[Opinion] What Is the Best Employee Welfare?

Professor Changhee Kim, Department of Business Administration, Incheon National University

Not long ago, I happened to get in touch with a student I had taught before, and we had a cup of tea together. That student, who had been working at a small startup run by an alumnus after graduating from school, said they recently moved to a large corporation. I first offered my congratulations. However, what came out of the student's mouth was something completely unexpected.

They said they wanted to return to the startup before the job change, but it was difficult to do so. Curious, I asked why, and the answer came immediately: because of the colleagues. I thought maybe they didn't get along with their coworkers at the current job, but the following answer was surprising. They said everyone at the current workplace treated them very well. This student was about to get married to their partner soon and wanted a stable job, which was why they changed jobs, but what exactly was so special about the startup colleagues that made them want to return?

The reason was 'learning.' Colleagues who inspire and passionate coworkers were the welfare benefits the student needed. Hearing this, I recalled the book Powerful by Patty McCord, which I read last year. That book also cites A-level colleagues as the reason behind Netflix's current success. The best reward management can give employees is not monetary but creating an environment where they can work with the best colleagues.

But there is something even more important. That is the evaluation system. Netflix gives employees freedom but, in return, demands responsibility and performance. In other words, Netflix has created a culture where employees work autonomously. Then, can all companies use an evaluation system like Netflix's? Can they reform their welfare system to give unlimited vacation like Netflix?

Of course, most companies cannot do that. Then, how should they evaluate? Evaluation is also a form of communication between the CEO and employees. For example, if the CEO decides to include arrival time in evaluations from now on, even if not directly told to employees, all employees will indirectly sense, "Ah, the CEO wants us to be punctual." In other words, creating an evaluation system is indirectly communicating with employees.

This is where the company's concept comes in. Since company resources are not infinite, the company must invest limited resources in a certain direction, such as its vision. In other words, the company must first consider what it truly wants and what products or services it wants to create, then turn that into an evaluation system. Also, since each department does different work, different evaluation systems should be introduced. For example, if the work values ideas or creativity without requiring fixed working hours, arrival and departure times need not be included in evaluations.

The worst companies are those that hire passionate A-level talents but fail to bring out their potential. Everyone has their capabilities, and to unleash more than 100% of those capabilities, the evaluation system must be reexamined. If you want to think about the best in-house welfare, first create an evaluation system that properly assesses talents. When competent talents demonstrate their potential, other talents around them will be influenced, enabling the company to realize in-house welfare without additional costs.

Changhee Kim, Professor, Department of Business Administration, Incheon National University