Total Rewards

Restructured
HRMN 395
The Total Rewards Approach to Compensation Management
Final Assignment
Introduction and Purpose

Businesses and organizations are always looking for good employees with talent, but the

competition to find them and keep them is always tough. As employees are looking for a good

job or an organization to build a career with, some of the things that one may be looking for may

be good pay, or so you may think. Now a days pay is not the only thing that workers are looking

at when looking for employment. For many it is about what else the company has to offer them.

A few of the things that job seekers may find to be important are factors such as what sort of

benefits do they have. Others may want to know what other forms of rewards are offered to

those that go way and beyond their job or are looking to move up within a company. For these

and many other reasons, companies have implemented strategies to offer a total rewards

program. In simple terms according to an article published by University of North Carolina in

Chapel Hill Total rewards are the comprehensive monetary and non-monetary return employers

provide employees in exchange for their time, talents, efforts, and results (McCormick, 2015)

These rewards can include anything from health care, dental, retirement, flexible schedules,

bonuses, trainings and the list can go on. Anything that a company can come up with to make

the employee want to work for them, stay with them and produce good results can be viewed as

part of the reward program.

For this paper, the evaluation of the Y in Central Marylands Total Rewards program will

be the focus. Evaluating what the Y has to offer currently, how it works or does not work and

what changes may be necessary will be broken down into several sections below.
Summarize & Describe the Organization

The Y in Central Maryland is a charitable organization that is dedicated to developing

the full potential of every individual through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body

for all. (Maryland, 2015) The YMCA can be established as independent facilities but a large

majority are part of a broader umbrella within an association. Associations can consist of

multiple full facilities, childcare centers, and afterschool sites. Associations are governed under

the YMCA of USA, which sets guidelines for Y programs, trainings for directors and support for

all areas of operation. A facility can consist of a full fitness gym with land aerobic classes, pools

with swim lessons for all age and experience levels, sport programs for kids and adults, camps

and much more.

The organization has four Core values that are branded into each employee and are used

in all areas of Y training. Those core values are Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility.

These values are portrayed in how staff should treat each other, the customers and should be kept

in the employees minds as they do their jobs. The core competencies are what employees are

held accountable for and are evaluated against yearly. These competencies are Accountability,

Integrity, Customer Focus, Change management, Resilience, Analytical Thinking, and

Innovation. The core competencies are in addition to the specific job requirement and

responsibilities that one would be evaluated on.

The Total Rewards Model

Total Rewards Program can be defined by six elements that organizations

use to attract, motivate, retain, and engage employees. Some of those elements may consist of

using compensation, benefits, Work-Life effectiveness, recognition, performance Management

and talent development (What Is Total Rewards?, 2016) The Y in Central Marylands Human

resources Policy and Procedures Manual lays out several offerings that they would consider their

Total Rewards package under three separate categories: Hours & compensation, Employee

benefits, leave benefits and time off. In each of those categories, one would be able to see

several other options of rewards that employees would be able to receive or choose to receive.

Workforce Segmentation

The YMCs main facilities are open 7 days a week almost 365 days and at any point

maybe closed only 5 -8 hrs. before being opened again. That means that staff need to be

available and around to work, that is unless you work at the association office. Those that are

supposed to be supporting the staff only work Monday Friday 8 -5, if that and not on holidays

like the rest of the staff. This type of atmosphere is not for everyone and is difficult to balance

work and life. This is especially difficult when you have some supervisors that specifically

would tell employees that 40hrs is just the minimum and if you are not putting in at least 50hrs a

week, you are not doing your job. This information is important when you discuss and look at

what motivates certain staff and what their obligations may be. During Segmentation Human

Resource professionals separate the various components of their organization's workforce in

order to tailor their human resource policies and practices to each segment. (Beames, 2016) The

Y just creates silos with each area and has a set pay for everyone. During yearly evaluations

staff are rated between 1 -3 percent of yearly increase. The evaluations are based off how each

person ranks that year under the eight core competencies. The closest that the Y gets to

segmentation is the division between exempt staff and non-exempt staff.

 Due to the different areas and separation of the association office and main facilities,

staff are very much segmented. Certain areas require special trainings and certifications such as

the Aquatics department that requires lifeguard certifications and the Fitness department that

would require Personal Training Certification. These two examples show that both would

require spending money, time and have specific skills to work those areas, but as important as

they may be the Y would pay Personal trainers a lot more than they would a lifeguard. Both

areas and employees are crucial to the organizations function.

The largest area of segmentation would consist of employees from the association office

compared to main facilities. Association office would consist of the Sweet Cs, VP of Operation

and other support staff that would get paid more than front line or management staff. Those

staff that does have special backgrounds and capabilities such as regionals that oversee multiple

areas would be paid more but also possess more responsibilities. The Flexibility is always there

as long as areas are covered although one may lose that flexibility if areas are understaffed,

therefore you would be required to cover.

