5 Open Enrollment Tips for HR: How To Do It Effectively

Every year, when the open enrollment period is about to begin, companies need to be ready to present employees with all of the available benefit options. HR professionals should be prepared to elaborate on options and explain them using relatable terminology. So how can your team ensure a smooth open enrollment season? Let’s make it clear.

Communicate More Effectively 

Even if you think that you’ve given your best presentation, there are always employees who missed it, zoned out, or need further clarification.

So think outside the box to deliver the information to your staff and use as many channels as possible. Send emails, message in chats, share educational materials on your social networks, print benefits guides and send mailers, and post bulletins. You need to make sure that your employees understand their choices. Consider using real-life examples so your employees can relate to the ways they can utilize these benefits.

To avoid swimming in paperwork while communicating about open enrollment, consider printing just the documents you need, on demand with Mimeo. You can print and ship benefits guides, signage, handouts, postcards, and much more, straight from your free Mimeo account. You can even have it delivered directly to all of your remote learners, no matter where they are in the world.

Establish Clear Deadlines

Health insurance is not an on-the-spot decision. You need to give your employees an adequate amount of time so they can make their desired selections, which can take two to four weeks. This is enough time for employees to familiarize themselves with plans and any changes from last year. Remember to communicate with employees to make sure they’re moving along in their decision-making process and that they will submit their selections on time. It is a good idea to encourage them to submit everything by a defined deadline. 

Hold Q&A Sessions

Maintaining an open communication channel is vital for your corporation. Organize Q&A sessions where employees can ask additional questions and get clarification, and be available to help them via email, messaging, or phone. Remember that there might be an employee who needs a one-on-one piece of advice. In general, it’s up to you as to how you communicate with your employees.

Immerse Yourself in Their Environment

Since open enrollment involves benefits for employees, you need to understand and prioritize what matters to them the most when choosing the benefits that the company will offer. Also, make sure to educate employees about the primary purpose of health and life insurance and all of the complexities that the decision-making process involves. For most workers, unfortunately, life insurance doesn’t feel like a benefit. This is mainly due to the rising insurance costs that are often unaffordable for some. Employees need to feel like you have their back and want the best for them.

Less is More

A responsible HR department will try to deliver all of the necessary materials to provide employees with a full package of information about open enrollment and medical insurance at once. There is nothing wrong with that. But remember that this kind of information should be clearly delivered to employees in any sphere.

No matter their role, whether front-office staff , marketing managers, or IT specialists, employees need to be acutely aware of what benefits they will receive after open enrollment. Try to find a balance between communicating too much or too little about benefits; you don’t want to overwhelm or confuse employees. Redirect employees to the places where they can find more details about benefits when they ask you for further information.

Conclusion

The open enrollment period is a regular part of every company’s operations. Most employees won’t break into a cold sweat when hearing the words “open enrollment,” especially when HR specialists understand what open enrollment entails and are prepared to provide the necessary information. By following these 5 tips, you can make the open enrollment period successful for your company and its employees.