easing the complexities of employee benefits · easing the complexities of employee benefits 7...

Easing the Complexities of Employee Benefits

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How Your Organization Can Cut Costs, Empower HR, Improve Employee Engagement & Increase Productivity

Easing The Complexities of Employee Benefits

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Contents

Easing the Complexities of Employee Benefits2

Overview

Cutting Costs with Consolidation

Unleashing the Power of HR

Improving Employee Engagement

Increasing Productivity

Tips for a Cost Effective, Competitive Benefits Program

About BAC

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3Easing the Complexities of Employee Benefits

OVERVIEWTheChallengesofexecutinganeffectiveemployeebenefitsstrategycanbeoverwhelminginanunstableeconomy.Internally,

manyorganizationsarefacedwithcutstobenefitbudgetsaspremiumratescontinuetorise.HRstaffstaskedwithadministering

thesebenefitsareleanerthanever.Meanwhile,itseemslegislationaffectingbenefitsiscontinuallyevolvingmakingcompliance

thatmuchmoredifficult.Itcouldbesaidtheemployeebenefitslandscapeisonefilledwithlandmines.

It’sbusinessasunusual intoday’scomplexanddelicateeconomy.Everyoneisstrivingtodomorewithless.Thismeans

eachfunctionofanorganizationmustbehyper-focusedonsupportingthecorebusiness.Companiesthatwanttoremain

competitiveunderstandtheycannolongerallowthemselvestogetboggeddownwithtransactionaloradministrativeduties

unrelatedtothemission.Allresources– bothhumanandfinancial– mustalignwiththeprimarystrategy.Alldepartments,

includingHumanResources,mustchallengethemselvestoidentifyopportunitiestostreamlineprocessesandreducecosts.

Partneringwithanadministrationand

consultingfirmcanhelpyoudothisandmore.

Astrong,externalpartnercanhelpyour

organizationlowercosts,increaseemployee

engagement,andimproveproductivitywhile

reducingtheadministrativeburdenonyourHR

teamandmanagement.Withallpieces

workingtogethertryingtocreateanefficient

andeffectivestrategyastreamlinedprocessis

rightdowntheroad.

STREAMLINED BENEFIT ADMINISTRATION

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Here is a Small Sample of the Services that Can Be Consolidated

• InvestmentGuidance

• FSA,HRA,&HSAAdministration

• FullServiceCOBRA

• ComplianceGuidance

• HRConsulting

Cutting Costs with Consolidation


Workingwithmultiplevendorstoadministeryouremployeebenefitsisnolongeraneffectivewaytodobusiness.A

single,full-serviceprovidercanhelpyourorganizationreduceoverheadbyofferingacomprehensiveapproach.By

consolidatingandoutsourcingserviceswithasoleprovider,businessescanlowerandsometimeseliminatecostlyfees

associatedwiththeadministrationofbenefits.

Findingaproviderofferingabroadspectrumofserviceseliminatestheneedformultiplevendors;thereby,lowering

overheadandrelatedcosts.BenefitAdministrationCompanyLLC(BAC)doesthisbyofferingablendofstrategic

consultingand administrationservices.

• HealthBenefitsFinancingArrangements

• Full-serviceEnrollment

• ConsolidatedBilling

• CommunicationCampaigns

• RetirementPlanAdministration

Yourcompanywillbenefitimmediatelyfroma

partnershipwithacompanythatcanofferothervalue-

addedservices.Oneequippedtoofferafullsuiteof

customizedbenefitservicesbasedupontheuniqueneeds

andgoalsofyourorganization.

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“Throughthesecoordinatedeffortstoconsolidateandsimplify,yourorganizationwillstreamlineHRprocessesandimproveefficiencies”

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Unleashing the Potential of Human Resources

Traditionally,ithasbeenincumbentontheHR

professionaltodevelopandmanageabenefitpackage

thatbalancestheobjectivesoftheemployerwiththe

desiresoftheemployee.Theendgoalbeingtohelp

attractandretaintalentwithintheorganization’s

financialmeanswhileensuringregulatorycompliance.


Asnotedabove,HRteamsareleanerthantheyhave

everbeen.In-houseaccesstothishighlyspecialized

skillsetisaluxurymostbusinessescannotaffordin

today’scompetitiveclimate.Iftheydo,it’sunlikelythat

theindividualhasthetimetocontinuallymonitor

marketchangeswhilekeepingabreastofchanginglaws

andregulations.

