3 Tips for a Smoother, Less Spicy, Open Enrollment
By Michelle Higgins
It’s that time of year again. No, not pumpkin spice season — well, it is, but that’s for a different article. For many people in HR, it’s open enrollment season.
While the open enrollment kickoff can be a huge undertaking, following three simple steps can help make the process go smoothly for HR and employees.
- Prepare employees. Communicate about open enrollment early and often. Not only does HR need to prepare, but they also need to get employees ready. While open enrollment is a once-a-year activity, benefits communication should be a year-round priority. Benefit use ebbs and flows throughout the year, and the needs and questions surrounding it also change based on an employee’s time with the company and their personal life. That’s why ongoing benefits communication is needed.
- Focus on messaging. Tailor open enrollment communication to your specific workforce and avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. Newer employees might need more details about the process. For them, an FAQ sheet with common benefits terms might come in handy. Long-time employees might have questions about making changes to their insurance once they become empty nesters. Offering short videos might appeal to that crowd. Use available resources to craft catchy messaging to grab employees’ attention and provide easy-to-follow instructions so they know what to do.
- Create goals. Think back to what went well (or what didn’t) during last year’s open enrollment. Were the same questions coming up repeatedly? Were employees confused about how to sign up for insurance? It’s always good to evaluate the open enrollment process and keep notes on how to improve things next time around. By creating HR goals with process improvement in mind, it helps set HR up for success this year. Remember to make goals specific. Instead of saying, “improve open enrollment communication,” for example, set a goal such as, “improve response time to employee open enrollment questions by 25 percent.”
Open enrollment might not be HR’s favorite time of year, but like pumpkin spice season, it’ll pass. When frustrations ramp up, remember to prioritize the “human” in HR and follow three simple steps to make open enrollment better for everyone.
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