Compensation and Benefits Package

In reference to: 401(k) Plan, Kimley-Horn Awards, Education Reimbursement, and

Benefits Communication at Time of Offer

Evaluated by:
Alora Caminiti
Hamilton DuBois
Tara Lucas
Ashley Ranaudo
Molly Sink
Table of Contents
I.

Review of Presentation of Benefits Package

Overview of The Company

A. Current Benefits Package

B. Alignment with Strategic Goals

II.

III.
IV.
V.

C. Consistency with Other HR Practices

D. Evaluation of Benefits Done by the Company
Critique of the Program
A. Strengths
a. 401(k) Retirement Plan
b. Kimley-Horn Awards
B. Weaknesses
a. Communication of Benefits at Time of the Offer
b. Utilization of Education Reimbursements
Recommendations for Change
A. Revamp Benefits Communication Package
B. Alternate Work Schedule for those Continuing Education
References
Appendices
A. Appendix A- Interview with Jennifer Boyler
B. Appendix B- Kimley-Horn Benefits Overview 2015
C. Appendix C-Additional Compensation
D. Appendix D-Saving for Retirement
E. Appendix E- Eligibility 401(k)
F. Appendix F- 401(k) Component Ratings
G. Appendix G- 401(k) Account Balances
H. Appendix H-Benefits Provided Under the Plan
I. Appendix I-Employee Retirement Income Security Act
J. Appendix J- Retirement Plan Description
K. Appendix K- How College Job Seekers Rate Job Benefits
L. Appendix L- National Averages of Salary and Benefits for Entry Level
Civil Engineer
M. Appendix M- Annual Salary of Entry Level Civil Engineers
N. Appendix N- Attracting and Maintaining Employees
O. Appendix O-Hyperlink to Infographic
P. Appendix P- Benefits By Text/What Do Millennials Want
Q. Appendix Q-New Hire Benefits/Compensation Checklist
R. Appendix R- Cost/Timeline of Recommendation 1-Revamp Benefits
Communication Package
S. Appendix S - Caregiver Alternate Schedule Request Form
T. Appendix T - Continuing Education Request Form
U. Appendix U - Cost/Timeline of Recommendation 2- Reduction in Hours

I.

Review of Benefits Package

Overview of The Company

Kimley-Horn & Associates is a civil engineering design consulting firm. The company was
incorporated in Raleigh, NC in February of 1967 by Bob Kimley and Bill Horn, who were transportation
engineers. Headquartered today in Cary, North Carolina, Kimley-Horn has grown to be one of the
nations premier planning and design firms. They offer services in a wide variety of disciplines in over 70
offices across the United States and Puerto Rico and have over 2,000 employees. This project will be
focusing on portions of the compensation and benefits package that Kimley-Horn offers to all of their
employees, focusing on the 401(k) plan, Kimley-Horn Awards, Benefits Communication towards civil
engineering college recruits, and education reimbursements. Our primary contact and source of
information is Jennifer Boyler, the Human Resources Generalist for the Southeast region of Kimley-Horn
(Appendix A).
A. Current Benefits Package
Kimley-Horn currently offers a great compensation and benefits package to all of its employees
(Appendix B) that includes everything from medical, vision, dental, short-term/long-term disability,
retirement, education reimbursements, bonuses etc For this project we will be focusing on retirement
benefits in the form of 401(k) plan, Kimley-Horn Awards, education reimbursement, and benefits
communication at the time of offer to civil engineering college recruits. Kimley-Horns biggest benefit is
their retirement savings plan through T. Rowe Price. Employees are automatically enrolled in 401(k)
contributions at 4% employee deferral. They are eligible for a company match of their retirement
contribution at one year of employment. The match is 200% of personal contributions up to 4%, which
means that Kimley-Horn will contribute $2 for every $1 an employee puts in. Next, Kimley-Horn Awards
are awards that allow employees to recognize other employees efforts for teamwork, going above-andbeyond, and continuous quality improvement. This is done by a process of review, in which employees
2

will nominate an employee for a Kimley-Horn award and upon review by HR, the nominated employee is
awarded $50 (Appendix C). Next, Kimley-Horns current education reimbursement benefit allows
employees to be reimbursed up to 75% of costs and expenses for classes directly related to their current
position within the company and 50% reimbursement for unrelated courses (Appendix B). Lastly,
Kimley-Horns current communication of benefits towards civil engineering college recruits at the time of
a job offer, consists of a discussion of compensation/benefits at the time of the offer with no mention of
company benefits during the interview process, nor any quick guide for recruits to understand the benefit
of Kimley-Horn as a whole. Additionally, the way in which recruits hear about compensation/benefits is
at the behest of the recruiter who is communicating with them, some recruiters are better than others at
this process.
B. Alignment with Strategic Goals
Kimley-Horn has four strategic goals as an organization. They consist of sustained growth,
exceptional client service, inspired adaption, and the overall Kimley-Horn experience (Boyler, 2015). The
benefit programs that are exceptional at achieving the strategic goals are the 401(k) plan, the Kimley
Horn Awards, and Education Reimbursements. They work together to promote retention within the
organization, attraction from potential candidates, and motivation amongst employees to achieve a
competitive structure.
Kimley Horns exceptional 401(k) program plays a crucial role in influencing employee retention.
With Kimley Horns current 401(k) plan after one year of service employees are eligible for a 200%
match of personal contributions up to 4% (Appendices D-E). This program provides a strong incentive
for employees to remain at Kimley-Horn due to the potential of growing their retirement savings. The
Education Reimbursement is also a considerable factor in employee retention. Employees can be
reimbursed up to 75% of costs and expenses associated with graduate or undergraduate courses directly
related to their position (Appendix B). This gives the employee an excellent opportunity to further their
education for a reduced cost and gain the knowledge to advance within Kimley-Horn.

The 401(k) program is also key for Kimley-Horn in influencing attraction. Due to the amazing
benefits available through the 401(k) match, it has become a large selling feature to new hires. The
current 401(k) participation rate at Kimley Horn is 98% which is well above average. Additionally, in a
study of what benefits college graduates value the most 401(k) benefits were valued at 4.16 out of 5
which is second only to health benefits (Appendix K). This shows the impact Kimley Horns 401(k)
program has on attracting new employees.
Kimley Horn utilizes a special benefit program called Kimley-Horn Awards to recognize
employees for exceptional work and continuous improvement. The Kimley-Horn Awards are a $50 award
given to an employee from rest of the staff (Appendix E). These awards provide a great tool in
accomplishing motivation among employees. They serve as reinforcement to the employees that their
work is not going unnoticed by the organization and create a correlation between performance and
compensation.
Sustained growth refers to the organization continuing to expand while advancing careers and
capitalizing on emerging business opportunities. The 401(k) program at Kimley-Horn is a direct result of
sustained growth. For the organization to be capable of paying the impressive 401(k) match, they must
continue to grow and have sustained success. Furthermore, the 401(k) program provides an incentive for
the employees to accomplish this strategic goal and remain with Kimley Horn and in advancing their
career. Through its ability to influence retention, the 401(k) program helps promote internal development
and succession.
Providing exceptional client service is necessary for the organization to thrive. Kimley-Horn
strives to become a more integrated part of their clients business which is accomplished through
developing trust and a record of sustained excellence. This goal is directly correlated with the KimleyHorn Awards. The Kimley-Horn Awards give special recognition to employees that go above-and-beyond
and perform at an excellent level. This directly correlates with achieving the strategic goal by creating a
relationship between great client service and compensation.

