Last year when we shared an opening for a Digital Marketing Intern position on Instagram, our comments were flooded with excitement around one specific employee benefit: access to free audiobooks. Of course, health care, a liveable wage, and paid time off are all incredibly important; but these days it feels as if additional corporate perks are necessary for retaining top talent.
Read on for perk ideas your company can implement to attract and retain employees!
#1: Wellness initiatives that go beyond physical health
While many companies have begun to offer gym memberships and therapy providers/services, wellness benefits can go even further to help establish a healthy work-life balance. Companies might offer access to meditation programs or apps, food stipends (to help employees better nourish themselves), or childcare. Libro.fm recently introduced an employee sabbatical program for those who have been at the company for five years or longer; every five years, an employee is able to take seven weeks off to relax and recharge.
#2: Access to reading materials that encourage engagement, curiosity, and development
Whether a Little Free Library or stipend for purchasing books, encouraging employees to not only learn more about topics of interest, but engage with others (perhaps through a book club?) can be a great corporate perk. Inspiring them to unplug also benefits their overall well-being.
With Libro.fm for Business, you can offer your employees a curated hub of audiobooks specific to your organization, that further knowledge on a specific topic, or are simply for fun! We’ve worked with organizations of all sizes to build out collections that focus on DEI, environmental activism, and bestselling stories. You’re also able to gift credits so employees can choose any audiobook from our collection, or gift any number of employees a specific audiobook.
Plus, when you partner with Libro.fm, your audiobook purchases support the independent bookshop of your choice—meaning you’ll be giving back to your local community.
#3: Flexible working environments
Since the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic, many businesses have leaned into a flexible work environment. This might look like the ability to work remotely vs. in office, or more variability with hours, all of which can help benefit a work-life balance and increase employee satisfaction with the company culture.
At Libro.fm, we are fully remote and many of us start and end our days at different times to allow for childcare needs, midday workouts, and visits to our local bookshops, of course! And to make sure that we stay connected as a team, we all meet up once or twice a year in person for a few days to visit bookshops and just spend time together.
Pinterest utilizes their “PinFlex” model, which balances flexibility and collaboration. Their Work-From-Anywhere benefit “allows eligible full-time employees to spend up to 90 days working outside of their country of employment over a rolling 12-month period,” encouraging employees to travel.
#4: Career development and employee enablement programs
Investing in employees’ professional and personal growth can be a fantastic way to reinforce your commitment to them and their career trajectory. In addition to providing access to educational materials, like the aforementioned Libro.fm for Business program, you might invest in their lifelong learning—such as offering tuition reimbursement for programs that benefit an employee’s position, sending them to industry conferences, or enabling their participation in online certification programs.
#5: Opportunities for community and social impact involvement
Encouraging employees to engage with your organization’s local community or showing your company’s investment in that local community can make their role feel all the more meaningful. Allow employees to take paid volunteer days to help out their charity of choice. Encourage them to bring forward fundraising ideas for nonprofits they admire. Offer donation matching up to an annual limit. All of these initiatives can help demonstrate your company’s corporate social responsibility and build employee pride.
As a Social Purpose Corporation, our work at Libro.fm benefits indie bookshops across the globe, even if at times that means going against our financial goals. And when you partner with Libro.fm for Business, part of all profits go toward the independent bookshop of your company’s choice.
Conclusion
Offering unique corporate perks can be a powerful way to not only attract new employees, but retain them through satisfaction and sense of purpose.
And as younger generations entering the workforce seek opportunities with purpose, demonstrating your investment in them and your wider community through additional benefits will only serve your business in the long run.
What unique corporate perks has your company implemented? Let us know in the comments!
And if you’re interested in Libro.fm for Business, don’t hesitate to get in touch! You can learn more about what we offer, read testimonials.