The Best Practices Guide: Small Company, Big Benefits
NORCAL Mutual competes with big San Francisco companies for employees—and wins
Google. Bank of America. Wells Fargo. Visa.
Those are just a few of the name-brand companies based in the San Francisco area. NORCAL Mutual Insurance Company competes (successfully, mind you) with these household names—and thousands of other businesses—for the best employees.
How do they do it? They offer an outstanding benefit program tailored to what their employees really want.
"We try to get their opinions from different angles," explains John McClain, NORCAL Mutual's vice president of human resources. "First, we do a new employee follow-up after about four months. It's the reverse of an exit interview. We ask how things are going in terms of training, acclimation to the company and, of course, benefits—are there any gaps, is anything missing, do they need more education?"
The company also asks for employee input during open enrollment, through formal and informal benefit surveys. "We also pay attention to what people say about benefits during exit interviews," McClain says.
Employees' input has led NORCAL Mutual to make several changes to its benefit program, including:
- Increasing the wellness reimbursement limit
- Adding a pre-tax contribution option to the 401(k) plan
- Offering financial planning services
- Adding domestic partner benefits
Because NORCAL Mutual takes such pains with its benefit program, employees don't cite benefits as their reason for leaving. "We never hear about people leaving because of benefits," says McClain. "In fact, it's the greatest retention tool we have."
"We never hear about people leaving because of benefits. In fact, it's the greatest retention tool we have."
– John McClain, vice president of human resources, NORCAL Mutual Insurance Company
What can you learn from NORCAL Mutual?
- New employee follow-up interviews can catch potential problems—including benefit issues—early.
- Benefits can help put small companies on an even playing field with big corporations.
- Enrollment time is a great opportunity to ask for feedback on benefits.
About NORCAL Mutual Insurance Company
Find out more about their benefits in NORCAL Mutual Insurance Company's winner profile.
