Human Resource Outsourcing

Guide to benefits administration

Companies that offer and manage great employee benefits retain their workforce with greater loyalty. Benefits show that you care about the employees, and a benefits administration system ensures that you do so efficiently and smoothly.
Employee benefits are key drivers for success, and about 30% of the revenue goes into ensuring that it gets you a good ROI.

This article explains the features and benefits of employee benefits administration in detail.

What is employee benefits administration?

Employee benefits administration creates and manages the benefits packages. While it may sound straightforward, it is extremely challenging and involves monetary and non-monetary benefits. Common types of employee benefits include –

1. Health insurance for the employee and dependents.
2. Life insurance.
3. Disability insurance.
4. Paid leaves for holidays, maternity/paternity, bereavement, sick, etc.
5. Child care and adoption.
6. Benefits for training, tuition, and professional development.
7. Commuter, parking, housing, and relocation assistance.
8. Remote working, casual dressing, on-site child, and pets at work policies.
9. Meals and food from coffee to snacks on-site.
10. Entertainment benefits for parties, retreats, game nights, picnics, and trips.
11. On-site gyms, breastfeeding rooms, quiet rooms, and retiring rooms.
12. Performance recognition and awards programs.
13. Assistance of in-house counsellor/clinical psychologist.

The benefits vary in each company but the overall goal is to retain employees, and provide them with a comfortable and happy work environment.

The role of benefits administration software

Automated solutions for benefits administration will simplify and streamline the process so that the company can effortlessly scale up. It directly impacts recruitment, employee engagement, and retention rates in the company.

The features of a benefits administration system depend on the one you choose and what you need. However, the software should have integration capabilities with the existing technology stack and systems which the employees can access as self-service portals.

An HRIS platform with a built-in benefits administration module can fully support all the requirements of the HR process and the company.

Features of benefits administration software

While onboarding a benefits administration software, one must consider the essential and non-essential features that apply to your company. Here is a list of a few to consider –

Payroll processing and integration

Calculating and distributing is a complicated task. A lot of factors, including the number of working hours, overtime, deductions, and leaves, matter.

Payroll processing must do this accurately. It also helps in preparing and filing taxes and unemployment insurance benefits reports accurately. A self-service portal that uses business intelligence tools to automate payroll, deductions, and welfare programs is essential. Since there is no manual data exchange, the employees’ sensitive and confidential information remains secure and accurate.

Workflow management

Having a comprehensive and accurate record of each employee and the HR department is critical. The HR should be aware of laws, policies, and compliances. Define and customise the workflows with exceptional detail using the built-in if-else logic in the software.
The use of workflow management fosters organisational productivity, efficiency, transparency, and communication.

Compliance management

Benefits administration should consider and fulfil all the compliances such as HIPAA, FMLA, COBRA, and other bylaws. These regulations determine the labour laws that apply to your business. The benefits administration system keeps track of all the compliances you need to fulfil as an organisation so that you are in line with the necessary laws and policies.

Administration automation

Automation is critical to removing redundant manual work, which is prone to manual errors. Complicated benefits calculations in line with the labour laws should be left to the automation software. Doing so manually will not only take up a lot of time but also expose the HR team to possible mistakes.

The rich utility and functionality of benefits administration software help organisations achieve greater efficiency and productivity.

Building a digital ecosystem

Your benefits administration may require connectivity to third-party systems for seamless delivery. It is important to have an API connectivity feature within the benefits administration system.

Your benefits administration software may need to acquire new service providers and do data migration, combination, and conversion with the existing technology. A digital ecosystem not only helps achieve this but also scales up the work as and when needed.

How does benefits administration digitisation help HR?

HR teams at most companies are stressed and overburdened. Benefits administration automation can help them in the following ways –

1. Save time spent on manual tasks such as form-filling and auditing.
2. Facilitate employee self-service through portals.
3. Eliminate errors from data capture and calculation mistakes.
4. Manage employee benefits on-site or remotely through laptops and smartphones.
5. Conform to the laws and government regulations easily.

It is worth noting that benefits administration automation does not replace the HR team. Rather, it augments their capabilities and brings in efficiency.

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How can Infosys BPM help?

The integrated employee benefits administration caters to employee and retiree savings, compensation data management, retirement plans, salary change letter administration, annual compensation review, claims management, life events and employment status change, MIS and reporting, etc.

Read more about benefits administration outsourcing at Infosys BPM.