Small Businesses: Attract Talent With Employee Benefits and Perks

When it comes to attracting the most highly skilled professionals in the workforce, small businesses can have a hard time competing with larger organizations that have more resources and bigger budgets.

But this doesn’t confine smaller companies to only hiring people who big corporations pass on. The savviest small business leaders know that while they may not be able to match the highest salaries that corporations provide, they can stand out and attract top talent with the employee benefits and perks they offer.

Perks and Employee Benefits for Small Businesses

Professionals see beyond salary
Work-life balance perks can help level the playing field
Cater to the individual
Showcase your employee benefits and perks

According to a Robert Half survey, over one-third of workers (35%) said the main reason they’re looking for a new job is to gain better benefits and perks — second only to a higher salary. And that number jumps to 45% for Gen Zers, indicating that many potential candidates can be swayed by attractive benefits and perks.

Small businesses have the ability to use their size to their advantage here. The agility and flexibility inherent to them as compared to bigger companies leaves room for offerings that can outshine what large firms are able or willing to offer.

The first step is to benchmark your company’s employee benefits and perks against those that workers prioritize. Health insurance and paid time off topped the list of benefits that are most important to them in research for the Robert Half Salary Guide, so make sure those are included in your package.

And when it comes to perks, professionals said they most value flexible schedules and remote work options. Small companies can score big points by giving staff the freedom to work where and when they choose, at least some of the time.

While big corporations have made news by calling employees back to the office full-time, smaller businesses can benefit by recruiting professionals who decide to leave to keep the work-life balance they want. Even just offering more days working outside of the office or giving more flexible scheduling options — like windowed work or compressed schedules — than bigger companies in your area can give you the edge when hiring.

Another way to take advantage of your small business’ size is by customizing employee benefits and perks to the individual. Small companies have less red tape to wade through than large companies and can more easily cater to each worker’s unique needs or preferences.

For example, if you find a top candidate who prefers to work fully in-office but might need a couple extra days of paid time off for family obligations, you or your boss might be the only approval needed to grant it and welcome that new employee aboard.

This kind of strategy can help maximize employee happiness — something that job seekers can often get a feel for in interactions with staff during the recruitment process. And the same goes for the close-knit company culture that small businesses often have that corporations just can’t replicate.

Many professionals — especially Gen Zers and Millennials — also place high importance on their employer’s values. Some candidates specifically seek out companies that align with their own ethical, social and environmental principles. Offering perks like paid time off for volunteering in the community can appeal to these professionals.

Even if your small business has top-notch benefits and perks, and a strong company culture and values, it won’t matter if job seekers don’t know about them. So make sure they’re visible. List them in your job postings, for starters — but don’t stop there.

Promote them on your company website and social media accounts. Explain them in detail to applicants early in the recruitment process. Make it difficult for potential employees to not know about what you provide that’s different from what large organizations can offer.

Salary is still king as far as many professionals’ top priorities go, but not by as wide a margin as in the recent past. Strategic planning and flexibility around employee benefits and perks can help make you an employer of choice among top candidates. Go outside the corporate box and get creative with your offerings to show professionals that they’d be happier working for you than for the biggest names in your industry.

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