Editor’s Note: The following is adapted from the book "Employee Benefits and the New Health Care Landscape: How Private Exchange are Bringing Choice and Consumerism to America’s Workforce" by Alan Cohen, former head of product for the exchange solutions segment of Willis Towers Watson and the co-founder of Liazon. It includes commentary from benefits consultant Barbara Gniewek, a principal in PwC’s Global Human Resource Services practice.

Choice in products and plans is at the core of most online benefits marketplaces operating today. Without meaningful choice, a solution would be hard pressed to deliver the results for employee satisfaction that the industry is currently realizing. Together, these two industry experts offer six items to consider when moving to a marketplace solution.

Online benefit marketplaces, aka, private exchanges, have the ability to dramatically change an employer’s human capital strategy. Not only do they help employers control the escalating costs of health insurance and other benefits for their employees, but they also empower employees to choose their own benefits from a wide array of offerings, rather than have their employer make these decisions for them. Degree of choice in benefits products aside, following are six additional factors to consider when making the move to an online benefits marketplace for active employees.