Describe & Analysis Further

The YMCA has so many areas that require special capabilities and competencies

in order to function. As mentioned previously the company has its main core competencies that

all employees are required to uphold and meet. In addition all specific areas have their own

competencies that match the job responsibilities. Each area that requires special knowledge,

skills and abilities will need to always require those and that will not change in the future. Areas

such as aquatics, personal training, and group exercise programs need certified and talented
employees for liability reasons and to ensure the members that come have a safe and fun

experience. This is important for the Y to succeed and always will be.

Recommendation of changes, communication plan and metrics

Finding ways to keep employees happy, motivated and wanting to stay will increase

productivity and saves money for a company.. Some studies (such as SHMR) predict that

every time a business replaces a salaried employee, it costs 6 to 9 months salary on average.

(Merhar, 2016) Companies do not always think about the cost associated with hiring a new

employee, which can include advertising, interviewing, screening, and hiring. Then there are

costs associated with training, errors they may have been made by the new employee and the loss

of engagement from other employees due to turnover. There are several ways to enhance a total

rewards package, but for the purpose of the Y in Central Maryland the recommendation is a

change toward flexible work schedules to help balance that work/personal life which is lacking

now. If employees have the ability to create a flexible schedule it can reduce the amount of

turnover the organization sees. Offering rotating schedules with other managers, Office hours

from home, special days off such as birthdays and comp days for working long hours or weeks

are a few suggestions. Once a plan is implemented and has had time to take effect it needs to be

measured to evaluate the success. Retention metrics are used to determine the significant

aspects of turnover in a company. First it needs to be broken down into categories that a

company feels is relevant to them. These areas can be voluntary vs non-voluntary, retirement,

promotions and years of tenure. Whatever factors are decided to be the most important then data

can be collected. At this point it is important for managers to provide the necessary information

for the metrics as they have staff leave for whatever the reason may be.
 The Y in Central Maryland does offer trainings but only when they are able to get the Y

of USA to send someone out to provide the training. This costs money obviously so they do not

do it as often as they should. The goal is to get key employees certified and trained as trainers so

the organization is able to provide their own trainings without outsourcing. In addition staff

needs to be developed to be able to move from one position to the other. This is done through

trainings especially for the positions that they are currently in. Currently employees are thrown

into their positions without the proper training and are set to fail. Some sort of training camp or

a period of shadowing needs to be included. If employees feel like they have been invested in

and are confident in their job, productivity would increase, employees are happier with their jobs

therefore it would also affect the retention numbers. The first step in the process of measurement

is to have a clear understanding about what you want a training program, course or on boarding

session to accomplish. A successful training program must evolve over time, so evaluating a

programs results leads directly to potential organizational changes and adjustments to future

training plans. (Schaefer, 2015)

Changing a total rewards system is a process and should not be rushed. If there are

several elements that are being changed it may benefit if they are staggered. For the Y in Central

Maryland the plan to begin the process would launch Tuesday January 2nd of 2017. For the first

month it is about evaluating the current plan, establishing ideas for the new one and plan out a

timeline for the launch. Since the suggestion is for two new systems to be in place, the process

has been broken down into two individual months with communication to all employees on

January 23, 2017. To kick off the change, the Y would start with implementing a flexible

schedule that would start on February 2nd followed by a training and development program on the
first of March. The full timeline can be reviewed in the separate assignment attachment as

Timeline 1 and Timeline 2.

Communicating to ones employees is critical to ensure they have all the proper

information that they may need. Communication should also be planned out and done in a

timely manner so it does not surprise and overwhelm them. This is especially true if a company

makes a decision to make changes to its Total Rewards Program. This can be done several ways

smoothly and effectively. The first step that may help is to assigning an individual or a team to

plan your communication strategy well in advance of your need for change. (Haskell, 2014)

Setting up group meetings with representatives allows employees to ask specific questions

directly to those individuals that will be able to answer them on the spot. This can help

employees to begin to understand and trust the new Total Rewards program changes. The point

is to have employees buy into the change and want to be part of the system. In order to be able

to evaluate the program a company needs the employees to use it. Another method to making

information accessible is to using an employee Human Resources portal that will allow

individuals to quickly find benefit plan details, conveniently update their information, and

directly link to your benefit vendor websites.

Present the justification for your recommendations

Just in 2014 the turnover rate was at 20% according to a managers evaluation sheet from

the Y in Central Maryland. Forbes Magazine reports that a healthy turnover rate should be

around 15% or lower before a company should be alarmed (Schreiner, 2016) Based of this

report, the Y should definitely be alarmed at the turnover rate that it has. These

recommendations are an opportunity to keep workers who are already employed with the
company on the job, aim to create satisfied employees by responding to the staffs needs and

making employee morale a prime concern.

