Soon it will be time to make your company’s 2016–2017 Plan Year benefits strategy decisions. The right benefits can support your organization’s revenue, talent and business goals for 2016 and beyond. ADP TotalSource® is here to help you use your business strategy to influence your benefits strategy.
How you perceive the key trends outlined in this article and their effect on your business and your employees is an important first step in developing your 2016–2017 benefits strategy. During your 2016 benefits enrollment consultation (which occurs between February and March 2016), you and your ADP TotalSource Human Resource Business Partner (HRBP) will use this information to help build or adjust your benefits strategy to meet the needs of your business and your employees. As a client of ADP TotalSource, you have the advantage of our thought leadership to keep your benefits strategy ahead of key trends, your costs in line with your business needs, and your worksite employees satisfied with their benefits.
To make that connection, there’s certain information you’ll need to know:
• Your business needs. Focus in on these by completing the Organizational Health Readiness Survey, if you haven’t already. (Look for the emails you received on December 9, 2015 and January 12, 2016 – they contain your customized survey invitation link.)
• The external trends that affect your business and benefits strategy. Keep reading for a short overview of these trends.
ADP TotalSource has identified the key trends that will affect your benefits and your business over the next few years, as well as the key questions to consider. These key trends include:
• The ripple effect of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This ripple effect could affect your health care plans and their cost, as well as your employees. While the high-cost plan excise tax (called the “Cadillac” tax) was delayed in December 2015, new pricing rules, coverage requirements, mandated coverage and plan limitations can mean unanticipated cost shifts. Carrier and provider consolidation means less competition, fewer choices and higher costs. This is on top of consistent year-over-year health care cost increases over the last decade. As you think about the impact of this trend on your business, there are several questions to consider.
o What are your current workforce demographics, and how do you see them changing over the next few years?
o Would a local or regional provider network fit your business and employee needs, or is a multistate/national carrier’s network a better fit now? What about when you consider future growth plans?
o What are your long-term strategies for managing your health benefits? They might include promoting consumerism, cost-sharing with employees, improving employee health through wellness initiatives or exiting benefits altogether.
For more information on the ripple effect of the ACA, read this article.
• Use your benefits strategy to increase revenue growth and manage talent. The right benefits strategy can help you attract, retain and engage your employees, driving better productivity and increased revenue – critical components of a successful business. As you think about the impact of this trend on your business, consider the following questions:
o Do you sense an opportunity to improve productivity in your business?
o Does your current contribution strategy encourage worksite employees to elect benefits like dental and vision coverage?
o In 2016–2017, are you more concerned about employee retention, recruiting new talent or improving engagement of current staff?
o How aware of their total compensation are your employees? This includes the dollar value of their pay and company-paid benefits, as well as the availability of other benefit options (such as voluntary benefits).
For more information about how your benefits strategy can improve revenue growth and talent management, read this article.
• Create a benefits strategy with well-being in mind. Forward-thinking companies are shifting their focus from wellness to well-being, which is a more holistic look at employees’ lives, including the areas of health, wealth, life and work. This broader investment in a company’s benefits strategy is proving to pay off with savings in key areas such as lower turnover and fewer sick days. ADP TotalSource is here to help you support employees’ well‑being by:
o Encouraging smart, active employee decision-making. The centerpiece is our new MyLife@MyTotalSource portal (launching in February). It will make it easy and inspiring for worksite employees to make smart benefits plan decisions, as well as decisions about their ongoing well-being throughout the year.
o Connecting health and wealth. Consumers see “health” and “wealth” as combined issues. It makes sense: Health care is expensive, and money concerns affect stress and physical health. Plus, health and wealth are intertwined when it comes to planning for the future. Benefits like health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, online commuter benefits and the ADP TotalSource Retirement Savings Plan help employees save today and plan for the future with confidence.
o Integrating life and work. Emotional resilience, social connections and meaningful work contributions influence employees’ health and productivity. In addition, promoting these benefits – things like flexible work arrangements, team volunteer opportunities and professional development – can help balance things like medical cost increases.
For more information on how to create a benefits strategy that includes well-being, read this article.
• New compliance requirements. Proposed changes under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) will affect eligibility for overtime pay and increase your benefits budget in 2016–2017, because the FLSA will increase total compensation for your employees. Understanding how these changes may affect your talent management strategy is important to the financial health of your company. In addition to the FLSA, state and local regulations can create a difficult and confusing business environment. There are also regulations, case law and market forces that limit how you can adjust your health plan. As you consider the impact of compliance on your business and your benefits plan, ask yourself the following questions:
o Does your budget and contribution strategy for 2016-2017 benefits include potential costs resulting from the expected FLSA rules?
o Are you planning to expand to new locations, with potentially different employment law regulations?
o When it comes to the cost of and the eligibility for your health care, are you currently considering any new or different strategies? Have you thought about the effects of the FLSA changes on current and future employees – or customers?
For more information about compliance and how it may affect your plans, read this article.