Seems like we just wrapped up 2011 benefits enrollment and it's time to start thinking about 2012 enrollment again. I've resolved to try and make it as easy as possible for clients this year with the following checklist:

1. It's never too early to start planning the communication - if you wait to put the last nail into the plan design changes for 2012, you typically won't have enough time to do it right.
2. Starting early can also save you  money. We invested in some new tools to make it easier and more affordable to get better with your benefits communication.
   • First, we have an external website you can borrow during annual enrollment as a learning portal to post changes, directions, recommendations employee "likes" (i.e., thumbs up), a chat feature to a service center or email from the site. It's a great way to get interactive without going on the road tour. Two of the best things about this site: 1) it's already designed, we just have to add your logo, some language changes and post your documents 2) it's on an outside server, password protected, meaning employees and spouses can reach it from home computers and you don't need to use your IT folks.
   • Second, we have invested in Brainshark technology to create eLearning tools - basically they are animated, narrated PowerPoint presentations you can post on your intranet or on our learning portal and employees and spouses can learn about their benefits and you can reach the spouse with your consumerism or wellness messages - it's great for enrollment, but also can be used with new hires/propective employees, wellness and training HR reps. We have a couple of templates to use (one for benefits enrollment, and two for HR rep training, HIPAA and Absence Management - check them out at www.grohcomm.com).

That's all, just two simple points to make about 2012 benefits enrollment. You already know it will be complicated by Health Care Reform and employee concerns about their health benefits. But, anytime there's controversy about benefits, it's a learning opportunity for you because people will be paying more attention to what you say.

Enjoy the warmer weather and let me know if this helps...Ken

Plan Sponsor magazine reported on a survey by the National Business Group on Health, in which about 300 US employers and 1,500 employees participated. The bottomline is that mail and email are still preferred vehicles for benefits communication. But...I'm seeing some interesting trends:

1. 47% obtain benefits information from their company's Web site. I think this is likely trending as not all employers have benefits information on Web sites. Also, it's not easy for spouses to get to the benefits Web-posted info if it's on an Intranet. Hence, the preference for mailing and why 82% of the employers are still mailing.
2. "Younger and high-income employees have more interest in receiving health benefits information via social media than older and lower-income workers." Keep in mind that the newest generation entering the workforce (born between 1980 and 2000) is larger than the baby boom generation and that the newer generation grew up with social media tools.
3. Also, note the interest by the responding employees in learning how to save money on health care.  

July 5, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - While many U.S. employees use social media for personal reasons, the majority have not yet jumped onto the social media bandwagon for business use, nor are they interested in receiving information about their health benefits through social media, according to a new survey. In looking at the survey results summary below, I think the 47% who use websites is a trending number and also reflects the number of employees who have access to an employer’s website with benefits information.

Here's the link to the article. http://plansponsor.com/print.aspx?id=6442472800

"By the Numbers," produced by Employee Benefits News, says something that I have focused on for years. Creating an ongoing benefits education program to teach employees how to use their benefits. A side reward for this approach: Higher Job Satisfaction. What company doesn't want higher job satisfaction at a time when morale is puddling at its lowest point? Here's the meat of the article with the links.

During a year when nearly half (45%) of employees experienced a change in their benefits, education about those benefits dropped off just when it was most needed, according to a study by Harris Interactive conducted for Unum.

The online survey of 1,106 working adults shows that across every age group last year, fewer employees said they had received effective education about their benefits than in 2008. In 2008, 39% of workers gave their benefits education positive ratings. In 2009, that number dropped to 29%.

As the perception of the quality of their benefits education declined, employees also reported lower ratings of their employers as a place to work and lower opinions of their benefit packages.

Even if employees don’t have a particularly good benefit package, effective benefits education makes them dramatically more likely to consider their employer a very good place to work, the survey found.

“Our research reveals a strong connection between the quality of benefits education and employees’ perception of their workplace,” said Bill Dalicandro, vice president for enrollment with Unum. “Quality benefits education can be a low-cost, high-impact way to affect worker satisfaction.”

In the survey, 45% of employees reported they had seen changes in their benefits packages in 2009, including 31% who said they are paying more for benefits and 9% who reported that at least one benefit was discontinued.

When asked to list their three most important benefits objectives,

• 53% of employers reported controlling heath and welfare benefits costs,
• 47% said retaining employees,
• 42% cited increasing employee productivity, according to MetLife's Eighth Annuual Benefits Trend Study.

According to MetLife, this is the first time in three years that employers have placed cost ahead of retention when it comes to their objectives for benefits management. Health Reform is raising awarness about health benefits with the result employees may be more concerned about their health benefits than they have for some time. You can expect them to be looking to their HR and benefits administrators to help them understand what is ahead.

