Adobe Systems and Meridian Health have both ranked on the FORTUNE 100 Best Places to Work in recent and multiple years. Both are leading organizations in their respective industries. And both have embraced the trend of using video as an integral part of their benefits communications strategies.

Though coming from very different backgrounds, technology and healthcare, Adobe Systems and Meridian Health share some of the same HR needs that large organizations experience. Each of their workforces are distributed over multiple domestic and, in Adobe’s case, international offices. The need to ensure consistent HR messaging across these locations is important.

“Having a compelling video solution for new team members has really taken the benefits communications load off our HR team.”
- Kathy Boushie, Director, Corporate Human Resources, Meridian Health

As is the need to have a scalable benefits communications strategy: to use HR resources efficiently and effectively.

“GuideSpark made Maternity Leave education fast, convenient and valuable for our employees….the solution has the benefit of saving significant HR team hours.”
- Teresa Tracy – Manager, Global Benefits and Wellness, Adobe Systems

That’s not to say only large companies can truly benefit from video-based benefits communications. Common to all organizations, Adobe Systems and Meridian Health also need to communicate employee benefits information to family decision-makers and to provide information to employees at their convenience.

“An on-demand video solution proved to be a much more effective way to reach and engage Meridian’s very busy and distributed health care workforce.”
-Kathy Boushie, Director, Corporate Human Resources, Meridian Health

As GuideSpark’s longest standing customer, Adobe Systems has fully integrated its customized GuideSpark Benefits Video Library to convey and support the value of its Total Rewards package to new and existing employees.

“We make substantial investments in non-cash compensation programs. GuideSpark ensures that Adobe employees understand and value their Total Rewards package.”
- Rosemary Arriada-Keiper, Director, Global Benefits and Shared Services, Adobe Systems

To learn more about how Adobe Systems and Meridian Health improved their benefits communications and saved money with an affordable, customized GuideSpark Video Library, visit our website.

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Engage employees with video and social media

Video and social media are the way to engage employees these days, says Brian Baker, Vice President at Aon Hewitt Consultants, in a recent interview with Benefits TV.

Baker discusses balancing the “tell” with the “show” by crafting benefits messages using video.

Aon Hewitt presents their four Cs to an effective strategy for employee benefits communications and change management-through-engagement. They recommend utilizing video and social mediums to disseminate communications that are:

• Creative: all communications must have a relevant, creative component.
• Customized: representative of your particular employee demographic and segment.
• Cultural: going beyond corporate culture to take into account race, ethnicity, regional and business unit culture.
• Combined: all pieces must be delivered in combination to be successful.

Employees seek retirement advice from their employers

A majority of people have agreed they would like more guidance from their employer about how to achieve retirement goals according to the 11^th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey.

Perhaps not surprisingly, employees with a higher overall education level are more likely to be financially well in retirement. Only 63% of employees with only a high school diploma participated in a retirement plan, as opposed to 84% of those with a college degree.

But all education levels showed a desire for direction from their employers.

More than half of all surveyed, agreed that they would like more information and advice from their employer about how to reach retirement goals. In fact, employees surveyed indicated that “educational materials that are easier to understand” is the second biggest motivator in getting an employee to learn more about saving and investing for retirement (behind tax breaks/incentives).

Investing in better retirement education for employees is a cost-effective way to motivate employees to save for their retirement and ensure their financial wellness.

40-52% of workers are delaying their retirement.

70 is the “new 65,” according to Sun Life Financial. Their Unretirement Index, along with Towers Watson’s 2010 Global Workforce Study, show that 40-52% of Americans will delay their retirement due to ill financial health.

Towers Watson found 68% of those workers will continue working in order to keep their health care coverage, while 61% cited their lacking 401(k) plans as the reason for staying. Sun Life found that only 25% are “very confident” they will be able to cover medical expenses in retirement.

Americans are also changing their current lifestyles to meet their financial needs and cope with financial fears by reducing spending and debt, and increasing saving and investing. About 18% are even putting off routine medical procedures to save money.

Voluntary benefits are ineffective without proper education.

Conceptually, offering voluntary benefits has a lot of attractive qualities for employers. In fact, 65% of employees said their voluntary benefits made them feel more loyal at work. But is simply offering them enough?

Voluntary benefits are ineffective without proper education, according to MetLife’s 2010 research and survey. These are valuable options for employees and employers alike, yet they are shrouded with misconception.

Consider the following statistics found in the recent studies:

• 19% of employees surveyed didn’t even know they received discounts on home and auto insurance through their work.
• 75% of employees were interested in critical illness coverage once it was explained to them, and most were even willing to pay the full premium themselves.
• 90% of working Americans faced a legal concern during the past year, estimates the American Bar Association.

MetLife proposed cutting back on promotional materials, offering face-to-face meetings and using innovative means to clear up the confusion.

• Having agents come in to explain policies to individuals can be a good way to get the message through, but it can also take resources and time out of the work day.
• Going green is a logical alternative. Online resources allow cheap and easy access for employees to learn about their benefits on their own time. Inundating employees with colorful glossy paper is costly and minimally effective in a media-infused society. Online efforts provide more engaging material through a familiar medium.

Better education leads to higher FSA enrollment, which saves employers money on taxes.

Good benefits communication can raise employee Flexible Spending Account enrollment by 20% or more, a recent study found. The benefits of an FSA may be obvious to the seasoned HR Director, but not all employees – or employers – know how valuable these accounts can be.

Both employee and employer enjoy significant tax savings when FSAs are used. Employees save on federal and FICA taxes, plus any additional state and local taxes on medical items paid for through their FSA.

