April 15, 2025 • 15 mins
"Are you doing this just to look good for yourself, or are you doing this because you genuinely want to make a difference for your people?"
Notable Moments
"Are Your Company Benefits Truly Employee-Centric?": "The first question you have to ask yourself is, are you doing this just to look good for yourself, or are you doing this you genuinely want to make a difference for your people?"","includeExtensions":["PushEvent","PushSelectionUpdate"]}" data-live-json="{}" data-slots="{}">
04:42 Unlimited PTO: Productivity and Legalities
09:00 Managing Unlimited PTO Challenges
12:58 Competitive Compensation & Benefits Analysis
13:42 Thoughtful Compensation Strategy Assistance
Connect with Tim and his team:
Website: https://bestculturesolutions.ca/
LinkedIn: Best Culture Solutions, Inc
Instagram: @best.culture.solutions
Email: tim@bestculturesolutions.ca
There is a lot of discussion around whether unconventional benefits really enhance work culture, or if they are just a shiny façade. Benefits like stocked kitchens, ping pong tables, or even unlimited PTO can seem appealing, but the motivation behind them is what truly matters.
Read my blog for more on ways companies can adopt unconventional benefits, while making sure they are doing it for the genuine benefit of employees.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:07):
Welcome to the World at Work podcast, where business leaders
and job seekers come together to create winning cultures and
fulfilling careers. I'm your host, Jody Mayberry, and I'm here with
Tim Dick, the founder of Best Culture Solutions. And I'm back
on the show to even things out. There was a
sense of imbalance in the universe when
(00:29):
Tim did a show without either me or Katie. So I I had to
rush right back and record with Tim. So, Tim, it's good to be
back with you. How was that? You don't do too many shows without me
or Katie. You led the charge. How did it go?
Scary, to be honest. I was like, where is like, you know, it's
like it's like having a kid that you let live out of the house for
(00:50):
the first time. Right? And so but I got through it. I paid all the
bills and didn't get kicked out. I'm back of of where I was trying to
live that day, I guess, if we're using metaphor. And we got through it. I
mean, Mike Simmons is on the show, and he was, you know, he was gracious,
made it easy, so it was okay. We'll be okay, but we missed you. So
we did get Katie back. Now we got you back. People will see that in
the next show. So welcome back to your own show, Jody. Well, I think
(01:13):
it's more a Tim Dick show, but I have a
topic I I want to talk about. Tim, I've
seen it more in the past than recently, but different
things come up about employee benefits. We've
seen things, small things, like
stocked kitchens, all the snacks and drinks you want. Ping pong
(01:35):
tables. We've seen some companies offer to pay off your student
loans. We've seen unlimited days off. There's no
set. Just you just have to ask for it. All of
these have one thing in common that they are unconventional. And
I've am wondering what your view is
on unconventional benefits. So one, just talk about
(01:57):
that. And two, what impact does it have on the culture of an organization?
Right. A lot of things that I think about them. And it and here's
what I would say is that, you know, first of all, before you get
into unconventional benefits, before you get into anything
that is pro employee or anything like that or is meant to be pro
employee or pro staff member, the first question you have to ask
(02:20):
yourself is, are you doing this just to look good for
yourself, or are you doing this you genuinely want to make a difference for your
people? And if you're not doing it look. I know
tons of companies, tons of leaders that have done anything to
make their company look innovative, and I'm using air quotes on video
or cool or hip or forward or progressive. And that's
(02:42):
what their motivation is by doing something unconventional. They're not sitting there and asking the
question, could there actually be a benefit for our employees and for
us by doing this? Yes. It is more generous. Yes. It
is unconventional. Absolutely. But they're not asking the right
question about why am I really motivated to do this. Am I just doing this
to try to portray an image of us, or am I doing it genuinely
(03:05):
to make a genuine difference to see where what it can do for our
people and genuinely wanting our people to have more than
what is conventional because we think that there's some benefit to them, but there'll be
some benefit to us. If you're just doing it for an appearance, so you think
it's some sort of a branding exercise, Sometimes people do it because it's their
own personal leadership that they're trying to pump up the tires to.
