Sure, a competitive top salary in your field is a huge win for a job seeker, but recruiting firms and staffing agencies are finding that it takes a lot more than money to land the best employees and build a team that is a force to be reckoned with. In a recent Press Release from Robert Half® Legal, “Higher compensation” was placed as one the lowest reasons a lawyer would choose to join a firm, coming in at a meager 14% of the people asked in the survey. As a recruiter, you have to ask yourself, “What is going to be the deciding factor in placing my client with the right job?” The numbers say that it is more important to consider the following:
Quality of Life
QOL is a term that is thrown around quite loosely in today’s job market. Restaurants, retail stores, and other industries whose employers work on weekends and holidays are always preaching to potential general managers and managers that they pride themselves on providing a high QOL at a competitive wage. What they don’t tell you is that you have to be on premise and working while the rest of the world (including your spouse and children, if you have them) will be operating their lives on a completely different schedule, enjoying important events such as birthdays, graduations, and family cookouts while you have to work. These employers may offer a competitive salary, but at the end of they day, most people feel that a flexible schedule and the option of occasionally working from home when necessary, trump all other reasons for accepting a position at a new place of employment.
Continued Higher Education Tuition ReimbursementThe #2 reason that most people would choose to take a job with a potential employer over a big paycheck, is tuition reimbursement. Ok… Yes, technically this is money exchanging hands, but it makes a much bigger statement in the eyes of the employee. It is perceived as incentive from their workplace to better themselves through education. A benefit of this magnitude is a win-win for the employee & the company.
- The employee gets the opportunity to receive their Bachelors or Masters degree in a subject that is related to their workplace while still remaining employed.
- The company receives a grateful and loyal employee who is now better educated in a subject that benefits their workplace and its future.
This is not limited to higher education. It could include the benefit of sending employees to conferences and industry-related trade-shows they will not only enjoy attending, but will also walk away with cutting-edge information & contacts they can apply to the workplace. At the very least they will go home every day knowing that their life is somehow being enriched by the company they chose to work for.
On-Site Amenities
There are a number of things that could be considered on-site amenities, but here are a few to consider:
- Childcare
- Fitness Center
- Restaurant / Cafe / Cafeteria
- Employee Lounge with Items such as Ping-Pong Tables & Big Screen TV’s
The more enjoyable & convenient a workplace is, the more productive and loyal the staff will be to the company.
What Should Recruitment Managers Take from Information?
All recruiters should consider the perks & benefits of working for a company before even talking about financial compensation. When a client decides to pursue working for a company, they are making a decision that will have a butterfly effect rippling through all facets of their life. It is clearly more important to focus on what a job seeker will gain in terms of the quality of their life rather than how much money they will be making.
