Work perks and benefits

Size, diversity and sector are some of the characteristics to take into account when defining the offer of flexible benefits in your company.

If there were doubts that we are witnessing a revolution at work - and in life in general -, also materialised in the way companies pay their employees, all of them disappeared in yet another ReFLEXions by Coverflex. In “Benefits Revolution: how much is flexible compensation worth in attracting and retaining talent?”, Eduardo Andrade, João Chainho and Pedro Albuquerque shared experiences and knowledge about what they have seen, over the years, in the national technological market, and in particular in the way talent behaves during recruitment and in companies' day-to-day.

Companies seem to be more and more aware of the importance of fostering the satisfaction of their employees - both the present ones and the potentially future ones - in the entity where they dedicate their efforts and productivity. It is a vicious circle in which both parties win: the company, because it sees its numbers increasing, and the employee, because they feel valued and rewarded for being part of this process. Appreciation and reward are, in fact, the watchwords here - and they have a lot to do with flexible compensation. 

In recent years, people management has witnessed a profound transformation in its practices and concepts, which was very emphasised after the beginning of the pandemic. Nuno Simões, who has been in the human resources area for 21 years, points out the differences between the way remuneration was seen in the past and the way it’s seen today. “We were looking at something very direct. The basic salary was the easiest way to pay people, and then the variable (premiums and some benefits). (...) Health insurance was a distinctive benefit (for the employee or for family members), whilst discounts on purchases were more direct”, points out the Human Capital Director of PwC Portugal, Cape Verde and Angola.

It's the first time this is happening: five different generations come together in the same working market. Traditionalists (born before 1946), Baby Boomers (1946-1964), Generation X (1965-1976), Millennials (1977-1997) and Generation Z (born after 1997) gather, at the present time, in the working market and this, in addition to bringing a diversity never before recorded in history, assures an enormous challenge: making such different generations feel “at home” in a market that is increasingly flexible and adapted to their particular needs.

In today’s hiring market, where competitiveness and change are always around the corner, benefits and perks beyond salary are essential for a company to recruit and motivate its people. More than ever, the workers look for other variables, besides their regular wage, to decide between staying or changing their job.

The world of employee benefits as a part of compensation beyond salary can be confusing and overwhelming. We’re here to break it down for you and to help you understand how you can make the most of what you have while offering your people more options — which are evidently most likely to fit the individual needs of those that make up your varied team.