The organizations strategic goal of inspired adaption is manifested through their efforts to
continually and actively adapt to changes in technology, society, and the economy to maintain a
competitive edge while reducing layoffs. A critical element of Kimley-Horns benefit package is their
Education Reimbursement program. This element of the compensation package can be very effective in
accomplishing the organizational goal of inspired adaption. By giving employees an incentive to increase
their knowledge and attain new skills they are reinforcing the importance of continually adapting to
changes in the industry and in technology.
The Kimley-Horn experience is expressed by maintaining their identity and reputation in
engineering and as an organization. It is achieved through well-planned leadership transitions, and a
culture that helps perpetually unify, motivate and support employees. The Kimley-Horn Awards are a
crucial piece in developing and sustaining this culture by motivating employees to maintain the culture as
well as promoting teamwork through employees praising and motivating each other.
C. Consistency with Other HR Practices
As a company, Kimley-Horn interrelates all HR practices; in this case, it is the benefits with
training and development, performance management, and recruiting and selection. They do this by
promoting a build rather than a buy talent methodology. They recruit individuals by promoting their
401(k) plan through their current benefits communication strategy by seeking out those hires who are
motivated to succeed and then train them in the technical skills they need for the job. Through educational
reimbursements employees have the opportunity to self-develop by continuing their education and
receiving monetary reimbursements, a 75% reimbursement especially if an employee takes courses
related to their current position. Throughout this training process, employees are constantly being
assessed based on performance, and those high performing individuals are compensated with larger
bonuses and salary increases (Annual salary increases not mentioned above are apart of the compensation
plan). Additionally, Kimley-Horn awards are directly related to compensation being that the awards come
in increments of $50 which also can tie in to performance management because these awards are given on
a performance basis by other employees and reviewed by management.
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D. Evaluation of the Compensation Package

Kimley-Horns benefits practices are both supported and evaluated by upper management. Each
regional team in the company has its own HR Manager, who holds a seat at the table in all of the
management meetings. The evaluations that are made by upper management come from data collected
from multiple sources within the company. These sources include information from employee surveys,
utilization data from benefits providers, anecdotal evidence reported to Human Resources directly by
employees, exit interviews, retention rates, and rates of offers accepted and declined from college level
applicants (Appendix A).
II.

Critique of the Program

A.

Strengths

401(k) Retirement Plan

Kimley-Horns 401(k) account is managed by T. Rowe Price and after 30 days of employment
employees are eligible to contribute up to 50% of compensation on a pre-tax basis to the plan (Appendix
D). Kimley-Horn offers a 2-1 match up to 4% after one year of service. This equates to a 200% tax-free
ROI. The market norm for 401(k) Retirement plans is to offer a 50% match for up to 6% of an employees
salary. Kimley-Horns match is excellent considering that the average company contribution is 2.7% of
pay and only 38% of plans match dollar to dollar amount up to a certain rate (Annual Defined
Contribution Benchmarking survey). Companies surveyed showed that almost half of employees
participate in the offered plans primarily due to the match (Benchmark your 401(k) plan). Both the
design and performance of Kimley-Horns 401(k) are largely above average. Beginning with design, the
company generosity factor is considered great by BrightScope, a financial information and technology
company that facilitates transparency of opaque markets, such as 401(k) plans. According to data from
2013, the company is considered to be in the top 15% of all 401(k) plans in terms of company generosity.
Company generosity is defined as the plans vesting schedule, eligibility periods, and all of the
contributions to the plan by the company for the sole benefit of the participants (Kimley-Horn and
Associates BrightScope) . The plan has a 6-year vesting schedule for matching and profit sharing.
6

Employees can contribute after 30 days employment, which is only permitted in 62% of corporate 401(k)
plans. However, Kimley-Horn is part of 29.4% of companies that require 1-year of service prior to
matching their employees which aids in retention (Appendix E). The total plan cost, which is the sum of
all investment and administrative costs incurred to operate the plan, is within the 65th-84th percentile of
all 401(k) plans for low fees (Appendix F).
In terms of performance, the plan is in the top 15% of all 401(k) plans for account balances,
which is defined as,the average account balance among all participants who have a balance in the plan,
including retired and separated participants. The average account balance according to The Vanguard
Group is $101,650, while Kimley-Horns average account balance is $210,000, nearly double the average
for that year (Appendix G). The plan also rates above average in terms of participation rate in the plan and
salary deferrals, which places them in the 65th-84th percentile in these categories. As of 2013, KimleyHorn had over 2,700 participants in their 401(k) plan. Currently there is 98% participation in the plan by
eligible employees. Additional benefits of the plan include: code 2S automatic enrollment which allows a
certain amount of the employees contributions to be deducted from payroll automatically (Appendix H).
The plan abides by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) section 412 and has a
$500,000 fidelity bond, but the plan has not had occurrences of infidelity to date (Appendix I).
Overall, the plan receives a score of 81/100 from BrightScope which is considered above average
(Note that the top rated plan scores a 90, see Appendix J). The plan is in the top 15% of plans for
Account Balances and Company Generosity with more than 2,700 active participants and over $559.7
million in plan assets (Appendix G). The Kimley-Horn participation rate of 98% in the plan is fantastic
and shows that the company takes the steps needed to present this benefit to their employees.
Kimley-Horn Awards
Kimley-Horn offers their employees additional compensation through their Kimley-Horn Awards
(Appendix C). These awards provide employees with a chance to congratulate another employee for their
special efforts and improvement. The Kimley-Horn Awards are presented by a monetary award of $50,

recognizing teamwork, going above-and-beyond, and continuous quality improvement. This not only
supports the Reinforcement Theory of Motivation, but it also supports Expectancy Theory.
The Reinforcement Theory, proposed by BF Skinner, simply explains that people are more
motivated to behave certain ways when they are rewarded with a positive consequence or outcome. As
stated by Payne, et. al., It is based on the idea that if certain behaviors are rewarded, they will be
repeated, and by not rewarding other behaviors, the likelihood of those behaviors being repeated
decreases (Mitchell and Daniels 2003). According to the Reinforcement Theory, for rewards to have the
desired effect, they have to be valued (Payne, Cook, Horner, Shaub, & Boswell, 2011). As stated below,
the employees value these rewards, due to the number of employees who received them in previous years.
This theory focuses on the actions an employee continues to take, when he/she has been rewarded for a
behavior. The Kimley-Horn Awards support the Reinforcement Theory of Motivation because the
company is rewarding the employees who perform well, exceed expectations, or continuously improve in
hopes that they will continue to carry out these behaviors.
The Kimley-Horn Awards also support the Expectancy Theory of Motivation. The Expectancy
Theory says that an individual will behave a certain way over other behaviors because they are motivated
by the result that they expect that behavior to have. The Expectancy Theory focuses on effort and
performance, making a connection between the two. An employee who puts a lot of effort into one
behavior in order to achieve a certain goal or outcome will perform higher because they are more
motivated to achieve that goal. The 3 components of the Expectancy Theory are expectancy, valence, and
instrumentality. As stated by Payne, et. al., Individuals combine the outcomes of the three constructs to
determine how much effort should be exerted for the task. The amount of effort decided upon is referred
to as the motivational force (Vroom 1964) and can be calculated for any reward (Payne, Cook, Horner,
Shaub, & Boswell, 2011). Valence is the strong desire for a certain reward or preference. These
employees participate in these awards and clearly value these, as 6,767 Kimley-Horn employees received
these awards in the last year, which averages out to 3 awards for each of the employees (Ranii, 2015) . As
stated by Regis, et. al., Valence has its focus on the relationship between personal goals and rewards.
8