It has been shown that just by implementing the ability to have a flexible schedule to

employees it produces several positive results. Companies can see an increase in employees

moral, engagement, and commitment to the organization. It reduces absenteeism and tardiness

and develops an image of an employer of choice. (Fell, 2013) Employees are able to make their

own schedules, avoid stressful travel times, spend time with their families and work when they

are most productive. This may not work every time or for everyone but the opportunity should

be available.

Assess and discuss the risks and opportunities

We all have heard the saying that The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over

and over and expecting a different result. The same applies to what the Y in Central Maryland

is doing when it comes to dealing with staff. Many positions have a revolving door on them and

they just cannot keep good talented staff. The question should be why and how we can change to

minimize turnover and have happy staff instead of just continuing to act the same way and do

nothing. Without making changes they will not be able to move forward. With the process that

is in place now, the Y is just spinning their wheels and just staying where they are. Staff leaves,

new staff are hired, then they are trained, they begin to get their departments moving and then

decide to leave within a year or two. At this point the process starts all over while the

department, facility and organization are at a pause or even may be moving backwards since no

one is in charge at this point.

 The opportunity to try something new is just that, something new. It means that the

organization is attempting to move forward and are not scared of change. By implementing the

program and the changes and allowing them time to work the organization should see positive

results. Those results can be seen in the moral of the employees as an increase, productivity

improves, staff are more confident due to trainings and the turnover is minimized showing a

increase in the retention rate.

Conclusion & Summary

The Y in Central Maryland has a ways to go if they care about hiring, developing and

retaining good people. The thought of Oh we will just find someone else to take your place is

not the road to a successful department, facility and organization. Those looking for work in

todays society can read reviews from previous employees and get a picture of what type of

organization one may be. Even happy employees that have moved on will leave reviews and

organizations want those positive ones. A happy employee creates a positive environment that

spreads. They will want to stay with the organization as long as possible. The question is, what

makes that employee happy? We have learned that in the competition of employers many

different forms of total rewards are offered. Job seekers are no longer just looking for the

highest payer but what else can a job offer my family and me. As an employer it is important to

know what your competition is offering so you can match it or come up with something better.

Having a Total Rewards package that may be thought to be the best one is not enough,

that is just the first step. The next step is making sure that it actually works and is cost effective.

Some systems of metrics need to be in place to measure the success rate or the not so much

success rate. Just as there are many forms of total reward systems out there, one can find just as

many forms of measurement metrics. In order for metrics to be accurate it needs to match the
type of rewards system it is measuring. It is also something that may take time before a

company has a true measurement if the reward system is working. This can mean months to

years but overall the outcome a company is looking for is happy employees that increase

productivity (meaning they produce revenue) and stay for the long haul.
Works Cited
Beames, C. (2016). Workforce Segmentation. Retrieved December 16, 2016, from
business Perform: http://www.businessperform.com/talent-
management/skills-based-workforce-segmentation.html

Fell, S. S. (2013, December 25). Top 10 Benefits of Flexible Work Policies for
Companies. Retrieved December 17, 2016, from Huffington Post:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sara-sutton-fell/top-10-benefits-of-
flexib_b_4158603.html

Haskell, G. (2014, May 9). Eleven Tips to Effectively Communicate Your Total
Rewards Package. Retrieved December 16, 2016, from TriNet:
http://www.trinet.com/hr-insights/blog/2014/eleven-tips-to-effectively-
communicate-your-total-rewards-package

Maryland, Y. o. (2015). Join our cause. Retrieved December 12, 2016, from
Ymaryland: https://ymaryland.org/ourmission/cause

McCormick, H. (2015, April 30). Does Your Organization Have a Total Rewards
Strategy? Retrieved December 17, 2016, from Executive Development :
http://execdev.kenan-flagler.unc.edu/blog/rethinking-total-rewards

Merhar, C. (2016, February 4). Employee Retention - The Real Cost of Losing an
Employee. Retrieved December 17, 2016, from Zane Benefits:
https://www.zanebenefits.com/blog/bid/312123/employee-retention-the-real-
cost-of-losing-an-employee

Schaefer, L. (2015, May 25). Measuring The Effectiveness Of Employee Training.

Retrieved December 17, 2016, from Skilled Up:
http://www.skilledup.com/insights/measuring-effectiveness-employee-training

Schreiner, E. (2016). What is a Healthy Employee Turnover Rate? Retrieved

December 17, 2016, from Small Business. Chron:
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/healthy-employee-turnover-rate-12145.html