Why you should consider outsourcing employee benefits administration

No matter how small or large your organization is, supplying benefits to your employees is a sizeable undertaking. While offering benefits as part of your compensation package is a fantastic way to improve employee retention and set yourself apart from competitors, implementing these programs can take time away from other essential human resources tasks. Here’s why you should consider outsourcing employee benefits administration.

Choose benefits far in advance

The time-consuming work of organizing annual benefits offerings typically falls on your HR team, which also juggles dozens of essential business responsibilities. This makes staying on track with benefits rollouts feel stressful.

When outsourcing this function, much of the research and organizing work is off of HR’s plate, and you can reallocate time to focus on other core activities. As benefits season rolls around, you can then choose your organization’s offerings far in advance and get a head start on the employee benefits selection process.

Help determine real employee needs

Choosing benefits isn’t just a matter of covering all your bases – it’s about offering meaningful selections based on real employee needs. Look for an outsourcing company that can help you survey the employee benefits experience, offering meaningful insights like enrollment trend forecasting and decision support. By implementing feedback loops, your HR department can excel in delivering high-value benefits that matter most to your people and address different employee situations.

Keep an eye on compliance

When you choose a benefits outsourcing partner that’s an expert in their field, you can expect them to do their compliance homework. Their compliance staff can help support protection from liability, giving your organization an extra line of defense against potential lawsuits or fines. A compliance-focused intermediary can also give you peace of mind as you entrust regulatory research to an expert.

Increase your HR team’s efficiency

Your busy HR team doesn’t have to feel overwhelmed by benefits administration. Taking benefits out-of-house frees up time for HR staff to complete other tasks that would otherwise be delayed by benefits administration deadlines. In turn, your HR team is less likely to be overworked, improving employee experience and retention.

The improved efficiency of HR work in other key areas can also result in lower costs, including salaries for in-house staff and other projects and situations across the organization. For example, if you are involved in conflict mediation between a manager and employee, you can devote more attention to resolving productivity-impeding friction instead of researching benefits packages.

Create accessible benefits rollouts and selections

The right outsourcing partner can help maximize efficiency by giving you access to benefits software that handles everything from selection rollouts to data analytics to COBRA management. Look for an outsourcing partner than can offer a single system where all your benefits management information is in one place. That way, benefit selections are visible and quick to find, whether you’re onboarding a crew of new hires, managing a company-wide enrollment period, or sunsetting an offboarded employee with a COBRA package.

For general employees, a well-equipped outsourcing partner will have software that can help simplify the highly detailed nature of benefits selection. Eligible employees can learn about upcoming enrollment periods and make mobile benefits selections via a self-service platform managed by the outsourcing business partner. This self-service option drastically reduces the burden on you as the in-house HR team, creating a smooth benefits experience for all involved.

Outsourcing employee benefits administration and other organizational functions can benefit human resources managers and employees alike. As your election season comes around, consider how you can revamp your current system and set your benefits rollout up for success.