Therefore,businessesareincreasinglyturningto

externalpartnerstohelpaccomplishthisobjective.A

singleprovidercantaketheleadindesigning,

implementing,andadministeringabenefitplanthat

alignswithyourorganization’sstrategy(andbudget).

Throughthesecoordinatedeffortstoconsolidateand

simplify,yourorganizationwillstreamlineHR

processesandimproveefficiencies.Thiswillgreatly

reducethetimespentontransactionaldutiesand

increasetimeformorevalue-added,impactful

projectstobettersupportthecorebusiness.Thiswill

unleashthepotentialofyourHRdepartmentasa

strategicpartner.


Improving Employee Engagement

Withhigherthannormalunemploymentrates,onemightthinkthelabormarketisfilledwithavailabletalent,right?

However,severalstudiesandmediareportssuggestongoingtalentshortages.Itseemstheremaynotbealaborshortage,

butashortageofskilled labor.Accordingtothe9th AnnualStudyofEmployeeBenefitsTrends(MetLife2011),morethanone

inthree(36%)surveyedemployeeshopestobeworkingelsewhereinthenext12months.

Frustrationwithstagnantsalariesandreducedbenefits

appeartobeacouplereasonsemployeesareactivelytesting

thejobmarket.Withoneinthreeemployeesexploring

externalopportunities,thismaybechanging.Despitehigh

unemployment,toptalentremainsinhighdemand.Inthe

wordsofCarlCamden,PresidentandCEOofKellyServices–

“Thewarfortalentisover:Talentwon.”

So,thequestionis,howwillyourcompanyfighttoretainyourbesttalent?Amorerobustcommunicationplanshouldbea

weaponinyourarsenaltobetterengageyourworkforceandpreventmassattrition.Employeeeducationisavitalpartofthe

benefitprocess.Employersshouldlooktodevelopacommunicationstrategythatextendsbeyondnewemployeeorientation

andopenenrollment.Avarietyoftoolscanbeleveragedtoeducateyourworkforceonthevalueofthebenefitspackage.Self-

servicetechnologiesandemployeeself-serviceapplicationsofferenhancedaccessandimprovedunderstandingofthebenefits

availabletothem.

Usingthesetoolsempowersyouremployeessotheycanmakethebestdecisionsforthemselvesandtheirfamilies.Italso

reinforcesthevaluetheiremployerplacesonthem.Improvedbenefitcommunicationgenerallyresultsinincreased

employeesatisfactionwiththebenefitpackageitself.Thiscanthenleadtoincreasedjobsatisfactionandreduced

turnover.Don’tletyourmostvaluedemployeesleaveduetoalackofunderstandingaboutyourbenefitspackage.Usean

enhancedcommunicationstrategytohelpretainyourtoptalent.


Increasing ProductivityWorkplaceproductivityisatermusedtodescribehowmuchisaccomplishedintheworksettingincludinghowefficientlyemployeescompletework.Theoverridingobjectiveofallorganizationsismaximizingtheoutput

ofitsemployeesinanefforttomaximizeprofits.

Manyfactorsimpactproductivity.Somearecontrolledbytheemployerandcaninclude:processdesign,tools,training,andguidanceorinstruction(leadership).Flawsorweaknessesinanyoftheseareascannegatively

impactproductivity.

Forexample,non-valueaddedstepsinaprocessresultinwastedmotion,whichlowersproductivity.Insufficienttoolsandmaterialscanslowtheexecutionofjobdutiesordecreasequality;therebyrequiring

rework.Thequalityandproductivityofpoorlytrainedemployeesislessthanthoseoftheirproperlytrainedcolleagues.Inadequateguidanceorinstructionfrommanagementcanproduceconfusedandfrustratedworkers.

Thisfragmentedapproachoftentimesincludestoolsandmaterialsscatteredacrossmultiplevendorplatforms.Subsequently,trainingandguidanceregardingoptionsiscomplicatedandtheindividual’sabilitytorecognizeand

maximizethevalueofthebenefitpackageiscompromised.

Lackofacomprehensive,singleresourceforbenefitsadministrationcanconfusebothemployeesandHRstaff,astheystruggletonavigatetheprocesstogether.Withtheuseoftechnologicaltoolsandimprovedcommunication,

organizationscansimplifyandstreamlinethebenefitsprocessforHRstaffandemployeesalike.

