October 1, 2018
By Treg Balding
Open enrollment is
an important time of the year for employees to think about their own benefit
needs and financial security. However, Guardian's Workplace Benefits Study
showed that 89 percent of employees say that benefits are very important to
them, but only 49 percent clearly understand their benefits. This can lead to
employees not taking advantage of open enrollment and a missed opportunity for
employers.
With employees now
looking to the workplace for more protection products, the role of the
broker/consultant and carrier is more valuable than ever before. We are already
seeing this in the marketplace with brokers asking carriers for more help to be
able to guide their clients through the enrollment process. Not surprisingly, a
LIMRA study showed that brokers believe employers now want more help
communicating their benefit plans to their employees than they did three years
ago.
Setting Up A Client
For Open Enrollment Success
The name of the
game is becoming more and more about simplification, personalization, and
technology. To help guide your clients, we offer the following tips:
- Identify
what has changed and what is new: It’s customary for employers to
communicate what’s changed in an employee benefits package. Carriers are
continually evaluating their products and making enhancements to benefit
employers and employees. In addition, mergers or price changes can also be
a reason why employees need to be made aware that their plan has changed.
This, coupled with more employers adding voluntary benefits to their
overall portfolio, make it incredibly important for employers to educate
their workforce about what’s changed, what’s new and what it means to
them.
- Help
create a benefit communications plan: Employees want options, but they can
feel overwhelmed by their benefit choices and unsure how to make the best
decisions. It’s also likely that clients understand the importance of
communicating during open enrollment, but they need you, as a benefits
advisor, to fully execute on the right plan. A successful enrollment
process starts with one simple notion – it’s about the people. Every
company and its employees have their own unique financial needs and
challenges. The right communications plan ensures employees have the
information they need to make the right benefit choices and update those
benefits as their lives change. This can be done by implementing a
multi-channel approach such as a customized multi-media communications
plan or access to benefits counselors.
- Personalized
enrollment: The customer experience has changed forever with customers
expecting a level of personalization in every transaction they have. This
is also resonating in the workplace with employers looking to enhance the
overall employee experience by looking at ways to boost engagement.
Nowhere is this more relevant than personalizing enrollment and
demonstrating to employees that their employer understands their needs. To
do this, brokers/consultants should work with their clients to use data
and focus groups to gain a better understanding of employee demographics,
life stages, lifestyle preferences and personalizing enrollment in a way
that is meaningful to the workforce.
- Educate
clients on mobile enrollment options: The Guardian Workplace Benefits Study revealed
that 3 in 5 millennials wish it were easier to learn about and access
workplace benefits. With employees being more mobile and tech-savvy, they
are seeking a better end-to-end user experience beginning with benefits
education to enrolling. Take into consideration that millennials now
comprise more than half of the U.S. labor force, and this year, a new
generation - Generation Z - is entering the workforce. This new generation
has grown up in a digital world, so they want an employee benefits
experience that is seamless, 100 percent digital, with an app that allows
for customization, and all the information they need at their fingertips.
Our study showed that more and more employers are upgrading their benefits
delivery model with new human resources technology platforms and reaping
its rewards, especially when it comes to enrollment.
- Simplification: Historically, employee
benefits haven’t been perceived as “simple and easy to understand.”
However, with employers shifting the costs to employees and the
array of available products employees can choose from, simplifying the
open enrollment process is critical. As a result, what we say and how we
say it is also important. Developing customizable materials that are
simple and conversational will be appreciated by employees. This means
avoiding insurance jargon and presenting employee benefits in a way that
employees can understand how the product works and how it will provide
them with the financial protection they may need.
It’s no secret that
a tight labor market exists these days due to the low unemployment rate. As
employers look to recruit and retain talent, maximizing open enrollment is a
solid strategy to demonstrate to employees why they should be perceived as an
employer of choice.
Treg Balding is vice president,
group and worksite markets distribution, Guardian Life. Treg may be contacted
attreg.balding@innfeedback.com.
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