Attract & Retain: Building a Benefits Plan that Drives Results

When it comes to attracting and retaining top talent, offering a robust benefits package is key. However, the rise of voluntary benefits to supplement mainstays like health insurance, 401(k) and leave benefits has flooded the market with hundreds of options for employers to consider, making building an effective, targeted benefits plan a daunting task.

To effectively navigate an expansive network of benefits, employers should focus on making selections that align with employee needs, organizational goals and budgetary requirements. Read on to discover strategies employers can leverage to create a cost-effective, comprehensive benefits plan.

Assess Employee Needs

Before diving into the process of optimizing your benefits strategy, connect with your benefits broker to gain an in-depth understanding of your available benefit options. Once these initial conversations have been had, employers should then thoroughly assess their workforce’s needs and preferences to determine which benefits selections may be the right fit. This can be done through:

• Employee surveys: Solicit input from employees about the benefits they value most, their pain points and any other concerns. With so many options available, a good place to start is to find out which benefits your workforce is most interested in and finds the most value in.
• Demographic analysis: It’s crucial to customize benefits to employees’ life stages, including age, family status and career stages. For instance, older workforces may be most interested in retirement benefits and caregiving benefits, while younger workers may gravitate toward student loan repayment programs, ongoing training opportunities and employee assistance programs.
• Benchmarking: While data specific to your organization can best outline what employees need and value in benefits, it can also be helpful to compare your offerings with industry standards to ensure competitiveness.

Determine Benefits Priorities

With a clearer understanding of your employees’ needs, you can now prioritize benefits that will have the most significant impact. Consider the following as you identify your benefits priorities.

Focus on core benefits.

Health insurance, retirement benefits and paid time off are standard offerings, but organizations should review ways to make them valuable and competitive.

Incorporate flexibility.

Employers may design different types of health plan options to resonate with different employee groups. Voluntary benefits can also allow employees the flexibility to design a benefits package that meets their unique needs.

Monitor the market.

Market trends can also help drive employers’ benefits decision-making. For example, financial wellness support is in demand as many Americans grapple with inflation and elevated interest rates. Additionally, more employers are offering family-building benefits (e.g., parental and adoption leave, childcare subsidies, surrogacy benefits, family planning assistance and menopause support) as they have proven to be highly valued among employees looking to start or build their families.

Make Benefits Selections

Once your benefits priorities are determined, you’re ready to actually make your benefits selections. Employers should keep the following in mind through the selection process:

• Compare costs. With benefits decisions, it’s especially important to weigh the cost of benefits against the value they provide to employees. While some benefits will be employer-sponsored, other voluntary benefits may be paid for by the employee. Some of these decisions are financially based, but others come down to weighing administration and employee needs.
• Integrate employee feedback. Employee feedback can be powerful if it’s taken into consideration and acted upon. If employees take the time to provide candid and thoughtful feedback, employers should find ways to incorporate it and design plans that match employees’ needs, desires and concerns.
• Check provider reputations. Employers should research and choose reputable providers with strong customer service records to ensure a positive employee experience. When offering several meaningful benefits to certain groups of employees, it’s important that they have a good experience and can easily utilize the benefits that are most meaningful to them.
• Consider compliance and regulations. Legislation is quickly evolving, and employers should stay informed about legal requirements related to benefits to avoid potential pitfalls and consult legal counsel to ensure compliance.

Educate & Inform Employees

Once benefits are selected, effective communication is key to rolling out new or expanded benefits. Not everyone consumes information the same way, so a diverse, multi-channel approach is key. Employers should leverage multiple communication channels such as email and text, printed and digital materials, webinars and in-person meetings to communicate about benefits.

Educating and informing employees about their benefits package is integral to boosting enrollment and utilization.

Evaluate & Optimize

The employee benefits market is dynamic, and what works today may not be effective next year. Employers should regularly review their benefits offerings, gather employee feedback, analyze utilization and monitor benefits trends to inform their benefits strategy and ensure maximum impact. Working closely with your benefits broker is the best way to optimize your approach to employee benefits on an annual basis.

To learn more about how you can build a benefits plan that drives results, connect with our team at CBIZ.