This means it is related to the degree to which rewards come to satisfy personal objectives or individual
necessities and the attractiveness of these potential rewards for each person (Regis, Falk, and Diasm,
2008). The Kimley-Horn Awards enhance motivation through the attractiveness of the monetary rewards
that they offer to excelling employees. Employees are also motivated by the congratulation and
recognition from their fellow employees. Expectancy is implemented into these awards because the
employees believe that performing a certain way will help them achieve these awards. Instrumentality is
also implemented into the awards because the employees believe that a certain performance level will
result in one or more outcomes. The Kimley-Horn Awards support the Expectancy Theory by ensuring
that employees are always desiring to perform above-and-beyond the standards.
B. Weaknesses
Communication of Benefits at Time of Offer
The communication of benefits to potential candidates is a critical step in the attraction and
recruitment process. Candidates judge the worth of a job offer by the salary offered along with the
benefits that will be included with it. It is essential for this communication to be analyzed and perfected to
best influence job offer acceptances. As stated by Martocchio (2014, p. 257), an effective
communication program should have three primary objectives: to create an awareness of and appreciation
for the way current benefits improve the financial security and the physical and mental well-being of
employees, to provide a high level of understanding about available benefits, [and] to encourage the wise
use of benefits. Printed brochures are typically used by companies to convey this information and are
the tool that Kimley-Horn uses (Appendices B-D). A difficulty in using compensation packages as a
recruitment tool is the failure of organizations to effectively communicate their "personal" value to the
target audience This is in part because organizations continually fail to communicate their package
attributes (Plater, 1999, p. 32). Although Kimley-Horns benefits package has a high value, many
candidates have trouble seeing this due to the communication between the recruiter and the potential new
hire and the lack of understanding for some recent graduates of the value and meaning of the benefits
being presented (Appendix A).
9

For example, when making an initial offer to college grads, the benefits that are most heavily
promoted at Kimley-Horn are the 401(k) plan and the health care plan, despite the fact that college
graduates do not value these portions of the benefits program quite as highly as other hires (Appendix A).
The focus of the benefits presentation for potential candidates right out of college is not geared towards
the immediate wants and needs of their age group. Most graduating college students are around the age of
22. With this being the case, most of the potential candidates that are soon to be graduating or have
already graduated are likely still on their parents health insurance and will likely continue to use this
health insurance until turning 26. This leaves roughly four years between the time the candidate would
accept an offer with Kimley-Horn and take advantage of this particular benefit. This is similar to the
401(k) plan. Although Kimley-Horns 401(k) plan is rated above average, the rewards associated with it
are not available immediately (Appendix J). Students often rank both medical benefits and 401(k) plans
as one of the most important factors in deciding to accept a job when responding to surveys about their
beliefs, but there is research to suggest this belief does not match the behavior that is actually exhibited by
most candidates (Rynes, 2004, p. 381).
A reward from Kimley-Horn that is available to students in the more near future than the above
mentioned benefits include the base salary of the job. As our contact stated, and what research has shown,
is most students look only at the base salary when making a decision to accept a job offer or not.
However, from the data shown in the chart published by World at Work about how College Job Seekers
Rate Job Benefits, the second most sought after benefit is the offered 401(k) plan (Appendix K). Sara
Rynes et. al. discuss this discrepancy between what people say and do in the article The Importance of
Pay in Employee Motivation. Rynes et. al. states applicant attraction and retention are probably most
heavily influenced by pay level, or the extent to which employees receive higher or lower pay than
similar workers at other companies (Rynes, 2004, p. 389). It is also stated that practitioners generally
underestimate the motivational potential of pay because of socially desirable responding by employees in
surveys and misinformation in the practitioner press (Rynes, 2004, p. 389). This is exactly what has

10

occurred in the World at Work survey. The socially desirable responding theory explains that people want
to choose the answers that seem most socially accepted, instead of what they actually believe.
One of the suggestions made in the article to improve attraction and retention is to keep base
salary from being noticeably below market because it often makes desirable candidates reject an offer.
Once market levels are reached, choices will generally be made on a multidimensional basis, where
factors other than pay can also become competitive advantages (or disadvantages) (Rynes, 2004, p. 389).
The current market value salary of a entry level civil engineer is $61,264 and $87,083 including benefits
(Appendix L). The salary of an entry level civil engineer at Kimley-Horn on the other hand is $56,000,
which is in the 25th percentile for this particular job (Appendix M). If Kimley-Horns base salary was at
the level the market is, it would be more beneficial to then push the 401(k) plan in order to influence
candidates that Kimley-Horn is the best choice rather than focusing most on the communication of the
benefits.
Utilization of Education Reimbursements
Due to the heavy work schedule at Kimley-Horn, the education reimbursement benefit cannot be
taken advantage of because work-life balance would be extremely difficult to maintain. Through KimleyHorns current education reimbursement benefit, employees will be reimbursed up to 75% of costs and
expenses for classes directly related to the position and 50% for unrelated courses (Appendix B). The
behaviors Kimley-Horn is attempting to reward are employee development and retainment which are key
to accomplishing its strategic goal of sustained growth. The goal is met through advancing careers and
developing employees while growing the organization. However, the education benefit may be
responsible for a behavior that is not desired by the organization.
According to Kerrs article On the Folly of Rewarding A, While Hoping for B, there are
numerous examples of instances when the types of behavior rewarded are those which the rewarder is
trying to discourage, while the behavior desired is not being rewarded at all (Kerr, 1995, p. 7). This
phenomenon applies to many fields including medicine, politics, sports, education, and war but has a

11

significant presence in compensation where the reward systems that are currently in place are paying for
different behavior than what they are seeking. The education reimbursement benefit is not ideal for
Kimley-Horn due to the long hours employees currently work. Kimley-Horn does not promote the
education benefit to its employees because they are aware of the conflicts it can cause with employees
work and family life. The thought is that the combination of the long hours employees currently work
while taking undergraduate or graduate courses can be stressful and time consuming for employees. This
can impact their work-life balance and ultimately affect job performance. Consequently this creates a
negative impact on the strategic goal of exceptional client service. Additionally, it can affect the intrinsic
compensation the employee associates with the job. The organizations education benefit would ideally
make use of prospective rewards to cause other people to care about its own objectives (Kerr, 1995). The
under-utilization of the education benefit program is creating another weakness toward the strategic goal
of sustained growth. According to David Hakalas article on HRWorld.com titled The Pros and Cons of
Providing Employee Continuing Education, employee education programs are extremely effective in
retaining employees. He cites a study which displays the power these programs can have upon employee
retainment, In a study conducted by Spherion Atlantic Enterprises LLC., a staffing and employmentservices firm, 61 percent of respondents who received training or mentoring said they were very likely to
remain with their current employer for the next five years or more (Hakala, 2008). These results prove
that if Kimley-Horn could maintain a successful employee education benefit program it could reap huge
rewards for the company.
III.

