Employee Portal Benefits Benefit Portals, Employee Benefits
By: Robert Pusateri, Capstone Brokerage Benefits Consultant
In today’s world Human Resource & Benefit Technology makes an employee benefit package more accessible to this new generation of workers. We all know the system between payroll and employees electing benefits is broken. In the past, stacks of books and colorful brochures were handed out at open Enrollment meetings and most of the literature went right in the trash when the employee got home. Only large corporations would even consider setting up self-service portals for their employees for integration which also had an expensive monthly premium. Now companies with only a handful of workers can take full advantage of employee portal technology.
The Web Benefit portal educates employees about their plan choice, how the plan works and even allow the employees to look up doctors, prescription lists and dentists 24 hours / 7 days a week. Employees, the HR department and management have the potential to save money and reduce the cost of costly human HR errors.
Best of all, by reducing paperwork and speeding online benefit access to important information, such employee portals are helping companies boost employee satisfaction and loyalty – and, in turn, productivity. This Web Benefit technology helps communicate the value of the benefit package to the employee simple and efficiently.
Think of the employee portal as your HR department embracing the power of e-commerce. The perceptional value from the employee’s eyes is a “modernized” small or large business. That means the web portal eliminates the tedious filling out and shuffling of carrier paper forms and having to decipher employees’ handwriting. In addition, most follow-up phone calls are done away with, as well.
Employees can visit their company’s employee portal via mobile app or any web-equipped computer. Hand-held devices which are entirely secure and will have access to a wide range of useful work-related information all on their own, with practically no need for anyone in HR to get involved.
Employees can also view 401(k) plans, company policies, processes, you name it, all with just a few clicks on their computer mouse. They can browse or print out any number of important documents, such as the employee handbook, Benefit Schedules and prescription lists. Employees may enter and update their address, emergency contacts and HR related data all on their own. They can change their withholding status, enroll for new benefits, or update time and attendance records. If an employee has a Qualifying Event they can enter the data for a feed right to the carrier which will also prompt a COBRA Notice to a designated TPA. This alleviates the COBRA dilemma companies have collecting checks, etc.
Once the employee is uploaded in the web portal system they receive a Registration Link, they create a username and password and instantly can start the benefit election process. All this employee portal activity is controlled with the latest security techniques. In addition, the HR department can specify exactly which data and documents are to be made available to each employee. It can be separated by class structure, department or division. The people in HR are freed to devote their time and energy to productive tasks. Everyone benefits from the Web Benefit Portal. For more information about this added service contact an educated insurance professional. Capstone would be happy to look over your benefits package needs.
