Benefits for Entrepreneurs

There are nearly an infinite number of benefits packages that can be put together. This can create a very daunting task for an entrepreneur looking to start hiring employees for the first time. An article in Forbes does a great job of breaking down the different areas of benefits that are critical for an entrepreneur. The article discusses the need for health insurance, the recommendation for retirement packages and the option of specialty benefits. The article is adamant about making sure that entrepreneurs do not try to get all benefits out there. This is because it is a waste of company money that could be put back into the company. Finally, a broker should be consulted to ensure all details are taken care of.

What to look for in:

Health insurance plans- The author says that entrepreneurs should look for higher deductable plans to save the company money. The key is to talk with employees about the plan and why a higher deductable is being chosen.

Retirement plans- There are pensions and 401(k)s to consider. A company can decide if they want to take more of the risk and be in charge of paying a retired employee a certain amount or leave it up to the employee.

Specialty benefits- These include disability, dental and life insurance. While they are not as important they can help an entrepreneur pull in new talent.

Team Based Incentive Pay Plans

I read an article on The Advantages of Team-Based Incentive Pay Plans. While I agree with some of the comments made in this article I feel that it lacks the realistic disadvantages. Obviously this article is to promote this practice. I feel that one of the big disadvantages includes the slackers within groups. There are always the dead weights that are able to get by on everyone else. I admit that many people are guilty of doing this at different points but let’s face it. Everyone knows that one person in the group that just loves to do absolutely nothing to help the group. The balance to this is to make sure that the group confronts this person early on. Unfortunately I feel like it is better to many times to just let them get away with it. My mentality is that they will eventually find themselves in a position that they must do the work. If they can't do it then they will be fired. If they are able to never reach this point than they deserve it to some degree.

I do agree with the last comment which talks about loyalty to the company when the employee is receiving a perceived acceptable incentive pay. If an employee is being compensated fairly then there is less of a reason to leave. However, this cannot be the only thing to keep an employee. Money, after all, is not the only thing to keep people at their jobs.