(03:26):
People will see through it every time. It's just like
what they say about company culture. You know? Having a foosball table in your break
room doesn't make you a great corporate culture. That doesn't mean you can't have a
foosball table, but the reality is that if it's not genuinely
motivated, it will fall flat. So ask yourself that question first is what
I always say. Probably not what you were expecting me to say. No. It wasn't,
(03:48):
but I have heard feedback like this. For example, let's
take the unlimited days off and four
day work week. That's another one. Four day work week. I talked with
someone from a company that offered unlimited
days off, four day work week, and and it wasn't four
tens. It was just the fifth day you had off. And he
(04:10):
said, yeah. That works for some departments, but others,
there's just too much to do and they kind of expect us to be here
anyway. Right. And that kinda goes in line with
what Tim was saying. Are you doing it to look good? Because that
sounds really good when you're hiring. Unlimited days off,
Fridays off. But how is it in in
(04:33):
practice? Because people will find out soon enough if they take the job.
They'll find out soon enough it was it was just a fancy
model that you put in the window. Yeah. Can you actually operationally do
that? Right? Now don't get me wrong. I mean, I've known lots of companies that
have unlimited days off or as you would call in United States, PTO, which
is not a term we use in Canada, but that have great success with that.
(04:54):
As a matter of fact, their productivity is higher because people know that what they
need to do is they need to get the work done. Right? And if the
work is not done, they don't get to go away. It can be a double
edged sword. Sometimes it can lead people to never taking time off and just
always working. One thing you have to be mindful of with some things, though, too,
with some of the unconventional benefits is what
(05:15):
are the laws around that? So for instance, in Canada, you could say you have
unlimited PTO, but you're actually saying where I live in Alberta, you are legally
obligated to make sure that they get at least two weeks of vacation. So if
you run into a situation, after they've worked for a year, that is, but if
you run into a situation where you're offering unlimited PTO but people
just keep working, you actually have a legal obligation in some cases to
put your hand up and to say, look. You do need to take two weeks
(05:37):
off before the end of this year. You have to. So, I mean, all that
stuff, it can work. And like I said, I have seen unlimited PTO work
great for people and for employers and for their and their people
that get to that get to do it. But, you know, any of
these unconventional types of benefits can have benefits or
perks and pros and cons. Like you said, it might not be doable.
(05:59):
It might not be operationally feasible, but some of the others that I've seen is,
you know, you mentioned the student loan repayments, home office stipends. Right?
Like, I've worked with employers that offered $500 a year to upgrade your home
office. You know, I have seen paid sabbaticals. So every five years, you know,
you can go away for two months, and we're not gonna don't worry about it.
I've even seen things like nap rooms or rest pods, which can actually boost
(06:21):
productivity, right, for people. I've seen people that have free
counseling or therapy services either online or virtually, or they include
pet insurance in their benefits or, financial support, for
financial planning. I've seen that as well. We've seen workplaces in larger
companies that might have childcare, on-site or maybe
subsidies or or benefits to help pay for your childcare off-site. There's
(06:43):
been some interesting ones, though, too. Like, I've seen things like bonuses for failing, right,
to reward innovative thinking. I've also seen, like, an
internal gig marketplace or an internal gig economy where if you take
on a short term project outside of your job description, then you get paid like
a consultant type of thing. So and they all could do things,
right, that help people. Another good one is I think it was Facebook that
(07:05):
had this, and I could be wrong, but they have employee transportation to and from
the workplace, and you can actually bring your laundry with you on the
bus. You leave it on the bus when you go to work. They have a
laundry service that cleans it while you're working, and it's back and dry cleaned for
you when you come back on the bus home. All of these things can help,
but you have to ask yourself why you're really doing this. You know? Will you
(07:26):
boost productivity with a lot of things? Yes. And that's a benefit for you. And
don't get me wrong. It's a two way economic transaction. If you invest
in your employees in some way, then you believe you're gonna get it back as
a retention bonus. But again or or sorry, better retention. But if you're
not doing it for genuine reasons, it will not matter.
