Providing benefits to employees is a powerful tool for organizations to attract, motivate, and retain talented individuals. It demonstrates a company's commitment to the well-being and satisfaction of its workforce, which in turn leads to several significant advantages, like improved productivity and performance, loyalty, and an overall more positive company culture. However, being able to provide benefits as a small to medium-sized business owner is not an easy task and can almost be daunting to wrap one's head around. If you’re in the same boat and have been asking yourself questions like “I wish I could, but where to start?” or “How am I supposed to afford benefits?” or even “What are the right benefits for my team?” - you’ve come to the right place!
Today we’d like to introduce you to Rand Jenkins, co-owner of Mountain Mojo Group, a small business here in Flagstaff, Arizona. We had the pleasure of interviewing Rand to learn more about the evolution of benefits offered at Mountain Mojo Group and how it impacts owners, Rand & Austin, as well as their team.
Let’s Break The Ice…
What do you do for fun?
Family time, mostly. I love planning adventures with family and friends. Whether it’s a European vacation or golf on a Friday afternoon. Connecting with those that I love is a ton of fun for me.
What about work is fun?
Being presented with the challenge that a passionate business owner has in translating what they love to do into a story that the rest of the world can relate to and appreciate. To put it simply, conveying the value they provide.
Whether professionally or personally, what is one thing you’re proud of that happened in the last 3 months?
From a business perspective, it would be that we were able to roll out maternity leave for the first time earlier this year, and seeing the love that was created in that family during that time off… and the memories… which is really powerful for me. Personally, an accomplishment I recognize is starting to shift the way I listen to and speak with others in order to be more empathetic. Specifically, to differentiate between when someone is speaking to me about a problem they’d like me to solve and when someone is speaking to me about a problem they don’t want me to solve.
What advice would you give yourself at age 18?
Get a mentor! Find someone that you feel is living their best life both, professionally and personally. Someone who also aligns with your values. This can be a group of people. Ask them what the future holds for you based on their experiences and their life as often as they will let you.
What’s your favorite season in Flag and why?
Summer monsoons. Trail running in the rain with temperatures in the 70s, Aspen leaves fluttering and thunder clapping is my favorite thing.
Tell Us More About Your Business…
How long have you been in business?
7 ½ years.
How many employees do you have?
There are ten of us on the team.
For how many years have you been able to offer benefits?
This is our fifth year offering some form of benefits.
What benefits do you currently offer to your employees?
Full health coverage, 20 days of PTO, volunteer time PTO, monthly coaching, ongoing education hours, 401k, profit sharing (up to 20% bonus of salary), parental leave, and soon-to-be investment planning.
Where did you start when you first started offering benefits and why?
Only half health coverage. That was our first thing. Well, I guess, probably in the second year, I think we started with PTO but that was just because it was the law. I think you had to give some form of sick or paid vacation time. The evolution from where we started to where we are now is crazy.
Tell Us How Benefits Impacted You & Your Team…
Why is it important to you to be able to offer benefits to your employees?
I think everybody on this planet deserves holistic support from their employers. Even if it’s not 100% at first, I think people deserve to feel safe and to have access to healthcare. Specifically for our employees, when they feel safe I feel like we have a very harmonious workplace. That’s all I could ever ask for showing up to our office.
What does it mean to your employees to have benefits available?
That would be a good question to ask them! The feedback that we get as far as benefits go in interview processes and in one-on-one meetings is that they are grateful for health insurance. And, that usually comes from the fact that they know someone, a peer, or a family member that doesn’t have health insurance. They are grateful for the investment from a profit-sharing standpoint (our bonus program that I almost forgot to mention), the comfort and safety that one feels knowing that if something bad were to happen to them, to their health, they would have the resources that they need to take care of it.
What was the greatest challenge of being able to offer benefits to your team?
Over the years it’s been balancing those benefits with being able to make a profit as a business. You want to be able to have savings to have a sustainable business and at the same time, you want to increase your benefits to a level you think you would want, if you worked at your business. Trying to figure out when to save and when to invest has not been easy.
What is the greatest reward for being able to offer benefits to your team?
At first, it was health insurance and the safety and comfort that brings a family. Now, it’s definitely parental leave and knowing that someone on our team can comfortably family-plan and, then, go on leave without worrying about work.. or whether or not they are welcome back to work… or bills... Is extremely rewarding. It really aligns with our number one core value as a business and the culture we’re looking to establish: Family. That doesn’t mean that we’re a family because we’re a team, but family is what is most important to us. Sometimes people can get this confused.
What do you love about working with Benefit & Financial Strategies?
Bill’s tailgating parties. Their depth of knowledge and delivering appropriate options for our team members. And, their communication in taking care of those team members as they navigate our benefit options.
A Worthwhile Investment For Your Company
In summary, employer benefits can be a worthwhile investment to keep employees happy, healthy, and on the job. More so, it can create an environment of productivity and efficiency that directly translates into your business’s profitability, making it a win-win situation for everyone involved. We know how confusing and overwhelming it can be to navigate all of the coverage options, especially for healthcare, so it's important to have someone knowledgeable and helpful by your side.
If you are ready to learn more about the benefit option out there or want to know how you can create a compelling benefits program for your team, reach out to us today! At Benefit & Financial Strategies, we have had decades of experience servicing small and large companies in creating and supporting flexible and affordable employee benefits and retirement plans.