How do you retain key staff in times of economic turmoil?

The answer may come to companies participating in a survey on remuneration packages of international firms based in Bermuda.

Helen Crofts at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), the world's largest professional services company, is launching the Bermuda International Business Compensation Survey for the 11th year running.

The Survey is the only one of its kind in Bermuda. It is aimed at international businesses in Bermuda and will provide key information on how to retain the right staff in challenging times.

Ms Crofts said: "Companies today face the challenge of retaining the right people. Lay-offs can cause panic which could lead to employers inadvertently loosing the people they want to keep. Lay-offs can also lead to an increased work load for the remaining staff.

"It is therefore important to find creative solutions to retain key employees. One such solution is retained bonuses where bonuses earned in current years will be payed out in the future when the company can afford to do so."

Companies pay a fee to participate in the Survey and provide data about their compensation packages as well as various other information.

The Survey gathers information on compensation for various benchmark positions and includes data on salaries and bonuses as well as other benefits, such as housing and other allowances, pensions and medical insurances.

The Survey, which represented more than 4,000 employees last year, also provides information on demographics of the staff, such as age, gender and nationality.

Ms Crofts said: "It includes any information required to set up a rewards package and will help to retain talent."

In return for participating in the Survey the companies receive a copy of the report which will be available in September.

Ms Crofts explained: "Due to confidentiality issues the Survey can not be obtained by companies not participating. But limited information may be shared with our clients."

Ms Crofts is hoping that the difficult business climate will result in an increased interest in participating in the Survey.

New questions have been added to the questionnaire this year to find out how companies are dealing with the current financial situation, for example if there are any planned recruitment freezes or redundancies.

There are also new questions on creative solutions used to avoid making redundancies; such as reduced working hours, flexible working hours and job sharing.

Another reason for participating is a new ruling for companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange which requires SEC proxy statements for remuneration of top executives. "The survey will be useful for companies to back their remuneration figures in those reports," Ms Crofts said.

"There is a lot of hearsay about the situation in Bermuda. This years Survey will provide some hard data on the current recruitment situation. It will also provide PriceWaterhouseCoopers with useful information which can be used for serving clients.

"In the current economic climate it is essential to retain the right staff, therefore offering the right kind of reward package is more important than ever."

Helen Crofts, who joined PWC in November 2008, initially worked as an actuary which has proven useful in compiling the data for the Survey. "I love spread sheets and enjoy working with them," she confessed. "They are easy to manipulate so I can slice and dice the data for clients who want more specific information than the Compensation Survey provides. I can taylor make the surveys so that they do not include confidential information."

Companies wishing to participate in the Survey must signed up by May 15. Helen Crofts can be contacted on: helen.crofts@bm.pwc.com">helen.crofts@bm.pwc.com or by phone on 299-7124