And, also, if you're committing to things that you can't afford, then it will not
(07:47):
matter. I think this is important what Tim has said
that is it economically feasible?
Because even if you offer it for good
reasons, if you can't actually pull it off, you'll look
bad even though you meant the best by doing it. So, Tim, let's
look into that. What are the keys to
(08:08):
figuring out what is fiscally and operationally
feasible for our company to offer as unconventional
benefits? Yeah. Well, I mean, first of all, I
think, fiscally, I think you need to break down the cost. Right? And so there's
different things that might not have full tangible cost, but you have to look at
your budget. What can you afford? I think some things are pretty simple. Like, if
(08:30):
you have failure bonuses or internal gig marketplaces
or things that cost money, such as, you know, on-site therapy,
we know what that's gonna cost over the course of a year, and you can
do it based on your headcount and find out. Nap pods, if you put those
in place, there's just a cost. Right? And it's if your company is not
putting money away and just spending it, then it's not gonna be a good long
(08:51):
term solution because your culture will stink when it doesn't exist anymore.
So so you need to just look at the budget and and try to reasonably
understand what this is gonna cost you. Some of the things with unlimited PTO,
for instance, could be more difficult to quite put your finger on because you don't
know how many days people are gonna take off. But what you could do is
just make sure that you design the job with certain deliverables and
(09:12):
goals and responsibilities that you know could fill up, you know, your normal
average work year and encourage people just to get your stuff done and take
time off when you want. And if you properly allocate the
tasks, the budgets, and the time for that position over the year, then you
should know that from a fiscal perspective, you should be able to
afford it, right, because you know what the job is gonna take already, if that
(09:35):
makes sense. But that's the biggest thing. Operationally, you have to ask yourself,
hey. Some of these benefits are gonna take people away from work. Can we cover
it? Right? And then that also kind of bleeds into the financial side of things
where if we're gonna give people extra paid time off, because sometimes there's sickness
days, then, okay, so how many extra days per year are there of lost productivity
potentially? And do we have people that can pick up that slack? And if we
(09:56):
don't, do we need more? And what's that gonna cost? Right? And it just
takes none of the science or the math behind this will ever be perfect. It
will never work out just as you calculated it. But you need to have an
educated understanding, right, of the decision that you're making
so that we strategically speak, you can make the right decision. What
if we have two options? I'm gonna make two up.
(10:17):
They may not be relevant to your organization, but I'm just gonna use them
so Tim can walk through an exercise. Okay. We know
that we have the budget to make one thing happen. And
let's say it's between adding two nap
pods or a fully stocked
cereal bar or snacks in the break room that people don't have to
(10:39):
pay for. How do we determine which is the best
option to choose for our organization? Well, I'm tempted to
just be like, I don't know. End the podcast. But, no, I I think what
you would do like, it's well, let's answer that question at a high level. Right?