Recommendations for Change

Revamp Benefits Communication Package

Kimley-Horns main concern currently is acquiring new talent, primarily in terms of recent
college graduates. When speaking with Jennifer Boyler, our Human Resource contact, she stated that they
have found that recent graduates do not understand the value of the total compensation package they
would receive with Kimley-Horn. Instead, the college graduates focus purely on the base salary and being
that Kimley-Horns base salary is slightly lower than market value, the appeal for new graduates can be
12

diminished. While Kimley-Horn works hard to maintain a reputation on college campuses, especially
those with a civil engineering program, their below market base salary has deterred new hires (Boyler,
2015) (Appendix A). An initial conclusion would be to simply raise the base salary to spark the interest of
top talent that is coming right out of school, as is stated above; however, it is shown that the raising the
base salary is quite costly to a corporation and often does little to aid the demands/desires for benefits of
the changing workforce. As stated in the Knowledge of Pay article it is less expensive to upgrade the
processes used to pay people than it is to adjust, up or down, the amount paid to people (Mulvey, 2002,
p. 9). According to the North Carolina State Compensation and Benefits Report of 2013, companies
across the state have done little to increase the percentage of pay in terms of base salary due to the fact
that surveys have shown that benefits such as spot awards (75% more beneficial), signing bonuses (55%
more beneficial), more aggressive pay increases (47% more beneficial), and project milestone rewards
(46% more beneficial) are more beneficial in attracting and maintaining employees (Alexander, 2013)
(Appendix N). In this regard, Kimley-Horn excels because it offers Kimley-Horn Awards as mentioned
above, as well as a Getting Started Bonus , pay increases and project milestone rewards. So why
exactly are potential college recruits being deterred by the Kimley-Horn compensation package if base
salary is but a small portion of compensation? Well as stated above the problem lies in Benefits
Communication, specifically in advertising for the company. Due to the strong participation rate in the
401(k) and the participation in the other aspects of the compensation and benefits package it is easily
shown that internally the company does well to communicate benefits; however, externally it is lacking in
regards to attracting new college hires.
Our first recommendation to remedy this problem is to provide a different approach to Benefits
Communication or attraction of potential college hires by implementing a three stage communication
process: pre-offer, offer, and post-offer. Pre-offer tasks would include texting a link to the candidates
phone that takes them to an infographic that details strong aspects of the Kimley-Horn Benefits package
so that they have these materials prior to the offer being made (Appendix O). Millennials are 154% more
likely to want a text about benefits sent to their phone than non-millennials (Employees Speak up About
13

Benefits Communication, 2014) (Appendix P). Millennials also state that they wish employers would
communicate benefits in a way that is easier to understand (56%) and they would like to leverage their
benefits, but want to spend as little time as possible to learn about them (67%) (Appendix P). This initial
sending of a text is more user friendly and inviting than an email or paper trail, as well as increases the
likelihood that the candidate will read the materials prior and start to fully realize the total compensation
package made available by Kimley-Horn. Infographics are effective in their use of visual-pictorial
primacy, attracting/retaining attention, content organization, sharability, and aesthetic appeal. Visualpictorial primacy is simply stating that 50% of our cerebral function is related to vision, meaning that
mainly people process pictorial and not textual data (Sheth, Sharma, Rao, Sur, 1996). Being that this is
that case, visual processing takes much less time than reading text, thus providing an infographic is user
friendly to a generation who is deemed to have a short-attention span, or avid skimmers. Due to the
ability of the brain to absorb information quickly in a visual format, the attracting/retaining attention
aspect of materials, such as a benefits handbook, becomes much easier and effective. An infographic
stands out and is not commonplace in the world of compensation and benefits, thus attraction is formed
and can maintain an audiences attention long enough to convey the intended message (Milovanovic,
2014). Next, content organization, the whole purpose of an infographic is to display information in a
concise and orderly fashion so that content consumption is quicker and easier (Milovanovic, 2014).
Shareability is a very strong feature of an infographic and will aid Kimley-Horn greatly. By providing a
link, via text and email, to a collegiate populous is a sure way to promote sharability being that this
generation is considered the social media generation. A brief overview of a company's benefits, that takes
a very small amount of time to read, provides visual appeal, and is sent to the audience in a manner that is
convenient to them allows Kimley-Horn to promote a user-friendly status and markets in a personal
manner (Smiciklas, 2012). Lastly, the aesthetic appeal makes an infographic both easy to read, as well as,
desirable. Nelson Gilbert proved in 1922 that individuals are more successful in remembering products
that are marketed in colour ads than with those printed black and white (Gilbert, 1922). This proves that
a colorful infographic is more efficient in retention than black and white text, such as a benefits
14

handbook. All of these features make sure an overview of a company's benefits are convenient, simple,
and consumable; all of which have the possibility of eliminating the problem of potential hires not
accepting an offer due to a lack of understanding, or visualizing the whole picture. This prior knowledge
of the compensation/benefits offered will also assist the candidate, during the offer stage, in asking any
questions.
The offer stage will be reformed by providing a checklist (Appendix Q) for the recruiter to utilize
to go over the benefits in order of importance to the Millennial generation, those born in the early years of
the 1980s to 2000s (Employees Speak up About Benefits Communication, 2014). This will increase
knowledge of the value of the package and joining Kimley-Horn. This will also decrease the
inconsistency of the communication of benefits to candidates from one recruiter to the next.
Lastly, the post-offer process would include a follow-up text with the benefits package in the
following forms: a text message with the link the the infographic, an email with the infographic link and
the handbook, as well as a mailed paper format. These forms will be essential due the Knowledge of Pay
study that states that people gauge the effectiveness of policy manuals, handbooks, in-class training and
videos as minimal. Instead, people believe that conversations with supervisors and managers, along with
interactive training on Web sites and the intranet, are most effective (Mulvey, 2002, p. 30). This states
that the infographic will be most beneficial upfront for topical understanding of the benefits. Then
following personal interaction on the phone when the offer is made to discuss benefits will complement
the infographic and provide the most retention. Additionally, the handbook will be given in an online
fashion to those individuals who are extended an offer to ensure limited circulation of the full benefits
handbook via intranet, as well as an emailed infographic that provides a broader visual of the benefits
package simply due to larger technological screen size, that the candidate can reference when need be.
The costs associated for this recommendation can be found in Appendix R.
In regards to managerial and employee acceptance of these changes, they will be very welcome to
these changes being that the recommended changes align with the strategic goal of inspired adaptation
which is defined as actively adapt[ing] to societal, technological and economic change by transforming
15

