In the war for talent, companies need every possible edge to attract sought-after job candidates and retain skilled employees. But, not every business is positioned to offer salary increases or four-day workweeks to compete. The good news is they don't have to. In fact, many employees value certain benefits — like mandatory PTO or mental health care coverage — even more than additional money or Fridays off.

That doesn't mean employers and their benefits advisors should just adopt whatever new perks are trending. And, it certainly isn't an argument for dropping or reducing core employee benefits. No, getting the Goldilocks mix of benefits just right can be tricky, and some very promising benefits end up being chronically underused.

Benefits left on the shelf can be a symptom of employees having a lack of sufficient time or access. However, I find that the underuse of voluntary benefits can often be attributed to a lack of strategic alignment: When benefits packages are carefully chosen to support company objectives, propping up the mechanisms for employees to make use of them comes naturally.