Employee Benefits News' latest issue focuses on this topic and offers some ideas for creating and implementing a communication strategy to help employees understand their benefits and the potential changes that Health Reform may bring. Here's the link to the article:

http://ebn.benefitnews.com/news/using-health-care-reform-as-a-strategic-oppor...:e759:2131100a:&st=email&utm_source=editorial&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=EBN_inBrief_062210

Some of our clients have asked us to survey employers to see what they are telling employees about Health Reform and how they are communicating it. Our preliminary findings suggest that not enough is being said to employees on how their plan may be affected by Health Reform to ease their concerns. Use this link to participate in the survey and we'll not only share results with you, but we'll provide some additional context to help you prepare your benefits messages on health benefits as we move into annual benefits enrollment.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/healthreformcommunication

[Welcome! There's a call for your action below, but first I want to explain what motivated me to take this step.]

I started thinking about 2011 annual enrollments. It seems like we just finished up 2010. My thoughts turned to the increased use of online enrollers and Intranets for benefits information and how these e-tools are replacing the big white benefits enrollment envelope. I talked with several benefits administrators and directors about online enrollments. Reaching employees who don't have computers at work is still a concern for online education, pre-enrollment. So the big white enveloped mailed to homes is still a popular solution for reaching spouses. But it is diminishing. There are other solutions.

I recently completed an online enrollment for a company operating retail outlets nationwide with 4,000 employees, a few in each store. Young work force, high turnover and problems with returned mail. The Director of Benefits gave up on mailing and posted everything online this year (benefits year begins July 1). It can work with the young workforce that has access to work computers. These computers are linked to a central server, so Intranet access and emailing information are not a major problem, at least for employees and during work hours. Were that true for more retailers, restaurants, property managers and others with a geographically dispersed workforce, the challenge of reaching employees with online learning would be easier to address.

There's still the question of reaching the spouse. They can't crack the company Intranet without special log-ons and they can't get the benefits information at employee meetings. Some employers have temporary sites for annual enrollment containing and online enroller and limited information. But that doesn't help with other benefits information that needs to reach spouses. For example, if we want employees to reach wellness tools, benefits and resources, then we need the support of the spouse. I worked with a manufacturer for four years producing a series of wellness newsletters mailed to homes promoting wellness tools and incentives for health risk assessments and bio-screening. Getting this workforce, mainly males manufacturing construction equipment, was a challenge. After three years of relentless wellness promotion, we surveyed employees and spouses and were pleasantly surprised to learn that the spouses, not the employees were driving wellness behaviors. Many had embraced the concept, used the resources and changed diets or engaged in fitness programs that had a direct impact on plan participants' health. In this situation, reaching the spouse was critical to program success with employees. We followed up with a dedicated benefits Web site outside the firewall and last year posted podcasts on it for self-learning and for local HR to access for group meetings.

My point is, we can reach spouses online, if we put the information outside the firewall on a benefits learning center. It's open 24/7 and secure. It can link to other information and even an online enroller for ongoing benefit changes. In the age of e-learning, we can add short podcasts and e-learning tools that create just-in-time learning opportunities for employees and families. The focus is on getting information to families when they need it (called "just-in-time learning"). A four-minute podcast on "How Much Life Insurance" should I have could help encourage employees and spouses to buy more voluntary life insurance, for example. That's a different approach to benefits learning, but one that better fits employees' needs.

The Proof Is in the Data

Since I'm a bit of a data freak and had all those years of conducting surveys, I can't help myself. I need to ask a few questions and collect a little data on where online learning in benefits is going. So I set up a pulse poll on survey monkey. It's 13 brief questions....go to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/online_benefits_survey and complete the survey. We'll get the results to you.

Ken Groh

kgroh@grohcomm.com

We are experienced communication professionals with the tools, the resources, the commitment and the right pricing to create and implement your HR communication strategies.

What we do
Our services are available to HR professionals and the carriers, plan administrators, brokers and service providers who need to promote and connect programs to employees and spouses.

• Health and wellness benefits
• Retirement plans
• Benefits enrollment
• Benefits consolidation
• Compensation programs

New Tools and Resources for HR Communication

Groh & Associates specializes in:

• Employee surveys and focus groups
• Integrating print, video, e-learning and social media
• Branding and graphic design
• Web site and extranet design and content management
• Online enrollment
• New hire and orientation materials
• Employee meeting materials, HR training and meeting facilitation
• Personalized print, including benefit statements
• Production coordination and fulfillment