how we work and how we equip and inspire our entrepreneurs (Boyler, 2015). Providing a better
communication process for benefits to new recruits that specifically targets their generation will enable
Kimley-Horn to adapt and stay ahead of the marketing curve for attracting/retaining new civil engineering
graduates. This will also assist in providing a greater ROI for recruiters efforts towards millennials by
increasing the likelihood that an offer made will be accepted by recruits. Employees will appreciate the
quick overview of the benefits provided by Kimley-Horn as both a means of comparison for other
companies, as well as, a quick reference guide as to why the Kimley-Horn package is so great.
Alternate Work Schedule for Those Continuing Education
As noted above, a weakness of the program that we have identified is the discrepancy related to
education reimbursements. Kimley-Horn offers education reimbursements, yet does not typically suggest
that their employees continue their education in the form of college studies due to the issue of work-life
balance. Our second recommendation is for Kimley-Horn to give employees a chance to utilize the
offered benefit of education reimbursements by allowing them to work an alternate schedule that is more
conducive to their education. In 2012, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that hours spent at work
per week rose from 40.6 hours in 1973 to 47.2 hours currently. This is a 15% rise in the work week,
leaving employees a mere 16.5 hours per week of leisure time after all commitments have been
accomplished (Taneja, 2013). This leaves employees essentially no time to attend classes and complete
assignments while working full-time. The American Society of Engineering Education states that there
was a 104% increase in Civil and Environmental Masters degrees in 2012 (Yoder). This information
supports the idea that over time, obtaining a Masters in Civil Engineering is becoming more popular, as
well as expected, resulting in more engineers looking to further their education.
The alternate work schedule will allow Kimley-Horn employees who aspire to take additional
courses or obtain Masters degrees to work a percentage of their full time schedule while receiving a prorated salary and benefits or alter their full-time schedules. This allows employees to take advantage of the
education reimbursements and still make substantial contributions to the company. Kimley-Horn
currently offers reduced schedules for new mothers and could tailor the process towards those who desire
16

to continue their education (Appendix S). Another option for scheduling is flextime. According to David
Hakala, in his article Flexible Scheduling, Telecommuting, and Remote Workers, flextime can take
many forms. It can entail a compressed work week, where the employee puts in their 40 hours in less than
5 days, or it can involve a staggered schedule, in which the employee comes in early and leaves earlier, or
does the opposite and comes to work later and in turn stays later (Hakala, 2008).
We have created a form that employees can fill out to request to continue education and indicate
the type of schedule they would like to work during their course of study (Appendix T). This form
requires employees to provide previous education information, as well as indicate their current education
goals. The section for course information allows employees to list the courses they intend to take and the
costs associated with those courses. Following the education information, there are a series of questions
regarding the type of schedule that an employee feels is conducive to their education time commitment.
Once an employee fills out this form, they will turn it into their Human Resources team. The HR
team will review the requests and determine the amount of reimbursement that will be provided to the
employee. They will also meet with the supervisor of the employee requesting reimbursement to discuss
workload within the team, what hours will work best for the reduced schedule, and if this reduction will
result in the need for additional hires. After these discussions, decisions will be made and there will be a
meeting including HR, the employee, and their supervisor to go over the terms of the reimbursement and
reduced schedule.
Employees will positively accept these changes because they will have more of an opportunity to
utilize the education reimbursements without repercussions to their work-life balance. Supervisors may
take longer to adjust to this because they will have an employee on their team doing less hours of work;
however, Human Resources can take the time to explain the importance and value of having better
educated employees in the long run and can ensure that the employees are still held accountable for the
work they do.
The costs and timeline associated with this system can be found in Appendix U. The meetings
that occur between HR, the employee, and the supervisor have been factored in, as well as the actual cost
17

of reimbursing for education. We have also considered the need to hire another full-time employee,
should the employee returning to school not be able to support their workload.

IV.

References

Alexander Jr., C. (2013, February 1). State of North Carolina 2013 Compensation and Benefits Report.
Retrieved April 3, 2015, from http://www.oshr.nc.gov/Guide/CompWebSite/2013 Compensation and
Benefits Report.pdf
Annual Defined Contribution Benchmarking survey. (2014, January 1). Retrieved March 28, 2015, from
http://www.iscebs.org/Documents/PDF/Annual Defined Contribution Benchmarking Survey (2013
Edition).pdf
Benchmark Your 401k Plan: 2015 - 401khelpcenter.com. (n.d.). Retrieved March 28, 2015, from
http://www.401khelpcenter.com/benchmarking.html#.VRcQO_nF8w9
Bohovich, J. (2000, July 1). 'Room for Advancement' Holds Greatest Appeal for College Job Seekers.
Retrieved March 26, 2015, from http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimLink?id=15484
Boyler, Jennifer. Personal Communication. 2 Feb 15 31 March 15
Civil Engineer I Salaries. (2015, April 1). Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www1.salary.com/CivilEngineer-I-Salary.html
Employees Speak Up About Benefits Communications: Find Out What Employees Want, The Millennial
Point of View. (2014, January 1). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from http://www.guidespark.com/wpcontent/uploads/2014/03/GuideSpark_2014-Employee-Benefits-Communications-Report.pdf
18

Gilbert, H. N. (1933). An experiment with colored and uncolored advertisements, Journal of Applied
Psychology, 17(1), 49-54.
Hakala, D. (2008, April 1). Flexible Scheduling, Telecommuting and Remote Workers - HR World.
Retrieved April 8, 2015, from http://www.hrworld.com/features/flexible-work-arrangements-040108/
Hakala, D. (2008, August 18). The Pros and Cons of Providing Employee Continuing Education.
Retrieved April 7, 2015, from http://www.hrworld.com/features/employee-continuing-education-081808/
How America Saves 2014: A report on Vanguard 2013 defined contribution plan data. (2014,

March

31). Retrieved March 28, 2015, from

https://pressroom.vanguard.com/content/nonindexed/How_America_Saves_2014.pdf
Kerr, S. (n.d.). AN ACADEMY CLASSIC. On the folly of rewarding A, while hoping for B. Academy of
Management Executive, 7-14.
Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. (2013, December 31). Retrieved March 28, 2015, from
http://www.brightscope.com/401k-rating/270084/Kimley-Horn-And-Associates-Inc/274308/KimleyHorn-And-Associates-Inc-Retirement-Savings-And-Pension-Plan/
Milovanovic, D., & Ivanisevic, L. (2014, January 1). Inforgraphic as a Marketing Communication Tool.
Retrieved April 11, 2015, from http://symorg.fon.bg.ac.rs/proceedings/papers/04 - COMMUNICATION
MANAGEMENT AND SOCIAL NETWORKING .pdf#page=23
Mulvey, P., LeBlanc, P., & Heneman, R. (2002). The Knowledge of Pay Study: E-Mails from the
Frontline.

