Reining in attrition: Infosys gifts iPhone 6s to staff, HCL Tech gives away Mercs

It’s not just about higher remuneration. Perks in India Inc seem to be getting more innovative too. While IT major HCL Tech has rewarded 130 top performing employees with a Mercedes or an all-expenses-paid holiday abroad as a token of appreciation for their contribution to the company, Infosys has gifted 30,000 of its top staff with iPhone 6s to stem attrition. The gift was accompanied by a mail from Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka, where he addressed the employees as friends. The mail, reports Times of India, read achieving what Infosys had “took your boundless energy and extraordinary effort”. “And I believe it’s not enough that we simply recognize it, we must celebrate it. That’s why I am so happy that we are presenting you with a Holiday Bonus - the cool new Apple iPhone 6. A gift that’ll always remind you and your teammates of the exceptional value you delivered for Infosys,” he said. “The 70 odd people who received their Mercedes (then there was no option of all expense-paid holiday) for their performance in 2013 were the first to be part of the CEO Club, a coterie that HCL Technologies started to recognise high performing individuals in functional leadership roles at or above the group manager/associate general manager level of responsibility”, the company said in a statement to Economic Times_._ In a bid to retain talent in a resurging job market, corporates are going out of their way and are thinking out of the box to reward key talent, apart from offering higher compensation and doling out hefty annual bonuses. While technology is a huge hit with employees, several companies are now doling out gifts like the iPhones or online vouchers, while in some instances the title of a company-owned flat has also been transferred to a senior executive as a retention tool. [caption id=“attachment_1680257” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] Last year, 1,201 employees of the Rs 6,000-crore Hare Krishna Exports in Surat were rewarded with cars, jewellery and flats. The company spent around Rs 45 crore on these gifts.( Read more here ) According to a 2014 study by Tower Watson, employers are innovating in their benefit strategy. One-third of employers offer or propose to offer non-traditional benefits such as gym memberships, child care benefits, financial planning and ability to buy/ sell annual leaves in India. Another survey by Glassdoor shows that 76 percent of employees consider medical coverage as the most important benefit followed by time-off from work. Retirement benefits, dental insurance, training and tuition benefits are all attractive employee benefits as well. A growing number of corporates are also offering flexible leave as part of their effort to help employees maintain a healthy work-life balance. So, while companies cannot significantly increase the number of days of leave employees get, they are allowing employees to take breaks based on their preferences and requirements. Gurgaon-based business process outsourcing company Genpact also permits employees to go on sabbatical ranging from three months to a year to acquire new skills or pursue higher education, while at Apollo Munich Health Insurance, employees can also donate leaves to a ’leave bank’ that will then help co-workers avail this facility in emergency situations such as hospitalisation of a family member or an accident.