A Company is a Living Organism: Don’t Be Afraid to Let Go of What Doesn’t Work in Employee Care

Every company should develop its own approach to employee care based on its resources, company culture, and expectations. Beyond salary, benefits, a pleasant work environment, and even small gestures can determine whether candidates choose your company over a competitor.

Join Petra Smetáková, Head of People and Culture at Alma Career Central, as she shares what has worked for us—you might just find some inspiration.

Think about how you invite friends over—likely for a BBQ rather than yard work. The same principle applies at work! Food can be a great way to bring people together for community-building events. Employees chat, take a break, and share a laugh.

Tips from Alma Career: Working with a small budget? Even refreshing candies, ice cream in the freezer during summer, or seasonal fruit and vitamins in the fall can bring joy. Celebrate fun food-related days like International Watermelon Day, Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, or Pie Day.

What excites you most when returning to a familiar hotel or guesthouse? New features! Fresh bedding, a new sauna, or a playground for kids. Employees also appreciate small surprises—it doesn’t have to be anything grand.

A big team-building event once a year is great, but if your budget isn’t unlimited, small, regular gestures every two weeks can be more sustainable.

What we’ve learned at Alma Career: Caring means thinking about your people and making them happy. A good mood leads to better work.

Do you want to offer the same perks as everyone else, or stand out? Benefits should align with your company’s philosophy. Not every employee will use every benefit, and that’s okay! Younger employees value well-being perks and social team-building activities. Employees in their 30s often appreciate income security benefits. Health benefits become more attractive as employees start experiencing minor health concerns.

How we handle it at Alma Career: We curate a high-quality, unique benefits package rather than offering a long list of generic perks. Think of it as a Michelin-starred menu—fewer items, but premium quality. Some of our benefits include unlimited "happy days" (extra personal days off), additional vacation time, substituting weekend public holidays with a day off on Friday, financial support for long-term illness, etc.

Investing in employee health pays off. What’s needed in a manufacturing company may differ from what works in IT, where people sit all day. Start with health initiatives that benefit everyone, like first-aid training, skin cancer screenings, or eye check-ups. Preventative care can save lives.

Tip from Alma Career: Offer health initiatives in different formats. Some employees prefer reading an informational leaflet, others might attend a workshop. Some would rather consult a specialist or get a check-up.

If you have teams in different cities their needs will vary. Some might struggle to find snacks, while others have plenty of food options nearby. What’s the right solution? Buy snacks for all offices? Install vending machines everywhere? Tailor solutions to each location’s needs?

What we did at Alma Career Central: In Prague, where there were many employees but few nearby stores, we provided a fridge stocked with fresh meals. In Bratislava, employees didn’t need it—they had a canteen in their building. Instead, we supplied them with muesli bars. In Brno and Ostrava, where we have fewer employees, we gave them budgets to order food as needed.

Employee needs evolve, and benefits should too. If employee children grow up, you might no longer need a daycare benefit. If nobody is using a MultiSport card, why keep it?

How we handle it at Alma Career: We initially focused on helping parents returning from parental leave. Now, most employees have school-age children or teenagers, and the hot topics are screen time, school admissions, and teenage behavior. To support them, we offer online psychological counseling for parents.

Employees appreciate financial perks—either through extra cash or cost-saving opportunities. Arrange discounts for them with mobile providers, car dealerships, leasing companies, or grocery delivery services.

A special initiative at Alma Career: Sad things happen too. In the central region, we provide one-time financial assistance to families in case of an employee’s passing. This prevents financial distress, like struggling to pay a mortgage. Employees have even used this program to lower their life insurance costs—our support bridges any coverage gaps.

Involving families in company life boosts culture, employer reputation, and employee satisfaction. It also helps when overtime is needed—families are more understanding when they feel connected to the workplace.

What we do at Alma Career: Employees can bring their kids to work during the summer. We provide fast-track access to psychologists when needed. We organize family-friendly events.