Communication – A Personal Touch Goes a Long Way

A typical company spends about 40% of its total payroll on employee benefits. So, why is it that employees continue to be dissatisfied with their benefits package?

Dissatisfaction may not stem from a lack of benefits or a poorly structured program, but rather a lack of understanding. According to the Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, this lack of understanding may be the real reason behind turnover and low morale – especially if employees believe pay and benefits are better elsewhere.

All too often the value and costs of health care, bonuses, vacation, holiday pay, retirement plans, and stock options are overlooked by employees. But there is a solution.

Personalized statements increase the visibility of pay and benefits by giving employees detailed information about their “total compensation.” Employees can review and compare the very real investment that their company is making in them. Using dollars and cents, total compensation statements let employees easily see that their salary is much more than just a paycheck.

A recent study reveals that 74% of employees are more likely to read benefits communications that are personalized.

Communicating with personalized statements is also a powerful tool for initiating change in employee behavior. With many retirees living at or below the poverty level, the time to get current employees more involved in their benefits is now. A Watson Wyatt study indicated that companies using personalized statements to inform employees about their 401(k) plan have a 6% higher participation rate than those that don’t. Personalized statements also influence greater contribution amounts.

According to 401khelpcenter.com, “employees who receive a personalized statement contribute nearly 2% more of their salary to their 401(k) than those who don’t receive this information.”

High turnover, employee dissatisfaction, and low participation are too important to ignore. Personalized statements give your employees a detailed view of the oftentimes unaccounted advantages of working for your company – an investment you can’t afford to miss. For more information on how you can increase employee retention and engagement with personalized statements, please visit ClearwaterWriting.com