Essay Sample on Aflac: Enhancing Staff Retention in the Insurance Sector

Introduction

Aflac is a company based in the United States. The firm operates in the insurance industries by providing covers such as accident, cancer, life, hospital intensive care, vision, dental insurance, short-term disability, and critical illnesses, among others. Aflac is dedicated to enhance the retention of its staff and attract high-quality personnel in the industry, having in mind that the insurance sector has a low unemployment rate. Primarily, this paper analyzes a case study on Aflac and discusses the firm's compensation and rewards system.

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How Aflac Uses its Products or Services to Enhance Compensation of Employees

Aflac has a strategy aimed at augmenting the compensation of its staff members. Since Aflac deals with the sale of insurance covers, it uses these products to reward and compensate its workers. The program entails the provision of 100% cancer cover for the employees at no costs, paid-life insurance, and subsidized accident protection cover, as a part of reward or compensation (Reed, 2009). In addition to that, the company avails additional rewards that affiliate with its goals and objective. It is worth noting that Aflac is focused on supporting communities in health, education, arts, and youth. The employees are invigorated to direct their efforts towards achieving the goal through a reward system. The company has a policy referred to as "Volunteer of the Month." The plan allows for reimbursement of an employee for the time spent in voluntary and charity activities of their preference.

Further, Aflac supports the employees socially by creating a positive work environment, which enhances productivity. The firm, for instance, has an on-site child care facility and sponsors outdoor activities by offering discounts in fitness centers. The social obligation of the company to its employees serves as a reward and compensation system by showing how vital the regimes of the staff members are essential to the firm.

Internal and External Strengths and Weaknesses and Aflac's Response

One of the internal strengths of the company is the well-developed communication system that improves communique and facilitates the adequate performance of duties. As indicated in the case study, the Aflac converses to its staff members effectively and elaborates on the containment of health care costs as a shared responsibility between the employer and the workers. Another internal strength is that the firm can attract highly trained and qualified managers through its rewarding system hence motivating the staff to perform exemplary. The main internal weakness is the rate of turnover in search of greener pastures. With the low unemployment rate in the industry, workforces can find areas where they can showcase their capabilities and talents easily. Aflac countered this by improving its compensation and rewards system by offering insurances at no costs, volunteer of the month rewards, on-site facilities.

One of the external strength was the increase in the employee insurance premium by 6.1%, which was higher than the inflation rate, as indicated by (Reed, 2009). Aflac responded by communicating to the staff that the company will provide insurance covers at low or subsidized costs hence attesting that the employees are valuable assets to the organization. The external weakness that continues to affect the organization is the increased competition for talented staff. In response, Aflac developed a rewards system to retain and attract qualified personnel.

Traditional and Non-Traditional Rewards at Aflac

The traditional rewards within the company are performance improvement and monetary compensation. Performance improvement at Aflac entails training and reward schemes. Employees are trained to help in career growth. The financial rewards include an attractive salary accrued by the staff members, insurances at no or subsidized costs, and discounted on-site facilities. The non-traditional awards include the company's dedication to identifying the employee who has worked towards channeling the goals of the company forward through "Volunteer of the Month" perks.

How Aflac Aligns its Benefits with Corporate Values

Importantly, Aflac's corporate values include treating people in a dignified manner, caring for the staff, promoting fairness, and providing a recompensing and inspiring workplace. The ability of the firm to enhance communication shows the value of the employees to the organization. The reward offered to the volunteer of the month, low-cost insurance covers to the staff, and on-site childcare and fitness facilities align with the firm's values of treating the team with fairness, care, and dignity. Besides, it drives the company's dedication to provide a compensating and inspirational workplace.

Recommendations

Aflac should conduct a continued needs assessment. As indicated in the case study, the firm conducted a needs assessment in the year 2007, which led to the development of the rewards and compensation scheme utilized (Reed, 2009). However, the needs of the employees change over time. Aflac must identify the changing needs of the staff for it to remain competitive in the insurance industry.

Conclusion

Aflac is a firm within the insurance industry that has worked towards enhancing satisfaction among the staff. With the low unemployment rate in the sector, a firm must find means of attracting and retaining highly-qualified personnel. The reward system of the firm includes providing the staff with low costs insurances, rewarding the best volunteer of the month, and provision of on-site fitness and child care facilities. However, this paper recommends the need for the firm to conduct continued needs assessment of the employees for it to remain a highly-competitive firm in the insurance sector.

Reference

Reed, M. S. (2009). Benefits and business at Aflac and L.L. Bean. Society for Human Resource Management. https://www.shrm.org/certification/for-organizations/academic-alignment/faculty-resources/Documents/09-0235_Benefits_At_AFLAC_and_LLBean_SW_FNL.pdf