Like, what should people think about? Because for organization b, it might be the Nap
Pods. Organization, you know, x, it might be the
(11:00):
cereal bar. And I think that what you can do is you can do some
research around, you know, what are the potential benefits of each? How does
each affect your employees' focus? Right? And how does it affect their
productivity? If you stock the cereal bar with good healthy things,
then, you know, then that might have a different effect than if you didn't. You
know, I would just take a look at get some information. Right? Like, what is
(11:20):
the anticipated benefit of each? Because they will affect your employees different
ways. You can also do a little bit of surveying and just make sure you
manage your expectations. We're not doing this yet. We're thinking about it. But if
we we did it, you know, which one of these things do you think that
would be the best benefit for you in helping you feel better about what
you accomplished during the day? And I think using some messaging as well
(11:41):
around, this isn't just about what would make you more productive, because I'm not trying
to squeeze you like an orange, but, you know, some employee friendly verbiage,
like, what would help you get more done in the day so that way you
can feel better about that to do list at the end of it. Right? Because
let's get real. When people do not get everything
done in a day, it stresses them out, and they don't like that feeling. So
(12:01):
I think you have to put it in those terms. So that way it's
it's also not just about you squeezing something out of it, but them feeling better
as well. But I think long story long, you know, in that situation, take a
look at I'm not a health expert, and I will never be one. What would
the effects of each be potentially depending on what's in the cereal bar and design
of the Nap Pods and all that stuff? And then ask your people as well,
(12:23):
you know, because even if science says, a, everybody's a little bit different, and they
might prefer b. And just get get some good information about what
would make people's jobs and lives easier. And I
picked those examples just so Tim could walk
through what making this decision looks like. Tim,
if we think unconventional benefits
(12:45):
may be something we're interested in adding in our
organization, but we don't know where to begin. We don't know how to implement
it, or we just need someone to talk through it with. What can we
do? Who can we call? Well, either of us now that we've talked about it
because now you're thinking about it too, but we can help with that. We do
a lot of compensation and benefits analysis. One thing that people have to be
(13:06):
mindful of when you're thinking about this is that these benefits also have a monetary
figure to them. And you wanna make sure that your total compensation package, including
your benefits, is competitive in the marketplace at the right level and have
an understanding of what you're doing. And we help people with that, putting you know,
there is a dollar figure to the NAP pod and what it's worth to people
compensationally and and same with the cereal bar or PTO or
(13:28):
whatever it is that you wanna do. And we do help people with that. And
I do wanna say too that, you know, at the beginning, I did say it's
not always the right answer, but a lot of times it can be a great
answer. And it can set you out apart as an employer and make you attractive
to people because it sounds interesting. And so I would never just say no,
but it's just ask the right question so you're doing the right thing at the
right time that's actually gonna benefit people instead of just doing something
(13:51):
for the sake of having your image look better or look like you're a better
leader than you might really be. So all that to say, if you'd like some
help with compensation benefits analysis, including understanding
unconventional compensation, how it might be able to fit into your compensation package,
we can certainly help with that. And, people can find me at best culture solutions
dot c a, or you can email me at
(14:12):
tim@bestculturesolutions.ca. Alright.
Another thing I would like to hear, reach out to Tim
if you do unconventional benefits or unconventional
compensation in a way that's worked or if you tried
something that didn't work and you're still trying to figure it
out. Tim wants to hear about that. Of course, I just volunteered that Tim wants
(14:33):
to hear about it, but I know I certainly do because those are great stories.
Maybe we can do a follow-up episode and talk
about what has been working out there. Tim, it's been a
great conversation. I look forward to more, and thank you for
listening to World at Work.
Welcome to the World at Work podcast, where business leaders
and job seekers come together to create winning cultures and
fulfilling careers. I'm your host, Jody Mayberry, and I'm here with
Tim Dick, the founder of Best Culture Solutions. And I'm back
on the show to even things out. There was a
sense of imbalance in the universe when
(00:29):
Tim did a show without either me or Katie. So I I had to
rush right back and record with Tim. So, Tim, it's good to be
back with you. How was that? You don't do too many shows without me
or Katie. You led the charge. How did it go?
Scary, to be honest. I was like, where is like, you know, it's
like it's like having a kid that you let live out of the house for
(00:50):
the first time. Right? And so but I got through it. I paid all the
bills and didn't get kicked out. I'm back of of where I was trying to
live that day, I guess, if we're using metaphor. And we got through it. I
mean, Mike Simmons is on the show, and he was, you know, he was gracious,
made it easy, so it was okay. We'll be okay, but we missed you. So
we did get Katie back. Now we got you back. People will see that in
the next show. So welcome back to your own show, Jody. Well, I think
(01:13):
it's more a Tim Dick show, but I have a
topic I I want to talk about. Tim, I've
seen it more in the past than recently, but different
things come up about employee benefits. We've
seen things, small things, like
stocked kitchens, all the snacks and drinks you want. Ping pong
(01:35):
tables. We've seen some companies offer to pay off your student
loans. We've seen unlimited days off. There's no
set. Just you just have to ask for it. All of
these have one thing in common that they are unconventional. And
I've am wondering what your view is
on unconventional benefits. So one, just talk about
(01:57):
that. And two, what impact does it have on the culture of an organization?
