Employees matter

Sitting in the reception area of a motor dealer typing into a laptop, a father of two was surprising to be invited to sit in a private office and work there – in far greater comfort and privacy. This was a great advert for the business because the employee concerned had ‘gone the extra mile’ in securing customer satisfaction.

It makes you wonder just why so much trouble was gone to; it would have been so much easier for the employee to walk on by. Quite apart from the fact that this positive attitude is what we, within the financial services profession, refer to as ‘treating customers fairly’ (which is now at the core of any financial advisers’ business), it makes you realise that for most businesses employees really are their greatest asset.

All too often one hears employers complain about a skills shortage; either the wrong skills are available and you have to spend money on training, or people are leaving school without even the basic skills needed in the workplace. After all, this is why you are providing – or at least planning – an independent education for your children.

It brings home the importance of attracting and retaining the right employees.

Pay more?

Of course, employers could simply pay higher wages in the hope of attracting the right calibre of staff; but this has the downside of also attracting those who are just ‘in it for the money’ and may not really be committed to the business. Not only will this show through to customers, but it can also be very difficult legally to get rid of employees who are not pulling their weight, especially if this is manifested in intangible ways.

This approach also assumes that money is a motivator for everyone, whereas this is not the case. For some employees, recognition, security, responsibility, flexibility and other drivers can be what encourages them to ‘give their best’ to an employer.

Flexibility is the key

In many cases, especially for parents, it can be flexibility that is most important to employees. With more and more people opting to work from home, at least one or two days a week (and who can blame them with the high cost of fuel?) or shorter hours, those employers who are able to accommodate flexible and home working are likely to be the ones who engender greater loyalty (and thus better customer care) than those sticking rigidly to ‘office hours’.

But flexibility means so much more than this. Offering a flexible remuneration package that includes the choice of pension contributions (which can save national insurance contributions for both employer and employee) life insurance, private medical cover and income protection as an alternative to the full salary could be highly attractive. After all, at various stages in our lives, we have different priorities.

For the new starter, salary may be most important, but as employees mature, they can recognise the importance of planning for retirement. And when parenthood comes along, the importance of ‘death in service’ cover and medical insurance for the whole family can become a greater priority. Later in life, even higher pension contributions can gain increased appeal.

Flexibility in remuneration need not be complex to achieve; what is important that it is totally transparent and completely fair between the sexes and with no age, cultural or other discrimination.

If you require any further information about the services that we provide or would like to review your financial planning position, please contact us

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