To concede the fact that employee is the backbone of any organization – employee happiness is imperative. There have been various discussions lately on why Employee Value Proposition is important in the workplace. Employee value proposition encompasses everything an employer is doing to attract and retain employees. It includes all of the pay, benefits, rewards, and perks that come with being an employee of that organization. It’s the reason why an employee would want to work for your organization as opposed to finding employment somewhere else.
Various practices at the workplace are recognition of the importance of keeping employees motivated, productive, and committed. Various perks given in a company are becoming one of the most important indicators in gauging work satisfaction. Employees today are looking for more than just a 9-5 job. In a study with over 5000 employees, researchers found that 71% of HR leaders are focusing on giving additional benefits to employees to attract and most importantly retain them.
When employees are happy at work, they are more likely to invest in the work they do which leads to a higher quality of work produced. Study shows that such happy workplaces have double the rate of success compared to companies with less focus on the employee value proposition. Such value proposition needs to go beyond a cool-looking foosball table in the break room, or shiny incentives with flexible work hours.
“Stitching together the right culture and the atmosphere to nurture them is what employees are excited about and a big part of which are the benefits and perks which come along with the companies culture and values”
Most organizations strive for employee satisfaction, but not all attain this goal. That’s why it is important for human resources/admin professionals to know more about the factors that can increase employee satisfaction, and how it fits into the company’s overall success.
Some of the most common benefits and perks that employees found most important to them are –
• Flexible vacation policies • Free food, snacks & lunches • Gym membership • Play area in the workplace • Product discounts • Medical, dental & healthcare
Now the question remains, which out of the above-mentioned attributes best stimulates the interest of employees in a company?
There has been a lot of research around this lately. Food is one factor that holds high prominence. The surveys say that
65% of employees said that having company-provided food around the office “would make them feel more valued and appreciated”.
70% said such free lunches would encourage them to chow down with their colleagues. One third said that free food at meetings would prompt them to attend optional meetings.
More than half said that free lunch “would strongly influence their decision to accept a job offer”.
Food freebies are a benefit that is on the rise according to the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM’s) 2018 Employees Benefits Report. Initially, only MNC’s used to consider giving free food to their employees, but now start-ups like Gojek, Sharechat, Rentomojo, Moonfrog, Zynga, etc are also the ones that typically rate high on keeping employees happy and engaged through food. Not only free food, but their focus is also on a healthy menu spread. Most of the workforce being young millennials who do not stay with their families, food is a major concern for them.
After speaking to employees of these companies, it can be concluded that they do not have to worry about anything as a company takes care of their needs, free food is one of the important factors to keep the focus high, and the Employee Survey found that free food accounted for 71% of all calories consumed at work. Admin of an organization that provides not only food but also a refrigerator stocked with refreshments said, “free food is a way of life and your employees will talk about your company, even more, this is part of building a strong culture”. Another from a start-up that recently started free food said, “our employees mention this perk in bold when they refer candidates. I feel our employees feel more content now as they do not have to worry about shedding money on Swiggy, Zomato where quality is not guaranteed “
Food Service at SmartQ Powered Cafeteria
Is it likely, that more companies will adopt a free food policy, especially since so many employees are struggling with unhealthy food options from outside? There being diversity in an organization, employees are not able to get home-cooked food and end up eating street food affecting their health and thus productivity. Getting free food will help them eat more wisely. In various MNC’s and start-ups, dietary restrictions are considered where gluten-free & dairy-free food options are available. Nowadays various start-ups also take care of not only feeding employees but also making sure that employees are allured by special counters on festivals and team meetings.
HR leaders/Managers rack their brains to create a healthy work culture by incentivizing employees, boosting their morale, and engaging employees in various indoor & outdoor activities. To add to these
“A little bit of free food never hurts!”