The best teacher often is experience, and we’re fortunate this month that one of our columnists shares her own company’s experience of creating a “state-of-the-art” human resources program that has become a “win/ win” for all involved.

As Carolyn J. D’Anna, a partner and HR managing director for J.H. Cohn LLP, explains, it’s about “both fostering employee career advancement and supporting the firm’s business strategy.”

One interesting thing D’Anna learned is that although traditional benefits such as healthcare coverage are of course important, “employees most value those benefits that promote work/life balance.” Flexible work arrangements, she notes, are very popular. “Not every job will lend itself to this particular arrangement, of course, but if you take the time to work with your employees to meet their needs on an individual basis – while taking the firm’s requirements into careful consideration – it can be a win/win for both parties,” she writes.

Another one of our contributors, Mark Brenner, concurs that “wages, benefits and job security are well down on employees’ list [of priorities.]” Instead, the chairman of the Global Consulting Partnership says surveys have shown that people more highly value recognition of their hard work and being given opportunities to excel professionally.

Citing a five-year study of 160 companies, Brenner argues that translating these employee expectations into business success is not “airy-fairy theoretical stuff.” On the contrary, it’s often a matter of common-sense management techniques, such as making sure to “reward achievement ... but keep raising the performance bar,” and “establish and abide by clear company values.”

When it comes to building an engaged work force, business leaders are fortunate because their “target audience” is just down the hall. “Never stop learning from your employees,” D’Anna advises. USBR