You’ve got plenty to manage with the hiring and training of your staff. Adding employee benefits to your to-do list might be one item too many. Fortunately, there are companies that allow you to outsource the work, taking that pressure off of you.
Here’s why you should start outsourcing those employee benefits:
1. You Can Offer More Enticing Benefits
These days, potential employees are interviewing your company just as much as you’re interviewing them. Companies are in fierce competition to offer the best employee health insurance, 401k, and vacation time. You may not have time to deal with finding an affordable -- yet appealing -- benefits package for your staff. That’s where a third party benefits solution comes in handy. They know what benefits appeal to potential hires, and can get them for all of your staff.
2. You Can Get Back to Business
If struggling with employee benefits has taken you away from your primary responsibilities, handing it over to professionals will let you get back to focusing on your duties. You’ll free up valuable time that you need to handle your admin tasks.
3. You Can Get Healthier Employees AND Save Money
Should you outsource a wellness program designed to encourage your staff to adopt healthy behaviors, you’ll not only succeed at creating healthier staff and reducing injury, but you’ll also realize cost savings, reduce absenteeism, and increase employee morale. Who couldn’t use more of all of that?
4. Your Employees Get Help in Choosing Benefits
More than half of employees waste $750 or more each year by making mistakes with their benefits elections. If you’re not knowledgeable about the options for healthcare, you won’t be able to help them. However, working with an expert benefits professional, you can get your staff’s questions answered, ensuring they select the best coverage and premium for their needs.
5. You Can Get Big Bucks Benefits on a Budget
Wish you could offer your employees the types of benefits major corporations offer? When you outsource these benefits, you can get Fortune 500-type benefits for your staff, no matter what your size, since these firms can negotiate better benefits packages than you could.
Finding the Right Company to Outsource To
Now that you’re sold on the benefits to letting someone else handle your benefits, it’s time to find the best company for your needs.
1. Consider All Your Human Resource Needs
Do you also want help in employee benefits? Paying your staff? Training them? Ideally, you’d find all of these services under one umbrella, and you may even be able to save money if you bundle multiple services together.
2. Look for Industry Experts
If you do have needs beyond just benefits, it can be helpful to find a provider that specializes in the air transportation industry, as it will understand the regulations and compliances needs you and your staff have.
3. Have an Idea of What You Want
The sky can be the limit when it comes to what you offer for employee benefits, but you probably have a budget that restricts you from offering 100% employee-paid benefits. Let the company you’re considering working with know what your budget and requirements are with regards to benefits for your staff.
4. Make it Seamless
If you’re moving from existing benefits managed in-house to outsourced benefits, you want to make it as easy as possible for your staff. Find benefits that are similar to -- or even better than -- what you currently offer so you don’t end up with an inbox full of complaints. Make the transition at a specific point in time, such as January 1, when benefits can kick in for the new year.
5. Stay in the Loop
While you’ve given your employee benefits provider the responsibility of managing your staff’s benefits, that doesn’t remove the responsibility from your shoulders completely. Check in with both the benefits company and your staff to make sure everything’s operating smoothly with regards to the benefits and healthcare they’re receiving.
