Written by PrismHR.
Last week in part one of Four Things to Know Before Renewing Your Employee Benefits Plan we relayed that it IS possible to reduce benefits plan costs and support employee health (both physical and mental) when you partner with the right PEO—Aspen HR! Through our partnerships with companies such as PrismHR, we can provide solutions that benefit your company and employees. Here are two more things to know before you renew your employee benefits plan for 2021:
Employee Financial Concerns Are Increasing
While specific financial concerns differ by individual and generation, they impact all employees, their families and their performance at work. Last year, a Forbes article noted that “80% of employers report that financial stress is lowering their employees’ performance level, and it’s costing them half a trillion dollars annually.”
Just like anxiety and depression, these financial concerns are heightened by the economic and personal impacts of COVID-19.
Employers have previously responded to the financial needs of their employees by offering:
- Higher matching for 401(k) programs
- Access to financial wellness assessment tools and customized advice
- Education loan assistance
- Tuition assistance for employees, as well as dependents
- College coaching programs
- Financial debt counseling, as well as coaching and education regarding prevention of financial distress
- More paid time off (PTO); unlimited PTO models
- Employee discounts (gym memberships, movie/theater tickets, travel booking services and mobile coupons)
If you aren’t already offering some of the above, this is an easy way to show your employees you care about their well-being. But you may be asking, what about the cost? This is why it’s critical to find a way to reduce your overall costs so you can either continue offering these benefits or use the money you saved to start offering them.
Technology Leads to Efficiency
The use of technology continues to expand across every facet of our workplace experience, helping boost benefits utilization, track and guide employee development, and facilitate greater collaboration, among other key outcomes. With social distancing still at the forefront, most employers are looking for ways to continue running their business while reducing face-to-face contact when possible. And, if you can simplify benefits enrollment and plan selections via software, even better.
Technology improves the efficiency of how you select and manage your employee benefits plans. As consumerism further permeates work, employees across all generations have increasingly come to expect that the technology and experience they use in the office will mirror the technology they use in their personal lives – with the same level of personalization, rapid response time, and centralized access for managing all aspects of life.
Are you handling benefits enrollment and updates through paper forms? If you use software today, is it cumbersome or outdated? Both of these situations can lead to poor efficiency, errors, and time spent on things that could be spent more productively elsewhere. Not to mention a bad experience for your employees.
Access to modern technologies is now open to both large and small employers. With the introduction of cloud-based technology, SMBs now have the opportunity to utilize many of the same workplace technologies and software options that larger employers use to enhance the employee experience. And if you outsource with a PEO, even the parts that can’t be automated through software are taken off of your plate. In an uncertain economic environment, having that expertise in your corner is invaluable.
Understand what level of automation your current health benefits provider and its supporting technology can supply to your employees. Recognize that offering current technologies across all major functions of your business is critical to the employee experience, and viewed by both prospective and current employees as an integral part of their workplace benefits package.
Reduce Costs and Improve Quality
As fall enrollment approaches it’s important to take a fresh look at how you put your benefits package together. How and where can you reduce costs? How do you maintain or improve the quality of your benefits at the same time?
As mentioned earlier, Professional Employer Organizations are a great option to consider – their buying power provides choices that wouldn’t normally be available to small businesses. If you’re interested in improving your benefits for next year, please reach out!