Right. A lot of things that I think about them. And it and here's
what I would say is that, you know, first of all, before you get
into unconventional benefits, before you get into anything
that is pro employee or anything like that or is meant to be pro
employee or pro staff member, the first question you have to ask
(02:20):
yourself is, are you doing this just to look good for
yourself, or are you doing this you genuinely want to make a difference for your
people? And if you're not doing it look. I know
tons of companies, tons of leaders that have done anything to
make their company look innovative, and I'm using air quotes on video
or cool or hip or forward or progressive. And that's
(02:42):
what their motivation is by doing something unconventional. They're not sitting there and asking the
question, could there actually be a benefit for our employees and for
us by doing this? Yes. It is more generous. Yes. It
is unconventional. Absolutely. But they're not asking the right
question about why am I really motivated to do this. Am I just doing this
to try to portray an image of us, or am I doing it genuinely
(03:05):
to make a genuine difference to see where what it can do for our
people and genuinely wanting our people to have more than
what is conventional because we think that there's some benefit to them, but there'll be
some benefit to us. If you're just doing it for an appearance, so you think
it's some sort of a branding exercise, Sometimes people do it because it's their
own personal leadership that they're trying to pump up the tires to.
(03:26):
People will see through it every time. It's just like
what they say about company culture. You know? Having a foosball table in your break
room doesn't make you a great corporate culture. That doesn't mean you can't have a
foosball table, but the reality is that if it's not genuinely
motivated, it will fall flat. So ask yourself that question first is what
I always say. Probably not what you were expecting me to say. No. It wasn't,
(03:48):
but I have heard feedback like this. For example, let's
take the unlimited days off and four
day work week. That's another one. Four day work week. I talked with
someone from a company that offered unlimited
days off, four day work week, and and it wasn't four
tens. It was just the fifth day you had off. And he
(04:10):
said, yeah. That works for some departments, but others,
there's just too much to do and they kind of expect us to be here
anyway. Right. And that kinda goes in line with
what Tim was saying. Are you doing it to look good? Because that
sounds really good when you're hiring. Unlimited days off,
Fridays off. But how is it in in
(04:33):
practice? Because people will find out soon enough if they take the job.
They'll find out soon enough it was it was just a fancy
model that you put in the window. Yeah. Can you actually operationally do
that? Right? Now don't get me wrong. I mean, I've known lots of companies that
have unlimited days off or as you would call in United States, PTO, which
is not a term we use in Canada, but that have great success with that.
(04:54):
As a matter of fact, their productivity is higher because people know that what they
need to do is they need to get the work done. Right? And if the
work is not done, they don't get to go away. It can be a double
edged sword. Sometimes it can lead people to never taking time off and just
always working. One thing you have to be mindful of with some things, though, too,
with some of the unconventional benefits is what
(05:15):
are the laws around that? So for instance, in Canada, you could say you have
unlimited PTO, but you're actually saying where I live in Alberta, you are legally
obligated to make sure that they get at least two weeks of vacation. So if
you run into a situation, after they've worked for a year, that is, but if
you run into a situation where you're offering unlimited PTO but people
just keep working, you actually have a legal obligation in some cases to
put your hand up and to say, look. You do need to take two weeks
(05:37):
off before the end of this year. You have to. So, I mean, all that
stuff, it can work. And like I said, I have seen unlimited PTO work
great for people and for employers and for their and their people
that get to that get to do it. But, you know, any of
these unconventional types of benefits can have benefits or
perks and pros and cons. Like you said, it might not be doable.
(05:59):
It might not be operationally feasible, but some of the others that I've seen is,
you know, you mentioned the student loan repayments, home office stipends. Right?
