage, retirement support, flexible work, and leave policies often have the strongest everyday impact.
- Inclusive culture: Strong benefits programs create belonging by making support practical, equitable, and available from the start.
"It’s not the gift, but the thought that counts… indeed, these sage words apply equally as well to employee benefits."
Catered meals, on-site gyms, and in office massages are some of the fun and flashy employee benefits that many organizations think they need to provide in order to attract and retain great talent. Realistically, very few companies can compete with the big benefits synonymous with large companies and equally large budgets. And while employee benefits do impact employees’ perception of their workplace, the reasons for this positivity go deeper than monetary value.
Shifting Paradigms of Employee Benefits on What Matters Most
What people actually want is for their perks and benefits to be delivered authentically, respectfully and fairly. They want to know their organization genuinely has their best interests at heart. We know this because we ask this question on our employee survey, and our quantitative analysis on this topic shows that employees are much more likely to say that they have special and unique benefits if they believe management shows a sincere interest in them as a person, not just as an employee. How you structure your employee benefits package is a key part of this dynamic.
When we analyze employee responses related to their benefits at companies rated highest by their people, some common threads appear. Here are the key employee-benefits insights we’ve gleaned:
- The number of employee benefits offered doesn’t matter, it matters that they are accessible to everyone. This is twofold: Benefits should be accessible to everyone regardless of tenure, gender, sexual orientation, etc. and the benefits that are offered should be maximally applicable to as many people as possible. For instance, if you typically take time off between Christmas and New Year, consider offering that same amount of time to people who celebrate other religious holidays.
- The Best Workplaces provide employee benefits with minimal to no distinctions between those for executives and those for employees. Instead of reserving the best parking spots for your executive team, rotate those spots, use them for reward and recognition or auction them off with proceeds going to a charity of choice.
- Making benefits available from an employee’s first day at work or even earlier is highly impactful. Why make people wait three months to feel like they are valued and belong? Invite them to the team dinner even if it is scheduled before their first day. Pay them for the stat on Monday even if they started on Tuesday.
- Employee benefits related to heathcare coverage and retirement support feature heavily. Can you provide extended benefits through an employee insurance plan? Think too about a pension plan, matching RRSP contributions or an employee stock plan.
- Benefits that improve wellness, through making employees’ lives and the lives of those they love easier, are very highly regarded. This is where you can get creative with flexible work arrangements, parental leave and other paid leaves. Talk to your people about what will help them live their best lives and then tailor your benefits accordingly.
Leadership and the Delivery of Employee Benefits
What you offer is as important as how and why you offer it. This is where your leaders enter the equation. Anyone can read a benefit policy and apply the rules; a real leader sees employee benefits as an opportunity to enrich their people’s lives and wellness. Afterall, employee benefits are supposed to benefit your people!
Train your managers to use their discretion when providing benefits to people and ensure they understand why the benefits are being offered in the first place. This is not a one size fit all proposition – employees want to know that benefits will be afforded to them in a way that makes sense and that respects what is happening in their lives.
- Be flexible and accommodate people’s personal life when crises arise, or when less stressful life events occur.
- Show genuine interest in caring about people’s happiness overall, not just how people experience happiness at work.
- Connect to people through a highly personalized or individual approach.
- Provide support that goes beyond company policies when difficult life events occur.
- Empower leaders to make smart decisions by letting go of policies that limit their ability to help an employee in need.
- Recognize when historic events take place during work hours and encourage people to take the time to either celebrate or debrief.
- Share heartfelt stories and testimonials of how benefits and wellness opportunities have made a difference in employees’ lives.
The ‘Best’ Employee Benefits
There is no one set of ‘best’ benefits; rather there is a plethora of benefits you choose to offer in the best way. To figure out the best employee benefits for your people, start by reflecting on the following questions
- To what degree do your benefits and wellness offerings allow people to feel safe, accepted for their real selves, and included in all aspects of life at your company?
- Do your employee benefits provide real support when, where and how your people need it the most?
- Do your employee benefits enhance the work experience and bring people together in good times and bad?
- Are your benefits structured in a way that allows enough flexibility to apply them fairly and respectfully across individual needs and circumstances?
- What percentage of your employee population is effectively using their benefits relative to the cost of sustaining them?
- Where can you make adjustments to maximize the impact?
- How can you expand what you are offering to include more people?
The best employee benefits programs drive a strong sense of equality throughout the organization. They aren’t flashy, they are practical. They aren’t exclusive, they are inclusive. They are available to everyone and they are in place to enhance everyone’s lives. So stop fretting that you can’t afford to get Nickleback to play at your next holiday party – rent a karaoke machine and let the fun begin!
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Frequently Asked Questions:
What makes employee benefits meaningful to employees?
Benefits feel meaningful when they are delivered fairly, reflect genuine care, and support real needs in work and life. Practical value, respect, and accessibility matter more than flashy extras.
Why is accessibility important in a benefits program?
A strong benefits program works for a broad range of employees. When support is available across different roles, backgrounds, and life situations, it strengthens trust and creates a greater sense of equality.
How can leaders improve the employee experience through benefits?
Leaders can improve the experience by being flexible, showing sincere care, and using judgment to support people in ways that fit their circumstances. A personalized approach makes benefits feel more human and relevant.
Which types of benefits tend to have the strongest impact?
Benefits tied to health coverage, retirement support, flexible work, parental leave, and paid leave often have lasting value because they make life easier and support well-being beyond the workplace.
When should employee benefits begin?
Offering benefits from day one can have a strong impact because it helps people feel welcomed, valued, and included right away instead of waiting months for support to begin.
How can an organization assess whether its benefits are working?
Look at whether employees use the benefits, whether the support reaches a wide range of people, and whether the program helps people feel safe, included, and supported when they need it most.
