Benefits brokers and consultantsare in a prime position to help their clients reshape and take aproactive approach to employee benefits.

Historically, employee benefits strategies have focused ontraditional health care and retirement offerings. But today'semployees — especially the up-and-coming millennial generation — expect abroader and more flexible benefits package. They also expect ashift in how, when and where those benefit offerings arecommunicated to them.

For employers, this can be challenging, particularly whenjuggling several generations of employees with differentexpectations. As a result, benefit plans need to look verydifferent from those of the past so they can attract and retain thebest talent. This is where brokers and consultants can don theircapes and come to the rescue.

A proactive approach to employee benefits

Many employers take a reactive approach to employee benefits.Every few years they review the plan, paying attention to price andproduct, without really focusing on what employees want. Thisapproach generally fails to address the different needs of adiverse, multi-generational workforce. As a benefitsexpert, you can help your clients find out what appeals toemployees, where the current plan falls short, and how to updatethe plan to better suit everybody's needs.

Get insight before making changes

In order to find out what your clients' benefits needs are, youshould first gather information. Start by conducting an employeepoll, which can provide crucial insights. Another tool is dataanalytics, which can play a key role by tracking employee benefitsusage. The collected information can identify products thatemployees would value and help eliminate outdated and seldom-usedofferings.

Offer voluntary benefits

As a benefits consultant, you know that different generationalcohorts have unique needs and desires when it comes to benefitsplanning. While most workers place health care coverage at the topof their list, each generation has slightly different priorities.Baby boomers value salary level, health insurance and a solidretirement plan. Gen Xers balance the desire for salary levels and401(k) plans with the need for job security, career advancementopportunities and work-life balance. Millennials, who grew up in aworld of rapid change, seek paid time off, the ability to work remotely, control over their schedules,and a high level of flexibility.

One way to beef up your clients' benefits package is throughvoluntary benefits. With voluntary benefits, employees select onlythe benefits they want, and usually pay the full cost for eachoption they choose. Voluntary benefits include life insurance andaccident coverage; legal plans; hospital indemnity plans; discountson home and auto insurance; and pet insurance. Other valuablevoluntary benefits, which are generally popular across age lines,are tax-advantaged health care accounts like flexible spendingaccounts (FSAs) and health savings accounts (HSAs), as well asdependent care FSAs and commuter benefit accounts to help ease thecosts of child care and transportation.

There are also “next-gen” benefits, such as wearable healthtracking technology, debt consolidation services, and genometesting, which appeal to younger and more tech savvy employees.

Go digital (and save money)

A great way to help your clients save money and better reachtoday's modern workforce is through digital communications.Encourage your employer clients to forego printed brochures andlengthy plan documents, and meet their employees online and viatheir smartphones, where they're more likely to pay attention andengage with the information.

Educate and engage

Once you have established an updated plan with your employerclients, it's important to help them educate their workforce.Updating a benefits strategies can be a waste of time and money ifemployees don't understand what is offered to them.

Educate. Educating employees is very important,particularly when communicating the value the benefits bring toemployees. Remind employees which benefits they are currentlyenrolled in, help them identify any new changes in their lives, andrecommend the appropriate benefit offerings to meet their currentneeds. Take advantage of any creative benefits education programsthat may be offered by service providers.

Communicate. To drive engagement, communicateoften and in many different ways. Videos, blogs, social media, casestudies, newsletters, FAQs, brown-bag lunches, etc. are great waysto deliver information on how to use the plan and the benefits ofdoing so.

Make it fun. Benefit programs that are fun andenjoyable are more likely to stick. Some ideas include wellness,yoga or physical fitness classes where employees can interact witheach other off the job. Creative educational programs offered byservice providers can bring novelty and entertainment to openenrollment. Reward programs for employees who engage with theirbenefits, such as wellness or smoking cessation programs, can alsosave your clients money.

Benefits brokers and consultants are key to helping theirclients take a proactive approach to benefits. As times andgenerations change, the need for a modern benefits approach iscrucial, which is where the expert advice of a benefits consultantis most valuable. The end result will be a more suitable (andpossibly more affordable) benefits plan for the company, greateremployee satisfaction, and an appreciative client base.

Bo Armstrong is a national conference speaker and author ofnumerous white papers and articles on the health care benefitsindustry. As DataPath's Chief Marketing Officer, Bo focuses onidentifying emerging market trends within the benefits industry andadvocating for customers and their needs within DataPath. DataPath,Inc. creates cloud-based technology solutions for FSA, HRA, and HSA administration. The company also created theaward-winning employee education and engagement program,TheAdventures of Captain Contributor.