How benefits benchmarking can help your business

Stats:

• 70% of employees say they would switch jobs for better benefits.
• 54% of employees choose to stay in their current job because of its benefits.

What is employee benefits benchmarking?

Employee benefits benchmarking is the process of comparing your benefits packages against those of other companies in your industry or region. In addition to seeing how competitive your benefits are for attracting and retaining top talent in your industry, this analysis also helps you identify gaps and find opportunities to outshine your competitors.

With benchmarking, you can evaluate everything from your health insurance and retirement plans to paid time off and wellness programs. The goal is to find the right balance between offering a competitive benefits package that attracts top talent, meets your employees’ evolving needs, and helps control costs year over year.

Why employers should use benefits benchmarking

Let’s face it: In today’s job market, a competitive salary isn’t enough. Benefits can make or break a candidate’s decision to join your company. Here’s how the process of benchmarking can help you make data-driven decisions that holistically improve your benefits and employee experience:

1. Maintain your competitive edge: Top talent is more attainable with high-quality benefits. In fact, a remarkable 70% of employees say they would consider switching jobs to gain a better benefits package. 

It’s crucial to ensure that your job offers stand out against those of your competitors. By understanding your competitors and the market, you can identify areas where your benefits may be lacking and enhance your offerings to effectively attract and retain top talent. 

2. Control costs: Find out where you might be overspending—or underspending. By looking at how your benefits stack up against competitors and industry standards, you can identify inefficiencies and opportunities for cost-savings adjustments. This strategic approach enhances the value of your benefits and also ensures you’re effectively allocating resources for a healthier bottom line. Plus, with over 90% of employees preferring to work for companies that prioritize their emotional and psychological well-being, investing in the right benefits becomes crucial.

3. Boost employee satisfaction: Happy employees are more loyal and likely to want to stay for years to come. In fact, 54% of employees are choosing to stay in their current job because of their benefits. Benchmarking helps you understand which benefits your team really values.

4. Invest strategically: Benchmarking gives you data you need to understand where you should invest your benefits dollars for maximum employee impact. Another way to gain essential data is by offering an employee survey. Check out our full guide on how to get started and use our template to create an employee survey that gives you the important feedback you need.

5. Monitor overall performance: Benchmarking helps you identify current gaps, stay on top of current trends and project future trends to maintain a high level of success year over year. It also allows you to promote continuous improvements that benefit your business, budget, and employees.

How your benefits broker should help you benchmark your employee benefits every year

Your benefits broker should provide you with a valuable benchmarking report at least once a year, but ideally a few months before you head into your renewal period. This timing gives you ample opportunity to review and assess your data against competitors before renewal season, with the entire process taking about 30 minutes total. 

This essential step ensures your benefits packages stay optimized for success year after year. By understanding how your offerings compare to industry standards and emerging trends, you can make the informed decisions you need to drive positive outcomes for both your organization and employees.

Your broker should provide you with a personalized benchmarking report that includes public and proprietary information, emerging trends in benefits offerings, plan designs, coverage types, gaps, and any relevant funding options that may boost your company’s long-term goals.

Ready to get started with benefits benchmarking?

Our comprehensive employee benefits benchmarking report gives you the information you need to evaluate your employee benefits package.

Get in touch with our expert team and we’ll help you understand how to quickly get started with a benchmarking evaluation–and how you can design a superior benefits strategy that’s cost-effective, competitive, and tailored to your employees’ needs.

Get your free benefits benchmarking report from Nava 

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