You don’t need to build your very own Googleplex to please your employees, but your recruiting system could definitely benefit by taking a cue from The World’s Most Popular Company.
Being a cool company to work for is a big deal these days, as any young employee will tell you. For the start-up generation, indoor putting ranges and other perks stand in for “the corner office” – every young employee wants them and they’ll flock to any company that offers them.
In short, when you’re shooting for young talent, the more unique your company culture is and the better your employee’s benefits are, the faster you will attract talent. Some employers have really gone to extreme lengths to lure employees into their hiring system. Let’s take a look at some of the most unusual employee perks in the country.
The event, known as the Supermarket Dash, is Fun Bike Center’s preferred method of incentivizing employees to exceed sales goals (while impressing mystery shoppers). The store selects three to five top performers and allows them to dash through a local supermarket on a timed shopping spree early in the morning. They can keep whatever they grab, even if their haul exceeds $1,000. According to Fun Bike Center, this unique perk helped keep sales high and employee turnover low throughout the worst years of the recession.
The program starts four months before the baby’s due date and lasts all the way up until the child’s first birthday. And if that isn’t enough of a show of good faith, PwC also offers paid maternity leave and the option of taking a five-year break from the company with the guarantee that the mother’s job will be waiting for her when she returns.
As part of the company’s “Formal Fridays” policy, AirBnB staff members are allowed to show up to work in tuxedos, ball gowns and any other formal evening wear they fancy. AirBnB even distributes fake gentlemanly mustaches to class up the affair even further, and many of these Fridays have themes, such as Mad Men Day. Needless to say, these elegant occasions have made AirBnB a hit with the country’s top young programming and marketing talent.
A bus picks them up from the company’s Detroit headquarters, shuttles them to Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland and then takes them back after the game is over. This perk, along with several other benefits – like paid time off for volunteering and a variety of free meals – has helped the large corporation maintain a steady influx of talent.
It’s not hip to be square, especially if your company is trying to hire young employees. So the next time you’re brainstorming ways to inject some fresh talent into your hiring system, don’t be afraid to think outside the box.
Offer employee benefits that set you apart from your competition, like supermarket shopping sprees or on-site doggy daycare. Sure, these perks may be a little weird, but if you ask companies like AirBnB and Google, weird definitely works.
This article originally appeared on The Resumator Blog.