Employers, meanwhile, avoid the 7.65% FICA tax on employee wages. Based on the average annual contribution of $1,340, employers can save $100 per employee. 100 new participants means an average $10,000 in savings per year.

The study set four keys to a successful FSA enrollment campaign:

Know your audience. The study found these statistics about FSA participants:

• Average age: 43
• Marital status: 67% married (59% with children)
• Median income: $55,000-$65,000
• Key benefits decision-maker: Female

The study also found that employees use FSAs to reduce their taxable income, cover gaps in health plans, and finance dependent care.

Craft Key Messages. Clear up common misunderstandings, while highlighting key points clearly and concisely.  For example:

• An FSA is not another deduction, but money already being spent.
• The depth and breadth of eligible expenses, i.e. vision care to day care.

With FSAs, it’s easy to get bogged down in the details so be sure that you really focus on what most employees need to know to make a decision.

Select Methods of Communication. You probably don’t need to be convinced that these days employees across most demographics are accessing this type of information on the web.  Try and stay away from lengthy, static PDFs and brochures and avoid locking your materials behind the firewall, where family decision makers can’t get to it easily.  Putting together a short video on the benefit can be a really effective way to provide something engaging while allowing you to explain the benefit in more conversational terms.

Schedule Enrollment Communications. Reach out to employees up to 6 months in advance with education, as well as re-enrollment and qualified change in status communications.

Providers face rising health care costs but still must supply the legally required amount of care.  To do so, 63% of employers who are changing plan details have decided to raise the percentage that employees contribute to the premium, while 46% aim to raise out-of-pocket maximums.  Another 61% will be offering consumer-directed health plans, or CDHPs, which are a proven method of increasing consumer flexibility while cutting costs.

With so many benefits changing, it is important that employees thoroughly understand the developments and the reasons behind them.  The efforts that must be undertaken to get an employee to fully understand a CDHP are substantial and probably well telegraphed at this point.  If your strategy is to introduce this complex new benefit with a few vendor-provided brochures, you’ll likely end up with the status quo – single digit adoption rates.

When changing health plans, benefits communication can help focus on the positive.

Shifting a larger share of the cost to employees will likely be seen as a negative no matter what you do.   But, it’s never a good idea to let employees come to their own conclusions about those changes.  With effective benefits communication, you can provide context and position plan changes with your employees. Further, you can show them how to better utilize their plans and capture the cost-savings opportunities that are available to them.  Investing in benefits communication is perhaps the easiest and most cost-effective way to improve the perception that employees have about their benefits and about you as an employer, even in the wake of negative changes.

So, the natural question is why a credit score of all things would be used to evaluate a prospective employee?

One likely reason might be that employers worry that a poor credit score indicates a lack of responsibility that could ultimately translate into poor performance.

Credit score indicative of a poor performer?

But there may be another important reason…or, at least there should be.  The impact of poor employee financial health on corporate productivity has been well publicized in the wake of a troubled U.S. economy.  Many employers may feel that employees with poor credit are likely to spend significant time at work worrying about or dealing with their personal financial issues.  Or, worse yet, miss work entirely.

Whether or not a FICO score is a suitable barometer for a candidate’s future success, these results reveal that in the minds of many employers, there is an important link between control over personal finances and job performance.

But what about existing employees?

Employers might make more productive use of this link by introducing broad financial wellness education to current employees, rather than simply focusing on the credit histories of a few new hires – especially considering that credit reports are often explicable or simply inaccurate.

Many states are pushing to make the investigation of credit histories by prospective employers illegal. Employers will need to find a new tactic to ensure the financial health of their workforce.  A comprehensive financial wellness initiative can be a much more effective means towards this desired goal.

Benefits Communications for Delicate News

that medical care costs will once again rise at near double-digit rates in 2011.  According to PriceWaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute, medical care costs are expected to increase by 9% in 2011, a slight deceleration from the 9.5% rise posted in 2010.

Cost sharing has become a critical tool to help keep medical care costs affordable for both employer and employee.  2011 will be no different.  Here are the key findings of the PwC report:

• 42% of employers intend to increase employee contributions for health insurance coverage
• 41% plan to increase medical cost-sharing, including higher-deductibles and co-pays
• 26% expect to increase prescription drug cost-sharing
• 67% of employers will most likely expand or improve wellness programs

In addition, many employers will add high-deductible health plans in the coming year to help ease the cost burden.

Those employers with a Fall Open Enrollment are heading into a critical time.  Important decisions will be made that will have a significant impact on the cost of benefits for employees and their families.  Careful thought, consideration and resources will go into making plan decisions and yet too little thought and preparation will go into communicating the changes.

With so much at stake, what is your plan for communicating this delicate information?  How will you deliver the news that your employees are once again being asked to shoulder a larger share of the cost burden?  How will you drive enrollment in that new and very complex high deductible health plan?

Rethink the lengthy and ineffective emails, brochures and web pages. You know that employees and family decision makers aren’t reading them – no matter how pretty they are.  And employees who operate in the absence of information are likely to come to the wrong conclusions about plan changes.  They are likely to avoid newer health plans in favor of the ones that feel familiar.

This Open Enrollment period, don’t let your communications strategy go by the wayside.  Demonstrating transparency and carefully communicating the difficult changes that are being made to benefits are nearly as important as the changes themselves.  Remember that introducing a high deductible health plan only saves the company money if you can convince an employee to adopt it (assuming they have alternatives).

For tips on communicating effectively, please see our March post:   Benefits Communications for Today’s Employee.