When it comes to addressing the many challenges of recruitment and retention, SME business leaders need to have at their disposal quick, easy, yet impactful solutions that really make a difference.
Simon Moyle, Chief Executive Officer at Vivup, has worked alongside his team to develop a comprehensive wellbeing and benefits package for SMEs that not only helps address these recruitment challenges, but also enables organisations to overcome the impact to culture and wellbeing brought about by COVID-19.
“Fundamentally, SMEs tend to be more connected to their workforce; they know exactly who’s going to be most affected by the rising living costs and global events we are seeing right now. They feel they can’t just turn a blind eye to the financial problems their staff are experiencing,” Moyle explains.
With around £90,0001 spent on sickness absence in a single year, and the average cost of replacing a worker sitting at roughly £12,0002, the cost of stress is quickly totting up for SME employers. But, with more and more organisations making the switch to remote, how can SME leaders ensure the wellbeing of their workforce?
“The costs associated with stress-related absence are staggering, and the need to support and reduce these statistics is overwhelming,” Moyle comments. “Wellbeing should be at the heart of every solution, and while it’s certainly a lot harder when you can’t offer the office environment and its water cooler moments, businesses need to understand what is really happening within the organisation and recognise when problems are forming.”
For less than the cost of 0.253 full time employees per year, Vivup’s new SME package can provide benefits for an employer’s entire workforce. When comparing this to the high cost and disruption of replacing just one employee, it becomes clear where investments should be made. Prevention, as they say, is better than cure.
The importance of implementing wellbeing policies
So, how can SME employers spot these wellbeing issues in our increasingly digital, ever-more remote landscape?
The answer, Moyle believes, lies in comprehensive mental health, recognition and wellness systems that not only support employees, but also alert employers to problems that may be difficult to identify until the impact to productivity and worker presence becomes apparent.
Moyle explains, “If an employee usually gets lots of recognition moments from colleagues and suddenly only gets a few, you know that something is going on. Equally, when you see a sudden spike in the use of anxiety or sleep aid resources, that tells you that your workforce is burning out.”
With 75%4 of employees more likely to stay with their employer because of their benefits package, and the packages themselves providing the tools to build a resilient and engaged workforce while retaining great employees, the time for SMEs to take advantage of these solutions is now.
Discover more at www.vivup.co.uk/sme
Contact enquiries@vivup.co.uk or call 01252 784 541
1 Based on an organisation of 100 employees, average sick days per employee (https://www.myhrtoolkit.com/blog/average-employee-sick-days-2020) and average UK salary (https://bit.ly/3HcMxh4
3 0.25 Full Time Employee (FTE) cost based on average SME size https://www.merchantsavvy.co.uk/uk-sme-data-stats-charts/
4 Willis Towers Watson