Payne, S., Cook, A., Horner, M., Shaub, M., & Boswell, W. (2011, January 1). The Relative
Influence of Total Rewards Elements on Motivation and Retention. Retrieved April 12, 2015,
from http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimLink?id=48923
Plater, Ph.D., M., Rahtz, Ph.D., D., & Katz, Ph.D., J. (1999, January 1). Compensation Package
Alignment. Retrieved March 1, 26, from http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimLink?id=1004

19

Ranii, D. (2015, March 28). Kimley-Horn's VPs of fun keep things light. Retrieved April 14, 2015, from
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article16422260.html
Regis, H., Falk, J., & Dias, S. (2008). Expectancy theory. In S. Clegg, & J. Bailey (Eds.), International
encyclopedia of organization studies. (pp. 485-488). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. doi:
http://dx.doi.org.prox.lib.ncsu.edu/10.4135/9781412956246.n170
Rynes, S., Gerhart, B., & Minette, K. (2004). The Importance Of Pay In Employee Motivation:
Discrepancies Between What People Say And What They Do. Human Resource Management, 381-394.
Sheth, B. R., Sharma, J., Rao, S. C., Sur, M. (1996). Orientation Maps of Subjective Contours in Visual
Cortex, Science, 274, 2110-2114
Smiciklas, M. (2012). The Power of Infographics, Indianapolis, IN: Que Publishing
Taneja, S. (2013). Sustaining Work Schedules: Balancing Leisure and Work. Academy of Strategic
Management Journal, 12(2), 113-122. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from
http://search.proquest.com.prox.lib.ncsu.edu/docview/1475181326?pq-origsite=summon
The ERISA Fidelity Bond - 401khelpcenter.com. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from
http://www.401khelpcenter.com/401k/kalish_erisa_bond.html#.VRb_NvnF8w8
Yoder, B. (n.d.). Engineering by the Numbers. Retrieved March 30, 2015, from
https://www.asee.org/papers-and-publications/publications/11-47.pdf

20

V.

Appendices
a. Appendix A- Interview with Jennifer Boyler

Interview Questions:
1. Briefly describe the organization from an HR standpoint.
a. Our Core Purpose is To Provide an Environment for Our People to
Flourish. Prior to 2001, it was We have no reason to exist except to serve our clients.
To me, it demonstrates a progressive organization to be able to take one step further back
from serving clients (we are consulting so of course we wouldnt be here without our
clients) to understand that employees who are happier and more fulfilled are better client
servers which in turn makes the clients happier. From the HR side, treating employees as
#1, makes my job much easier and more fun.
2. What are the strategic goals of your organization?
a. Sustained Growth Well continue to emphasize the priorities that
draw a straight line to a stronger bottom line: Advancing careers, expanding from
traditional strongholds, capitalizing on emerging opportunities, and more.
b. Exceptional Client Service Well become a more fully
integrated, essential part of our clients organizations by serving as trusted advisors
and leveraging our track record of excellence.
c. Inspired Adaptation We wont just let change happen to us;
instead, well actively adapt to societal, technological and economic change by
transforming how we work and how we equip and inspire our entrepreneurs.
d. The Kimley-Horn Experience Well be us. That is, well remain
focused on what has kept us such an attractive option for new talent that supports
our ambitious growth goalsindependence, well-planned leadership transitions,
and a culture that helps us perpetually unify, motivate and support one another.
3. How does the presentation of compensation/benefits contribute to the achievement
of the strategic goals?
a. Sustained growth no one has to retire for someone else to move into a
practice builder role. We have people in their 20s who are shareholders in the firm.
Driven employees can move up quickly. Engineers in emerging markets can join the firm
and quickly make a name for themselves. If you are actively growing Kimley-Horns
bottom line, your career/salary/bonus/path to ownership is advancing as well. There is a
direct correlation because folks are rewarded for their contributions and not because of
politics or tenure alone. (we present path to ownership as an opportunity for mid-level

21

and senior folks during the recruiting process, for everyone, our outstanding 401K match
and profit sharing come as a direct result of our sustained growth)
b. Exceptional client service internal support positions like HR, IS,
Marketing cannot grow an external practice and so are rewarded based on their internal
service. Again, career growth/salary/bonus/path to ownership is directly correlated to the
level of client service provided. For external and internal positions, if you are not a
stellar client server, you cannot be a good consultant and will not flourish at KimleyHorn. (we present to senior folks, that if you are a practice builder, join Kimley-Horn and
have all of the internal logistics handled while you build your practice-you will be
supported by a group of professionals who see you as their client)
c. Inspired Adaptation a good example of this in regards to benefits is
how we ask for feedback and readjust our benefits based on the current workforces
needs. As our workforces average age declines, folks have asked for more money in
cash bonuses than in retirement and so the balance has shifted due to the demand of a
changing workforce. We have kept up with medical inflation and have NOT continued to
raise medical premiums like our competitors. (we sell our ability to adapt to the marketswe make decisions that are best for the profitability of the firm without sacrificing
people. Instead of mass lay-offs, we shift people to busier offices and because we are all
one profit center, we all are rewarded when the firm as a whole does well, even if some
offices are in the midst of adapting to market changes.)
d. The Kimley-Horn Experience we have a solid reputation in
engineering. We have built a brand that college grads and senior folks want to be a part
of. Our employee-owned status, bonus program, and profit sharing are a long-standing
part of our identity.
4. Does the package influence attraction, retention, and motivation of employees?
a. Retention and motivation-Yes. See above for comments on path to
ownership, bonus, and profit sharing. If you know you are on a path to be an owner in
the firm after just a few years with us, you see your bonuses getting bigger as your
individual contributions grows, and see your retirement account expanding, most people
want to stay. We have very low voluntary turnover. Once people are here and especially
if they make it past the 5 year mark, they will likely stay until retirement. Our challenge,
is in attracting new college grads who dont understand or even care about longer term
benefits like retirement or firm ownership. They may not even care about medical
benefits because they have been on a parents plan or a college plan and have nothing to
compare our benefits to. They also dont usually care about bonuses since there is no
guaranteed bonus number. They usually look just at base salary which tends to be on the
lower end in the market.
5. What are other ways your company attracts, retains, and motivates employees?
a. Kimley-Horn has a great reputation for providing training and support
you will work hard, but will learn more technically in your first few years than anywhere
else.
6. How does this compensation and benefits package relate to the other HR practices
in place in your organization? (performance management, training and development, ,
recruiting and selection) It is definitely all inter-related. We recruit folks who are motivated to
succeed, train them in the technical skills they need, assess their performance, and high

