If you had to put a price tag on your top sales executive, how much would they be worth? What about the web developer you struck gold with? Or, your all-star digital marketer? As the Harvard Business Review notes, a high performer is estimated to have a 400% higher productivity level than the average performer. Given the world of difference between quality talent and the rest of the workforce, employers that house an army of top performers will outdo competitors, enjoy elevated levels of human capital productivity, and see their revenue trending upward. 

So, how do you attract top talent and raise the skill level of your employees? Because, let’s face it: top performers aren’t just going to inundate your ATS with applications. What you need is a robust people strategy, an innovative and well-structured recruiting program, and a strong value proposition and employer brand. Here’s how.

Generation Z is the first generation that can barely remember a time before smartphones and the internet. They hold many qualities in common with millennials, but have been greatly influenced by coming of age during the Great Recession. Understanding how these factors make them unique is the first step to understanding how they will change the workplace.

Imagine you have 19 kids. (This is just an exercise) (unless you actually do have 19 kids, and my hat goes off to you). Now one of them is allergic to strawberries. Another one absolutely hates turkey sandwiches. The youngest has speech therapy in the morning, and that afternoon, your eldest is in a piano recital.

That’s just 4 out of 19, and you’re already feeling frazzled, aren’t you? 

Now imagine those 19 kids are in reality the 19 countries where your company recruits, and you are the one in charge of creating your global recruitment strategy.

By now, almost everyone has heard that Amazon has backed out of moving one of its two new headquarters to Long Island City, NY. The reason? NYC and Amazon just couldn’t agree on things, and negotiations came to a standstill. And, while there’s much debate over who was right and who was wrong, there are a few lessons employers can take away from the situation to ensure good talent doesn’t slip away, much like Amazon slipped away from NYC.

Monday mornings are hard enough, but factor in a night of indulging, watching football (and commercials) and you have a recipe for disaster.

With Super Bowl Sunday on the horizon, employers around the country should be bracing themselves for a bombardment of calls from employees calling in sick Monday morning because according to a survey conducted by The Workforce Institute at Kronos Incorporated and conducted by The Harris Poll 17.2 million employees plan to do just that. 

What’s great about the Super Bowl is that people host parties specifically for this game—even if their team isn’t playing and even if they don’t care about football—it’s amazing! But as a result many overindulge and neglect their responsibilities the next day, i.e. work.

The new year is starting out with some headlines that undoubtedly have employers on edge. Half of DC-area Workers Would Jump Ship for Amazon, Why More Employers May Be Checking in With Talent Every Day, or even Employee Experience Rarely Exceed Expectations, Study Says. All of these headlines point to one thing: in order to retain your top talent and keep them happy, you’re going to have to pay attention to employee engagement.

In years past, workplace wellness programs meant discounted gym memberships and awkward office-wide weight loss competitions. And while we love a good discount, across the board, corporate wellness is diversifying and modernizing for the better. From a focus on meditation and mindfulness to personalized, data-driven wellness plans, what we’re seeing from employers across the country is a holistic, modern approach to wellness in the workplace.

So, employers, here’s what you need to know to bring your corporate wellness program out of the Stone Age and into 2019.