Q TIPS:
Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
Job-hunting tips from the June 24, 2002 issue of
QuintZine.
Two hundred of the largest industrial and service
corporations in the United States have allocated more than
15 percent of shares outstanding for management and employee
incentives. Meanwhile, the top 100 dot-coms have reserved
more than a third of corporate shares for stock-based
incentives, according to a study of equity use released
by executive compensation consultants Pearl Meyer & Partners.
The Institute of Management and Administration's
Report on Salary Surveys reveals that 60 percent of
the employers surveyed by Synygy Inc. are adding incentives
to non-sales employees' compensation packages, while only
28 percent used them exclusively for their sales staff. The
survey found that, generally, the smaller the company, the
more likely it is to include incentive or variable pay in
its employees' remuneration. Nearly 90 percent of the
respondents indicated that incentives could encourage
employee retention and keep individuals focused on working
together, and 97 percent felt that incentive plans effectively
allow employees to share in the risk and rewards of company
performance.
It's not just corporate bigwigs like former Tyco
CEO Dennis Kozlowski who have negotiated sweet severance
packages. Business Week reports that a growing number of
job-seekers say they want assurances when they're hired
that they'll be taken care of if the day ever comes when
they are told to take a hike. Indeed, 63 percent of some
1,100 prospective hires polled last fall (2001), by
TrueCareers, an e-cruiting business, said negotiating
severance agreements at the outset is an important
consideration when taking a job. So-called "golden parachutes"
for top executives have spread quickly since they first
showed up in executive compensation in the early 1980s,
and thousands of managers now have them. About a quarter
of some 641 members of the Society of Human Resources
Management, which represents some 65,000 HR professionals,
responded in a recent survey that the companies they work
for negotiate golden parachutes. And it's not just top
execs anymore; these perks have filtered down to the
"silver parachutes and bronze parachute" level.
The TrueCareers survey found that 40 percent of respondents
research a company's severance and outplacement policies
before they apply. The volatile labor market is the main
reason some 59 percent of the TrueCareers respondents said
they want up-front agreements. Another 18 percent said they
learned their lesson after past layoffs for which they were
unprepared financially. The going rate for severance is about
two weeks' pay for every year of service, but policies vary
widely from company to company. Prospective employees can
always ask for guarantees of other assistance, such as
outplacement services and extended health-insurance coverage.
What do employees want most in a job? The
New York Times recently reported that Watson Wyatt, a
consulting firm in Washington, asked a variety of employees
who were top performers in their fields to rank the importance
of pay, benefits and 13 other workplace attributes.
(Some of the categories of employees interviewed
included clerical workers, professional-technical,
managers and people who earned more than $100,000 a year.)
The results showed that:
Men valued compensation above all else, while women put
employee benefits first.
Compensation was third on the women's list, after
opportunities to develop their skills.
Professionals in the survey valued skill-development
opportunities the most, while clerical workers cared
little about them; they wanted employee benefits and
job security.
Those who earned more than $100,000 a year ranked
compensation first.
People earning less than $30,000 yearned, above all,
for job security.
Every group surveyed placed some importance on
benefits -- except the under-30's, who did not even rank
benefits among their top five concerns.
The young workers' hit parade included opportunities
to develop skills; chances for promotion; compensation;
vacations; and having an appealing culture and colleagues.
In another poll, Randstad North America, an employment
consulting firm in Atlanta, asked employees which ''hard
benefits'' and ''soft'' workplace factors would be most
decisive in making a stay-or-leave decision. The survey,
which did not break out respondents by demographics or by
profession, found that:
Health insurance was by far the most valued hard benefit,
ranking significantly ahead of pay.
Those who were polled
attached relatively little importance to market- and
performance-linked benefits like stock options, profit
sharing or ''creative incentives.''
As for a company's soft attributes, the factor cited most often
by respondents was whether they liked the people with whom
they worked.
A ''pleasant work environment'' and an easy
commute tied for second place.
In yet another poll, the National Association of Colleges
and Employers asked 1,218 college seniors entering the
work force to rank the importance of 20 benefits:
Again, health insurance was the winner,
followed by 401(K) plans, annual raises, life insurance,
dental insurance and pension plans.
Day care centers ranked 19th out of 20, not surprising
because the respondents were unlikely to have children.
Also near the bottom were several perks that companies
use to court young workers: casual-dress policies, on-site
fitness centers and social activities.
Two hundred of the largest industrial and service
corporations in the United States have allocated more than
15 percent of shares outstanding for management and employee
incentives. Meanwhile, the top 100 dot-coms have reserved
more than a third of corporate shares for stock-based
incentives, according to a study of equity use released
by executive compensation consultants Pearl Meyer & Partners.