22

performers are given larger bonuses and salary increases and therefore receive a higher amount of
profit sharing and match and move along the path to ownership faster.
7. Describe how your compensation and benefits package is currently presented when
you make offers to candidates. Color pdf or paper book sent depending on timing of interviews.
8. When during the hiring process are these compensation/benefits presented? To
senior and mid-level candidates, early on. To college candidates, later in the processoften at or
right before an offer is made b/c these candidates dont put as much weight on the benefits.
Senior and mid-level folks often care more about benefits than base salary so we present it early
on.
9. Do you believe that candidates fully understand everything that has been introduced
to them after the presentation has concluded? Senior and mid level candidates understand it
and know the right questions to ask. Some college candidates get it, some do not. I usually tell
them to talk it over with their parents b/c parents see the value in these things or I tell them to
compare our benefits to other offers apples to apples and you will see that ours come out ahead.
10. Do candidates typically respond with questions about the package? Or are they
quick to accept without objection full understanding? College candidates typically do not ask
a lot of questions and really dont gain a good understanding of the package until after they join
the firm and have been with us for a few months.
11. Do employees take full advantage of the benefits package? Yes, almost all folks
contribute the match percentage of 401K and join the medical plan. Some benefits that are less
utilized include the dental plan (its expensive) and the 529 College Savings Plan (we have not
marketed this well).
12. Is the HR practice supported by upper management? Yes HR has a seat at the table.
Each regional team that is made up of practice folks also has an HR Manager. Our HR Director is
a shareholder and I believe owns the second highest level of stock in the firm, after the chairman.
13. How does upper management evaluate this HR practice? Employee surveys, looking
at utilization data from benefits providers, anecdotal evidence from the HR teams that work
directly with employees, retention rates, exit interviews, college declines vs. acceptances.
14. Are there any weaknesses that you believe the implementation of this HR practice
has? College starting salaries are lower than some others in the market, but with good reason b/s
our total compensation package is much higher. Any aspects which you believe could be
improved? Perhaps re-balance the way base and bonus are paid out to new college grads.
Higher base salaries in the first year or two with very small bonuses and then balance as they
progress through their career. The problem is that this goes against the Kimley-Horn
ExperienceI think a better way to make things more attractive is to figure out how to better
market to millenials rather than change the whole process.
15. Any strengths? Our profit sharing and retirement plan allows folks to retire early with a
few million dollars in the bank if you are even an average employee. Anyone with a few years of
experience can see how valuable this is. We also have built such a great reputation and presence
on many college campuses that folks join us on reputation aloneeven if they get other offers
with higher base salaries. We start marketing to folks when they are a year or two into college,
hire the stars as interns when they are juniors and sell them on our culture and benefits so they
dont want to join any other firm by the time they graduate.
Source: Boyler, 2015
b. Appendix B- Kimley-Horn Benefits Overview 2015

23

24

Source: Kimley-Horn Benefits Book 2015

c. Appendix C-Additional Compensation

25

Source: Kimley-Horn Benefits Book 2015

d. Appendix D-Saving for Retirement

Source: Kimley-Horn Benefits Book 2015

e. Appendix E- Eligibility 401(k)

26

Source: Benchmark Your 401k Plan: 2015 - 401khelpcenter.com.

f.

Appendix F- 401(k) Component Ratings

Source: Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. (Via BrightScope)

g. Appendix G- 401(k) Account Balances

27

Source: How America Saves 2014: A report on Vanguard 2013 defined contribution plan data.
h. Appendix H-Benefits Provided Under the Plan

28

Source:Source: Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. (Via BrightScope)

i.

Appendix I-Employee Retirement Income Security Act

29

Source: The ERISA Fidelity Bond - 401khelpcenter.com

j.

Appendix J- Retirement Plan Description

30

Source:Source: Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. (Via BrightScope)

k. Appendix K- How College Job Seekers Rate Job Benefits
1= unimportant / 5= very important
Benefit

Rating

Medical Insurance

4.61

401(k) retirement plan

4.16

Annual salary increases

3.96

Life insurance

3.93

Dental insurance

3.83

Pension plan

3.75

Tuition reimbursement

3.62

More

than

two

weeks 3.60

vacation
Flextime

3.46

31

Family-friendly benefits
Frequent

3.39

performance 3.39

reviews
Stock options

3.35

Bonus/commission plans

3.29

Telecommuting

2.82

Employee

assistance 2.66

program
Casual dress policy

2.64

On-site fitness center

2.57

Planned social activities

2.56

Day care facility

1.94

Company car

1.91

Source: National Association of Colleges and Employers/ Bohovich

l. Appendix L- National Averages of Salary and Benefits for Entry Level Civil
Engineer

32

Source: Civil Engineer I Salaries.

m. Appendix M- Annual Salary of Entry Level Civil Engineers

33

Source: Civil Engineer I Salaries.

n. Appendix N-Attracting and Maintaining Employees

34

Source: Alexander, 2013

o. Appendix O-Hyperlink to Infographic/ Method to Text
Link: https://magic.piktochart.com/output/5457765-2015-kimley-horn-benefits
When applying for a specified position, the online application form asks for contact number, an
additional box will ask for mobile phone and for the applicant to specify the carrier. Next, when
the candidate is chosen to come in for an interview, or be called a link will be sent to their
phone/email that takes them to the Benefits Infographic. A recruiter can easily send a text to a
phone from a computer by doing the following steps:
Step 1
Access your Gmail account in a Web browser. Provide your user name and password to gain
access to it.
Step 2
Click Compose to create a new Gmail message to send to someone's cellphone.
Step 3
Enter the email recipient's mobile address in the To field. The address consists of a 10-digit
phone number followed by the SMS gateway. Use the listing provided by Email Text Messages to
determine the SMS gateway (see link in Resources). The final email address should resemble
1234567890@messaging.sprintpcs.com.
Step 4
Enter the text of the message in the body's blank space. Depending on the recipient's provider,
messages longer than 160 characters may be truncated.
Step 5
Click Send to send the Gmail message.
Source:
How to Send Gmail to Someone's Cell Phone. (n.d.). Retrieved April 13, 2015, from
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/send-gmail-someones-cell-phone-53371.html

35

Sources to create infographic:

Fortune. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from
http://archive.fortune.com/magazines/fortune/bestcompanies/2010/snapshots/62.html
It's Clear. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from http://www.kimley-horn.com/news/70-kimleyhorn-jumps-to-#33-in-engineering-news-record's-top-500-us-design-firms-list
Kimley-Horn. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from http://us.greatrated.com/kimley-horn
(n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from http://www.kimley-horn.com/_public/documents/KimleyHorn-Locations.pdf
Kimley-Horn and Associates. (2015, March 5). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from
http://fortune.com/best-companies/kimley-horn-and-associates-25/
p. Appendix P- Benefits By Text/What Do Millennials Want

36

37

Source: Employees Speak Up About Benefits Communications: Find Out What Employees Want, The
Millennial Point of View. (2014, January 1)
q. Appendix Q-New Hire Benefits/Compensation Checklist

New Hire Benefits/Compensation Checklist

CHECKLIST

Call to make offer

Ask if it is a good time to speak

Prelude by offering personal phone number

Keep call personal

Offer candidates help in determining other

offers

Candidates happiness is most important

Distinguish between base salary and total

compensation package

Provide a visual of base v. total comp. as a

percentage

Explain the following and conclude with asking

if they have any questions (Keep it personal)

Discuss cafeteria style plan

Make it your own

Health benefits/ HSA Debit account

Key Features: No monthly cost, 30 days after

employment
-Prescription, Vision, Dental

Ask if candidate has any questions

Reassure candidates that there are no stupid

questions

Disability plans

Short term, Extended and Supplemental, Long-term

1.
2.
3.

