Pub. 5 Issue 2

15 The key is effectively communicating the value of your dealership’s benefit package. Attracting and Retaining Good Employees H ow is your dealership attracting and retaining good employees? Too often, dealerships spend a large portion of their budget on employee benefits, but employees do not fully understand or appreciate what they have because the dealership either overlooks the dealership benefits package or doesn’t effectively communicate with employees about it. How can you change this to benefit your dealership? 1. Provide something other than your insurance carrier’s pre-packaged insurance kits. There is no such thing as effective plug-and-play benefits communication. You need to work with partners who understand your industry and your unique employee population. A good partner will provide your dealershipwith effective communication and support so employees understand the value of working at your dealership. 2. Communicate your dealership’s benefits in a format employees can understand. Most employees don’t understand benefits/insurance lingo. In addition, we live in a time of information overload. Ensure you communicate your benefits in a short and effective manner to have the greatest impact on your current and future employees. An easy-to-read benefit brochure and a well-thought-out benefit slide presentationwill more effectively communicate your benefits and their value. 3. Communication about your benefits should build your benefits’ brand and improve your dealership’s reputation as a great place to work. Employees will not see benefits as benefits unless they understand and place value in them. It isn’t enough to only distribute information about benefits at open enrollment. Your employees will be overwhelmed and you’re guaranteed to have some degree of confusion. Instead, make information about your benefits easily accessible by communicating year-round, as well as having information available online. Be sure to communicate that your benefits are really about your employees. If your dealership is aGLANCDAmember, EPIC can help the dealership attract and retain good employees and show you how to effectively communicate the value of your employee benefits package. EPIC ranks among the top 15 retail insurance brokers in the United States and is the largest insurer of auto dealers in the state.  Alison McCallum has been in the employee benefits industry for over 20 years. She is a Principal with EPIC insurance Brokers and Consultants, the only CNCDA licensed broker. With this partnership, EPIC offers unique services available to GLANCDA dealer members at no cost. If you have questions or would like further information please feel free to contact her at (949) 417-9136 or alison.mccallum@epicbrokers.com .