Withconsolidation,youremployeesbecomebettereducatedabouttheiroptionsandmoreconfidentinmakingtheirselections.ThisimprovededucationreducestimespentengagingtheHRstaffwithquestions.TheHRstaffin

turnfieldsfewerquestionsandspendslesstimeonadministrativeduties.ThisapproachbettersupportsemployeesandHRalike- allowingthemtofocusonperformingdutiesbetteralignedwiththecorebusiness.Theendresultisamoreproductiveandengagedworkforce.

Creatingaclear,simplifiedprocessforenrollmentbecomesincreasinglydifficultwhenworkingwithmultiplevendors.

Thisconfusioncreatesuncertaintyandhesitationaboutthebestwaytoperformtheirduties.Youguessedit,thistoolowersproductivity.

Acompanyusing5or6vendorstoadministerbenefitsmaybeexacerbatingsomeofthesethreatstoproductivity.


Tips for a Cost- Effective, Competitive Benefits Program

Thefollowingtipscanhelpyourorganizationdesign,implement,andmanageacost-effective,comprehensivebenefits

programthatfitswithinyourorganization’sbudget.

1.ConsolidateVendors

Choosingoneproviderwillhelpyourcompanystreamlineitsprocesses.Thiswillhelplowercosts,reduceconfusionamong

employees,andlimitoversightrequiredbyHR.

2.SelectaStrategicBusinessPartner

Benefitsshouldbeviewedasastrategicinitiativethatsupportsbusinessobjectives.Afull-serviceprovidershouldoffer

planningservicesincludingtheongoingevaluationofallyourplan’scharacteristics- suchasaccess,service,andprice– to

ensureaproperbalanceisachieved.Strategicplanningalsoshieldsyourplanfrombecomingobsoleteasnewtrendsand

marketfactorsemerge.

3.CustomizeAdministration

Thebenefitspackageshouldbedesignedwithyourorganization’smission,values,andcultureinmind.Administration

shouldthenbecustomizedandintegratedwithinyourexistingprocesses.Auser-friendlyon-linemanagementsystem

withacustomizableplatformwillensureallemployee-relateddataisproperlyhoused.

4.DevelopaRobustCommunicationPlan

Employeeeducationisavitalpartofthebenefitprocess.Withthatsaid,itisaprocessthatmustextendbeyondnew

employeeorientationandopenenrollment.Communicationshouldbeongoingtoregularlyremindemployeesaboutthe

valueoftheirbenefits.

Considerusingbothhigh-techand“low-tech”methodstoeducateyourworkforce.Communicationoptionsmayinclude:

periodicemployeemeetings;onlineandtelephoneaccountaccess;intranetresources;atoll-freehotline;totalrewards

statements;brochuremailings;power-pointpresentationsandmulti-mediacampaignsincludingvideo.


About Benefit Administration Company, LLC

TimHill,Founder&ManagingPrincipal

Establishedin1980,BenefitAdministrationCompany(BAC)isaSeattle-basedemployee

benefitsadministrationandconsultingfirmservingover600clientrelationshipsthroughoutthe

WestCoast.WithourcomprehensiveapproachtoBenefitsManagementandConsultingweare

abletotailorourservicestofitclients’specificneeds.

BAChasbeenprovidingplansponsorswithadministrativeandconsultingservicesformore

than30years.Workingincooperationwithourclient’shumanresourceprofessionalsand

professionaladvisors,weproactivelyparticipateinthedesign,implementation,and

managementofinnovativeclient-focusedbenefitsolutions.

BACpridesitselfonprovidinginnovativeemployeebenefitsolutionstoitsclients.Weofferafullcomplementofweb-based

applicationsandtoolswhichcanbeusedtoautomatethedeliveryofemployer-sponsoredbenefits.Ourexperienceand

dedicationtocustomercareallowsBACtoofferatrulyuniqueperspectiveinthedevelopmentofacomprehensivebenefits

plan.

Formoreresourcestohelpyouimproveemployeecommunicationandcustomizeadministration,visitourwebsiteat

www.baclink.com ortospeakwithoneofourexperiencedconsultantsregardingconsolidationpleasecall 800.967.3709or

206.625.1800.

easing the complexities of employee benefits · easing the complexities of employee benefits 7...

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