Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
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
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
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 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
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,
Innovation. The core competencies are in addition to the specific job requirement and
use to attract, motivate, retain, and engage employees. Some of those elements may consist of
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
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
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
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,
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.
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
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
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
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
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.
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
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
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