Survey: Working for Small Companies Outweighs Less
Waltham, MA, January 30, 2007--Salary.com, a leading provider of on-demand compensation management solutions, today released results of its Working for a Small Business Survey.
The survey revealed several interesting findings, including the fact that 62 percent of small business employees perceive pay to be better at large companies.
Interestingly, only 38 percent of respondents that have worked for both small and large companies said that pay was better at a large company.
Despite the perceived gap in pay, employees listed several non-compensatory factors as reasons they remain at small businesses, including work/life balance (46.2 percent), commute (38.1 percent), loyalty (34.8 percent), their boss (31.4 percent) and relationships with co-workers (29.5 percent). Benefits and opportunities for advancement—in addition to pay—were cited as the advantages of working for large companies.
"While smaller companies may not have the financial resources of their larger counterparts, our research indicates that there are a number of non-compensatory factors through which small companies can compete for talent," said Chris Fusco, vice president of compensation and data operations with Salary.com. "Work/life balance, simpler hierarchies leading to fewer political battles and strong bonds between employer and employee are all important factors in attracting and retaining qualified employees."
"Our compensation data validates that small companies do typically pay less than larger ones," states Jeffrey Blue, director of marketing for Salary.com. "What’s important for small company owners and executives to stress in their recruiting efforts are the numerous advantages of working for a small company. This survey indicates that those advantages have meaningful value to employees."
The survey also revealed that employees' perception of advancement opportunities at large companies may be greater than actually exist. Of the respondents who have only worked for small companies, 75 percent believe they would have greater opportunities for advancement at a large company. However, only 45 percent of those who have worked for both small and large companies felt that their opportunities for advancement were in fact greater at the larger company.
Other Key Survey Findings
Benefits--Survey results show that large companies offer more attractive benefit packages to their employees. Of respondents who have worked for small and large companies, 72 percent stated that their benefits were better with the large company.
Other Attributes--Survey respondents claim that small businesses come out on top when it comes to most non-compensatory factors. Of respondents who had previously worked for a large company:
Politics: 62 percent thought politics were a more common negative influence at larger companies.
Loyalty: 55 percent said that loyalty was less prevalent at larger companies, while only 18 percent claimed it was more prevalent.
Culture: 42 percent felt that the company culture was worse at large companies compared to only 28 percent who thought it was better.
