Introduction to… Total Reward Statements

2009-05-11

Total Reward Statements – The Fundamentals

This article is supplied by Benefex, sponsors of the www.employeebenefits.co.uk flexible benefits channel

Historically, benefit structures have been created out of an organisational need or desire to care for or provide protection for the workforce as an advantage of continuing employment. Despite the breadth, number or cost of many of the benefits on offer, the majority of the UK workforce still remains focused on base pay, invalidating the contribution that these additional benefits make to their lives and overall reward packages.

Pure financial reward is a key remuneration tool for attracting/retaining key talent, but in today’s competitive market it is not sufficient alone. A focus purely on basic pay can result in spiralling salaries, delivering poor value for any organisation - particularly as too much focus on pay can foster a mercenary attitude within the workforce. Instead, we are working with organisations to identify and communicate all elements of reward.

Many organisations spend large budgets on enhancing their current employee benefit offerings, be that through Flexible or Voluntary Benefits, to keep the benefits programme fresh and competitive within the market. However, research and our own experience has shown that employee understanding of the elements that make up their reward package and their appreciation of the cost of these elements remains low. In fact, recent research as shown that when employees are asked to estimate the value of their benefits, most say that they believe their package is worth about 10% of their salary, when the actual value is more likely to be 20% to 30%

What are Total Reward Statements?

Total Reward Statements are a personalised communication tool issued to employees to inform them of the full value of their reward and benefit package. Total Reward Statements help employees to see their package as a whole – thus maximising the impact of your reward and benefit scheme, and further justifying the Business Case for the costs involved in providing a comprehensive reward and benefits package.

All facets of Total Reward can be communicated as part of a Total Reward Statement, including cash and non cash elements. Organisations we have worked with have sought to include overtime, allowances, bonuses, insurances, pension and discounts – the list is almost endless.

Statements can be online or offline, issued annually or live, interactive and updated in real time. Employee access and demographics will drive the media utilised but the fundamental message of communicating Total Reward to employees will remain the same.

Organisations we have worked with have included pension statements, combined pension statements from the Department of Work and Pensions, Shares and all manner of cash and non-cash items. Each statement produced is specific to the employee who receives it and can be produced in any format required.

Statements are designed to meet the exact specifications of the client's needs, brand, current communication strategy and budget.

The future for Total Reward
Benefex are assisting an increasing number of organisations from all sectors to develop a Total Reward strategy. Moving the focus from base pay alone will take time, but the business value gained from this education and understanding will be significant. It is vital that the Total Reward strategy focuses on achieving the objectives of each organisation and that they incorporate key business and HR messages and branding to underline the core message that employees are valued and appreciated.

Reasons for choosing Total Reward Statements

Employer of Choice
When recruiting new employees, Total Reward Statements help you position your Total Reward Package for each employee, providing an effective recruitment differentiator and communication tool.

Reinforce Value and Cost
Whether completing appraisals or making job offers, the organisation is able to use Total Reward Statements to reinforce the true worth and value of the entire Employment Offer.

Transparency
A Total Reward solution enables employers to consolidate and efficiently communicate all elements of reward in a single medium. This results in a greater appreciation, awareness and understanding on behalf of the employee of what Total Reward means to them.

Increased Employee Loyalty
By improving the perception of benefits provided and driving home the message that employees are truly valued, Total Reward assists organisations to foster stronger employee loyalty.

Enhanced Communication
For most organisations Total Reward represents an opportunity to reinforce a good news message regarding what is being done for each employee.

Reducing costs
HR costs can be reduced significantly as employees have easy access to benefits information in a centralised and in depth communication resource which dramatically reduces the queries directed to HR.

If your organisation is looking to improve perception, value and understanding of reward contact us on 0845 129 8636, email info@benefex.co.uk or visit www.benefex.co.uk to discuss how

About Benefex

Benefex is a market leading employee benefit solutions provider that since 2001 has built an excellent reputation in the benefits arena through assisting organisations to design, implement, launch, communicate and administer market leading and award winning benefit schemes

Our unique end-to-end proposition will take you from building a business case through to launching and administrating any benefit programme.

This incorporates –

  • Our Benefits Consultancy focused on implementing world-class strategic projects using the Benefex Listen-Create-Deliver implementation and project management methodology;
  • Our Communications Team who assist with branding, communicating and marketing your scheme back to your employees to maximise understanding, engagement and take-up; and
  • Our Administration Centre, which utilises market leading technology, tracking and administration processes to enable us to ease the transactional burden of our client’s employee benefit schemes

Benefex currently services and administers over 200 benefit schemes in the UK ranging from 200 to 80,000 employees. We administer Flexible Benefits for over 250,000 employees and provide Total Reward Statements for over 500,000 employees in the UK. Our clients include The AA, De Beers, Interserve, Irish Life, John Lewis, Ofsted, Merrill Lynch and Unisys