Making a strong offer to secure top talent: More than ever, it is about much more than money

When competition for top talent is fierce, it is important to secure the people you want through a strong offer. However, what comprises a great offer to one person, may not necessarily appeal to another. This makes it difficult when competing for top talent, particularly in markets that are candidate short. This is where the salary vs benefit debate often arises.

“Enthusiasm and positivity are so important when making a job offer.”

Julien Gibert, Senior Executive Director, Michael Page Switzerland

Salary

If you like a candidate, it is key to ensure that you are assessing their skill set and experience against the market rate. It is rare for a candidate to accept an offer purely based on salary, but their requirements will depend on what stage they are at in their life and other personal circumstances. However, if you start with an offer that is too low, you risk losing that candidate to a competitor. Check out our comprehensive salary guides for more details on average salaries for key roles across our sectors.

Benefits

What really makes an offer stand out are the benefits highlighted in addition to the salary. Particularly if there is a comprehensive list of both core benefits and unique benefits offered. Typically, this might include dynamic and flexible working policies, days off on birthdays, or cycle to work schemes to name a few. In the current climate, you will need to review these benefits in light of the fact that the role may need to be performed from home for many weeks or months. It could be that some of these benefits come into play once Government restrictions are lifted and the working population returns to offices and begin commuting again.

Make a great offer: Four steps

Summarise

Following the decision that you would like to offer the role, summarise why they have been selected as the preferred candidate. Additionally, run through the reasons the role fits the candidate’s needs and why. Reinforce that your role is right for them.

Confirm

Once you have given a summary, confirm how the candidate is feeling about the process and the experience they have had with the company. Ensure that the reasons they want to change jobs in the first place still stand and that this role meets their needs.

Details

Next, run through the details of the offer including the role and responsibilities, reporting structure, and how the professional will directly contribute to the organisation’s wider goals and objectives.

Remuneration

Finally, share the full salary and benefits package with the candidate including base salary and the monetary values of the benefits on offer. If possible, visualise this in way that reiterates the full value rather than focusing purely on the base salary.

Example of a total salary and benefits package of an Area Sales Manager: 189’700.-

Base salary CHF 120’000.-

Bonus potential CHF 40’000.-

Car allowance CHF 21’400.-

Expenses CHF 6’000.-

Expenses Home Office: CHF 1’800.-

Equipment (mobile, lap-top, etc.): CHF 500.-

“The most successful companies I work with offer a pie chart, which shows a breakdown of the monetary value of every part of the offer. This demonstrates to candidates how highly valued they are as the investment is significantly higher than their basic salary.”

Nicolai Mikkelsen, Executive Director, Michael Page Switzerland

Are you currently recruiting candidates remotely? Download our free eBook "Running your recruitment process remotely: A complete guide" now to get more practical tips for both online recruitment and onboarding.