Top 7 Tasks for HR Teams After Open Enrollment
December 5, 2022
Employees have signed up for their benefits, but there’s still work to be done. Here are seven things HR teams should to consider after open enrollment.
Employees have signed up for their benefits, but there’s still work to be done. Here are seven things HR teams should to consider after open enrollment.
The open enrollment party may be over, but we still have some cleanup to do. Here are seven things to consider as you close up this year and prepare for the next year.
Almost every year, someone forgets to add a dependent or intends to enroll and does not. You would be wise to reach out to employees one last time and make sure they’ve made the choices they intended to. Especially if you had an active enrollment, you might want to generate a list of employees who did not enroll and contact them to confirm their intent.
Make sure you or your administrator have updated all the materials – like benefits summaries and SBCs – and shared the new rates plus any changes with COBRA participants so they can change their elections if needed, too.
Did you distribute the required SBCs, CHIP notices, special enrollment rights notices and other notices? If they are included in your open enrollment materials or benefits guide, you’re all set. If not, send them as quickly as possible after open enrollment. In most cases, electronic distribution is acceptable.
If you truly want to assess and improve your open enrollment and communication process, now is the time to request input. Ask employees where they had difficulty, what they valued and what they’d like to see in the future. You don’t have to do a formal survey. You can send a brief email or gather a few people at a worksite or department meeting.
This is a good time to debrief on the process with your broker or consultant, too. Talk about employee feedback, how the process went and what you’d like to improve upon. It’s not too early to start talking about objectives and strategies for next year.
Audit your first month’s bill to ensure rates have been entered correctly and premiums are calculating as they’re supposed to.
These small actions after open enrollment can go a long way toward smoothing your employees’ transition into the new benefit year and make planning for next year a little easier.
