Getting Employees to Understand Their Benefits … Does Anything Work?

If you ask most employers “do your employees understand their benefits?” most respond “no.” And if you ask “why not?” the answer you get is that they “just don’t read.” Is there anything that really works? HRM asked Ron Kleiman, President of the benefit communication and enrollment firm BenefitVision, to explain more.

HRM. The latest technology in this area is web-based self-service enrollment programs. Are they the answer?
RK. Well, that depends on the question. Are they efficient for letting employees enter their enrollment decisions? Sure, as long as the employees have access to the Internet and are comfortable with computers. Do they help employees understand their benefits and make informed decisions? Almost every employer who has put in one of these programs will tell you “no!”

HRM. Why not? Don’t the web-based programs have information screens or the ability to “opt-out” to an operator?
RK. The problem is basic human nature. Most employees won’t take the time to dig out the information we want them to have. If they bother to “opt-out” employees usually just ask a specific question, they still don’t get a full understanding of their benefits.

HRM. How important is it that employees understand their benefits?
RK. With the introduction of flexible benefits employees had to make choices. Now, we’ve gone even further with “consumer-driven” plans. Employers need employees to make the right decisions. There is a significant cost to the employer now when employees are not following the enrollment patterns or behaviors the employer is trying to achieve.

HRM. Why don’t employers do a better job if this is so important?
RK. With employee groups scattered across the country, working all kind of shifts, it is not easy. Turnover means you always have to repeat your messages. Group meetings are hard to organize, time consuming, and take productive time from work. Print material, by itself, is ineffective. That seems to leave the Internet and the self-service enrollment programs. But they really don’t satisfy the communication need, and those enrollment programs can be expensive.

HRM. Then how do you get employees to understand their benefits?
RK. We go back to communication basics. Delivery is the key. You can’t ask the employee to get the information for themselves. That is what they don’t do. Second, you have to make the process interactive. We know that the more people take an active role, the more they will get out of the process. And third, the process needs to be available for every new-hire and for life-event changes year round.

HRM. Good ideas, but how can they be done?
RK. For our clients, employees call a toll-free telephone number to enroll for their benefits. The phone is answered in their company’s name so they believe they are talking to their own company’s enrollment center. And, very different than with automated systems, they are connected to a benefit representative who will give the employees a complete presentation about their benefits over the phone. The employees can ask questions and be certain they are making informed decisions.

HRM. And how can you be sure employees are “getting” the information?
RK. Our benefit representatives are following computer screens as they walk the employee through the presentation. The employees are following along in a workbook designed to be very interactive. The employees are asked to enter certain information in their workbooks at key points. Hearing the presentation, writing down important points, and asking questions all involve the employee and help make certain messages are “imprinted” in a manner better than any other communication method we’ve seen.

HRM. Does this method have the efficiency of the web-based enrollments?
RK. It does. The interface to the employee is a human being, but all enrollment decisions are entered into our computers and processed just the same as any web-based system.

HRM. Does it increase the employers’ costs to use this approach?
RK. We actually save money for our clients. We usually work with them to find some new voluntary benefit or benefits to make available to employees and the insurance companies involved provide the money to pay for the enrollment process. Employees love having more options and they help lock employees into their jobs.

Ron Kleiman founded BenefitVision in 1994, drawing on his benefit communication consulting experience with Mercer and Hewitt, his employee communication experience with General Electric and Ford, and his broadcast experience in TV news. His degree is in Journalism from SMU. Information about BenefitVision is available at www.benefitvision.com.