Businesses today are returning to common stock options as a hiring incentive. If you’re like most businesses today, one of your main challenges is to attract and keep a competent workforce. A vital part of any benefits package remains stock compensation. It motivates employees to perform their best since they stand to benefit along with the company’s success.

Not only are business owners offer comprehensive common stock options programs, they are also making sure they supply their employees with the resources to understand how these programs help them and the company. Since you can’t expect that most of the employees you hire will understand stock basics, those resources involve expert advice, available consulting services and specific common stock options training so that all employees feel empowered in making investment decisions. As you contemplate whether or not to offer common stock options in your benefits package, consider the resources available to you.

1. Help your employees get the common stock options advice they need to make informed decisions about their investment portfolios.

2. Acquire basic investment knowledge from a common stock options consultant.

3. Develop a common stock options training program to provide employees with the most comprehensive information available.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Provide common stock options advice to employees as part of their employment benefits package

Presenting the full picture on common stock options to potential and current employees requires that you understand the common stock options choices available to them and which ones present the greatest financial opportunities.

I recommend: Fidelity Investments and myStockPlan.com provide common stock options advice to companies that try to assist employees with stock compensation. MyStockPlan.com shows how you can protect employees from making common tax mistakes. Fidelity Investments’ website explains how to manage stock opportunities and help your employees build their individual investment portfolios.

Contact a firm that offers common stock options consulting to businesses

Your human resources personnel will need to understand basic investment principles so they can provide common stock options information to your employees.

I recommend: NCEO provides stock option consulting services to its members. These services include free advice and a visit to your business by an NCEO representative who will speak to your employees. Mercer has provided businesses with superior advice regarding common stock options and other investments. Contact one of Mercer’s more than 600 trained consultants who can help your employees meet their investment objectives.

Start a common stock options training program for all employees to attend

Training programs in common stock options can start by explaining fundamental investment principles and then move on to detailed coverage of more involved issues. It helps you empower your employees to make better investment decisions.

I recommend: Inc.com provides free online training in common stock options for employees. Accessing any of the articles relating to employee ownership and stock options will help you design a comprehensive training program. Contact Business Training Media to purchase videos that will train your employees to understand how common stock options work.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Training programs to help with common stock options work best when they are divided into short sessions with each one focusing on a particular aspect of stock investment.