Exempt v. non-exempt
Hiring bonus
Annual salary adjustments

38

Paid personal leave

-Work a half day, not considered personal leave

-Increases incrementally with years of service/job
classification

Paid holidays

New Years Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day,

Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after
Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day

Retirement Plan- 401k

-200% match up to 4% of investment

(For every $1 invested, Company puts in $2)

Profit sharing

Redistribute additional gains to employees

-401k match and Profit sharing made up 21% of
salaries in 2014

Bonus Program

Individual based, 4 digits in 1st year

Training programs

Professional Membership/Certification such as the

EIT (Engineer in Training) or PE (Professional
Engineer)

Additional

-Education reimbursement
-529 College Savings Plan
-Employee Assistance Program

r. Appendix R- Cost/Timeline of Recommendation 1: Revamp Benefits

Communication Package

Activity

Time Spent

Estimated Costs

Print Checklist and Adding an

additional box to application
form

.25 hours

$8.75* + .06 (4Copies)= $8.99

*Approx. Generalist Salary ($70,000) / 50 weeks (accounting for
holidays/time off) =
$1400 per week / 40 hrs per week =
$35 per hour / 4 = $8.75 for .25 of an hour

Making a powerpoint/ training 1 hour

materials for training session

$35* + $42.5** = $77.50

Train Recruiters on Making

Offers with New Checklist

1 hour

2($35) + $42.5=$112.50

Additional time needed to

send text/email

.08 hour (5
minutes)

Total:

2.33 hours (2 hours $204.83

and 20 minutes)

*hour of Generalist salary

**Approx. Supervisor salary ($85,000) / 50 weeks =
$1700 per week / 40 hours per week =
$42.5 per hour

*hour of Generalist salary

**Supervisor salary

2($2.92) =$5.84
*Approx. Generalist Salary ($70,000) / 50 weeks (accounting for
holidays/time off) =
$1400 per week / 40 hrs per week =
$35 per hour / 12 = $2.92 for .08 of an hour

39

Task

Duration

Benefit

Cost

Create checklist that will be

used by all recruiters in
company when
communicating benefits

N/A

Ensures that all recruits are

hearing the same
information about the
benefits that will be
available upon acceptance
of job offer

n/a (Appendix Q)

Print checklist

5 minutes

Allows ease of access to

information having a
printed copy of the training
material

Time / Cost of
Generalist salary
& Cost of printing
supplies

Develop training program for

introducing checklist and
texting program to recruiters
(Powerpoint presentation)

1 hour

Assists in a smoother
transfer of information
between creator of
checklist/texting program
and those who will be
putting it to use

Time / Cost of
Generalist salary

Find time in all recruiters

1 week
schedules where they can meet
together to attend training

Reduces time and cost of

training by all recruiters
being present and only one
training session being
conducted

Time spent
scheduling / Cost
of Generalist
salary

Meet with 2 recruiters for

training on use of checklist
and texting program

Ensures that recruiters have

had face-to-face time to
learn new process

Time / Cost of
Generalist and
Recruiter salary

1 hours

s. Appendix S - Caregiver Alternate Schedule Request Form

Request to Be Considered For An Alternate Schedule As A Caregiver
General information
1.
Name:
2.

Office / division:

40

3.

Supervisor:

Schedule information
4. What is driving your decision to pursue an alternate schedule?

5. What is the ideal schedule for your standard hours?

For example: Monday-Wednesday from 8-4 and Thursday from 8-12.

6. Are there specific commitments that must be considered?

For example: Must pick up kids at school each day at 4:30

7. Do you intend for some of your hours to be worked outside of the office? If so, how many and
when?

8. When would you like the alternate schedule to go into effect? How long do you anticipate
requiring this schedule?

9. Is there additional information that should be considered?

t.

Appendix T - Continuing Education Request Form

Requests for Continuing Education

Employee Name: __________________________

Employee ID Number: ___________
Office Location: __________________________
Classification: ________
Supervisor:______________________________

41

Please answer the following questions regarding a reduced/alternate schedule that will allow you to
continue your education.
1. What is the ideal schedule for you while you are taking courses?
For example: Monday-Thursday from 7:30-4 and Friday 7:30-12.

2. Are there specific commitments that must be considered?

For example: Time of courses, exam times

42

3. Do you intend for some of your hours to be worked outside of the office? If so, how
many and when?

4. When would you like the alternate schedule to go into effect? How long do you
anticipate requiring this schedule? (This should align with the course duration)
5. Is there additional information that should be considered?
Thank you for taking the time to fill out this form. Please return it to any member of your regional
HR team. They will review the information you have provided and will schedule meetings with you
and your supervisor to discuss your requests.
u. Appendix U - Cost/Timeline for Recommendation 2-Reduction in Hours

Activity

Time Spent

Estimated Costs

Mass email to all employees

notifying them of education
reimbursement
updates/changes

.25 hours

$8.75*

HR Meeting with Supervisor

1 hour

*Approx. Generalist Salary ($70,000) / 50 weeks (accounting for

holidays/time off) =
$1400 per week / 40 hrs per week =
$35 per hour / 4 = $8.75 for .25 of an hour

$35* + $42.5** = $77.5

*hour of Generalist salary
**Approx. Supervisor salary ($85,000) / 50 weeks =
$1700 per week / 40 hours per week =
$42.5 per hour

HR Meeting with Supervisor

and Employee

1 hour

Education Reimbursement

n/a

$300 per credit cap

For a 3 credit class, $900 max

Cost for an additional hire due

to workload

n/a

$56,000* + recruiting costs

Task
Create email notifying and
educating employees on the
education reimbursement and

$35 + $42.5 + $ 28* = $105.5

*Approx. Entry-level engineer salary ($56,000) / 50 weeks =
$ 1120 per week / 40 hrs per week = $28 per hour

*salary of entry level engineer

Duration
N/A

Benefit
Ensures that all employees
are notified of the change
taking place

Cost
Time / Cost of
Generalist salary

43

alternate schedule updates and

changes
Sending of email

15 minutes All employees will have a

record of this change that
they can print out or save to
their documents

N/A

Create three meeting times

30 minutes
where updates and changes to
education reimbursements and
alternate schedules can be
explained to supervisors.
Require supervisors to attend
one of three meetings

Reduces time and cost of

training by all supervisors
being present at one of only
three training sessions
being conducted

Time / Cost of
Generalist and
Supervisor salary

Actual (3) meetings

conducted with supervisors

3 hours

Ensures that all supervisors

are hearing the same
information about the
changes and will be ready
to answer questions that
may arise from employees
they supervise

Time / Cost of
Generalist and
Supervisor salary

Meet with employees who

may be interested in taking
advantage of new program
along with their supervisor

TBD

Shows encouragement of
participation in updated
program

Time / Cost of
Generalist,
Supervisor, and
Employee salary

44