Like, I've worked with employers that offered $500 a year to upgrade your home
office. You know, I have seen paid sabbaticals. So every five years, you know,
you can go away for two months, and we're not gonna don't worry about it.
I've even seen things like nap rooms or rest pods, which can actually boost
(06:21):
productivity, right, for people. I've seen people that have free
counseling or therapy services either online or virtually, or they include
pet insurance in their benefits or, financial support, for
financial planning. I've seen that as well. We've seen workplaces in larger
companies that might have childcare, on-site or maybe
subsidies or or benefits to help pay for your childcare off-site. There's
(06:43):
been some interesting ones, though, too. Like, I've seen things like bonuses for failing, right,
to reward innovative thinking. I've also seen, like, an
internal gig marketplace or an internal gig economy where if you take
on a short term project outside of your job description, then you get paid like
a consultant type of thing. So and they all could do things,
right, that help people. Another good one is I think it was Facebook that
(07:05):
had this, and I could be wrong, but they have employee transportation to and from
the workplace, and you can actually bring your laundry with you on the
bus. You leave it on the bus when you go to work. They have a
laundry service that cleans it while you're working, and it's back and dry cleaned for
you when you come back on the bus home. All of these things can help,
but you have to ask yourself why you're really doing this. You know? Will you
(07:26):
boost productivity with a lot of things? Yes. And that's a benefit for you. And
don't get me wrong. It's a two way economic transaction. If you invest
in your employees in some way, then you believe you're gonna get it back as
a retention bonus. But again or or sorry, better retention. But if you're
not doing it for genuine reasons, it will not matter.
And, also, if you're committing to things that you can't afford, then it will not
(07:47):
matter. I think this is important what Tim has said
that is it economically feasible?
Because even if you offer it for good
reasons, if you can't actually pull it off, you'll look
bad even though you meant the best by doing it. So, Tim, let's
look into that. What are the keys to
(08:08):
figuring out what is fiscally and operationally
feasible for our company to offer as unconventional
benefits? Yeah. Well, I mean, first of all, I
think, fiscally, I think you need to break down the cost. Right? And so there's
different things that might not have full tangible cost, but you have to look at
your budget. What can you afford? I think some things are pretty simple. Like, if
(08:30):
you have failure bonuses or internal gig marketplaces
or things that cost money, such as, you know, on-site therapy,
we know what that's gonna cost over the course of a year, and you can
do it based on your headcount and find out. Nap pods, if you put those
in place, there's just a cost. Right? And it's if your company is not
putting money away and just spending it, then it's not gonna be a good long
(08:51):
term solution because your culture will stink when it doesn't exist anymore.
So so you need to just look at the budget and and try to reasonably
understand what this is gonna cost you. Some of the things with unlimited PTO,
for instance, could be more difficult to quite put your finger on because you don't
know how many days people are gonna take off. But what you could do is
just make sure that you design the job with certain deliverables and
(09:12):
goals and responsibilities that you know could fill up, you know, your normal
average work year and encourage people just to get your stuff done and take
time off when you want. And if you properly allocate the
tasks, the budgets, and the time for that position over the year, then you
should know that from a fiscal perspective, you should be able to
afford it, right, because you know what the job is gonna take already, if that
(09:35):
makes sense. But that's the biggest thing. Operationally, you have to ask yourself,
hey. Some of these benefits are gonna take people away from work. Can we cover
it? Right? And then that also kind of bleeds into the financial side of things
where if we're gonna give people extra paid time off, because sometimes there's sickness
days, then, okay, so how many extra days per year are there of lost productivity
potentially? And do we have people that can pick up that slack? And if we
(09:56):
don't, do we need more? And what's that gonna cost? Right? And it just
takes none of the science or the math behind this will ever be perfect. It
will never work out just as you calculated it. But you need to have an
educated understanding, right, of the decision that you're making
so that we strategically speak, you can make the right decision. What
if we have two options? I'm gonna make two up.
(10:17):
They may not be relevant to your organization, but I'm just gonna use them
so Tim can walk through an exercise. Okay. We know
that we have the budget to make one thing happen. And
let's say it's between adding two nap
pods or a fully stocked
cereal bar or snacks in the break room that people don't have to
(10:39):
pay for. How do we determine which is the best
option to choose for our organization? Well, I'm tempted to
just be like, I don't know. End the podcast. But, no, I I think what
you would do like, it's well, let's answer that question at a high level. Right?
Like, what should people think about? Because for organization b, it might be the Nap
Pods. Organization, you know, x, it might be the
(11:00):
cereal bar. And I think that what you can do is you can do some
research around, you know, what are the potential benefits of each? How does
each affect your employees' focus? Right? And how does it affect their
productivity? If you stock the cereal bar with good healthy things,
then, you know, then that might have a different effect than if you didn't. You
know, I would just take a look at get some information. Right? Like, what is
(11:20):
the anticipated benefit of each? Because they will affect your employees different
ways. You can also do a little bit of surveying and just make sure you
manage your expectations. We're not doing this yet. We're thinking about it. But if
we we did it, you know, which one of these things do you think that
would be the best benefit for you in helping you feel better about what
you accomplished during the day? And I think using some messaging as well
(11:41):
around, this isn't just about what would make you more productive, because I'm not trying
to squeeze you like an orange, but, you know, some employee friendly verbiage,
like, what would help you get more done in the day so that way you
can feel better about that to do list at the end of it. Right? Because
let's get real. When people do not get everything
done in a day, it stresses them out, and they don't like that feeling. So
(12:01):
I think you have to put it in those terms. So that way it's
it's also not just about you squeezing something out of it, but them feeling better
as well. But I think long story long, you know, in that situation, take a
look at I'm not a health expert, and I will never be one. What would
the effects of each be potentially depending on what's in the cereal bar and design
of the Nap Pods and all that stuff? And then ask your people as well,
(12:23):
you know, because even if science says, a, everybody's a little bit different, and they
might prefer b. And just get get some good information about what
would make people's jobs and lives easier. And I
picked those examples just so Tim could walk
through what making this decision looks like. Tim,
if we think unconventional benefits
(12:45):
may be something we're interested in adding in our
organization, but we don't know where to begin. We don't know how to implement
it, or we just need someone to talk through it with. What can we
do? Who can we call? Well, either of us now that we've talked about it
because now you're thinking about it too, but we can help with that. We do
a lot of compensation and benefits analysis. One thing that people have to be
(13:06):
mindful of when you're thinking about this is that these benefits also have a monetary
figure to them. And you wanna make sure that your total compensation package, including
your benefits, is competitive in the marketplace at the right level and have
an understanding of what you're doing. And we help people with that, putting you know,
there is a dollar figure to the NAP pod and what it's worth to people
compensationally and and same with the cereal bar or PTO or
(13:28):
whatever it is that you wanna do. And we do help people with that. And
I do wanna say too that, you know, at the beginning, I did say it's
not always the right answer, but a lot of times it can be a great
answer. And it can set you out apart as an employer and make you attractive
to people because it sounds interesting. And so I would never just say no,
but it's just ask the right question so you're doing the right thing at the
right time that's actually gonna benefit people instead of just doing something
(13:51):
for the sake of having your image look better or look like you're a better
leader than you might really be. So all that to say, if you'd like some
help with compensation benefits analysis, including understanding
unconventional compensation, how it might be able to fit into your compensation package,
we can certainly help with that. And, people can find me at best culture solutions
dot c a, or you can email me at
(14:12):
tim@bestculturesolutions.ca. Alright.
Another thing I would like to hear, reach out to Tim
if you do unconventional benefits or unconventional
compensation in a way that's worked or if you tried
something that didn't work and you're still trying to figure it
out. Tim wants to hear about that. Of course, I just volunteered that Tim wants
(14:33):
to hear about it, but I know I certainly do because those are great stories.
Maybe we can do a follow-up episode and talk
about what has been working out there. Tim, it's been a
great conversation. I look forward to more, and thank you for
listening to World at Work.
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