HR Trends towards Techonology
Online platforms for employee self-service and benefits communication have become the norm at most corporations. Firms that haven't already rolled out such services are planning implementations now.
Benefits 4-1-1: Technology proves successful for benefits communication, but ...
Jill Elswick
Employee Benefit News � September 15, 2003
Online platforms for employee self-service and benefits communication have become the norm at most corporations. Firms that haven't already rolled out such services are planning implementations now.
Fully 75% of U.S. companies use the Web for human resource communications, and another 18% plan to do so, according to the Cedar 2002 Human Resources Self Service/Portal Survey. Online health and welfare benefits management is available at 55% of companies, with another 34% soon following suit.
Yet as the march toward benefits automation continues to reshape the benefits profession, employers are reaching for ways to balance "high tech" with "high touch." Self-service can easily dish out the 411, but the "911" situations still require personalized service.
Aggression pays
Firms that are most "aggressive" in their self-service implementations reap the greatest rewards, according to a recent report on client experiences from Hewitt Associates.
"To be an aggressive implementer of Web services, you make a strong statement to your employees that We expect you to use the Web for your employee benefits,'" explains Wendy Rhodes, head of total benefits administration communication for Hewitt.
Ninety to 99% of these firms have migrated health care annual enrollment transactions to the Web, compared to an average of 72%. Web use is similarly high for 401(k) transactions, pension estimates, and other benefit activities, even at firms where more than half of employees do not have Web access at work.
Aggressive implementers have witnessed a 50% to 80% reduction in printed communications. Thirty-six percent no longer provide health care annual enrollment worksheets, and 72% don't even mail enrollment confirmation statements. Employees appear to accept the change: Just 3% to 10% requested printed communication materials when given the option, and their satisfaction with Web enrollment stands at 91%.
Call center employees at these firms no longer answer mundane benefits questions, says Rhodes. Instead, they show people how to find answers on the Web. They save their time for "emotional" inquiries requiring a personal approach: extreme benefit emergencies and complex situations involving retirement, job loss or death.
Sensitive issues
"It's going to be very difficult to replace the human touch as soon as you get into the more sensitive areas, where employees may want to know more than What's the policy?'" agrees Ed Jensen, partner in Accenture's human performance service line.
Many companies claim that they want their employees to feel like part of a corporate "family," says Jensen, but this ideal can be jeopardized by the "depersonalizing" approach associated with forcing employees to call a distant service center when they have an urgent need. HR's new business model has displaced many a "trusted advisor" who used to work in the office next door.
Employees also need a live human being, in person, to introduce complex changes in employee benefits, says Ron Hess, president of Motiv8 Communications: "People have a greater ability to get their minds around a new concept by hearing it explained to them in a focused, face-to-face setting, where they get a chance to ask questions."
"A lot of companies have relied solely on print and electronic media to explain things like dramatic jumps in employee health care contributions. That could be a mistake on such a sensitive issue," cautions Hess.
One area that will never be automated, experts concur, is employee relations. "That's not something we would expect to see: Click here if you think you've been unjustly looked over for a promotion' or Click here if you think you've been harassed in the workplace,'" says David Link, eWorkplace vice president for Cedar Consulting.
But in general, Link says, HR professionals ought to be more available to discuss meaty issues, such as the adequacy of the benefits plan - now that they're no longer answering 30 phone calls a day from employees who want to know whether the day after Thanksgiving is a paid holiday.
Chipping away
Employers report mixed success with moving to automated benefits communications, but progress appears to be steady.
Lee Enterprises Inc., a 6,700-employee publishing company based in Davenport, Iowa, implemented benefits communications and enrollment modules from ProAct Technologies this year. The company has opened an HR call center and is in the process of downsizing its HR department from 43 people to 28, a move expected to save $750,000 annually.
"This whole concept works well with HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), because we're talking to our HR managers in the field about how you can't get involved with employees' medical questions any more," says Kim Mann, director of human resources.
Instead of fielding benefits questions, HR managers at Lee Enterprises are beginning to focus on high-touch issues like employee relations, training and development, performance feedback, and hiring and recruiting. The switch is happening gradually, says Mann.
"You chip away at it one person at a time. When somebody comes up to our HR managers and asks a question, one by one, they say, You know, you can look that up online. Let me show you how.'"
Brenda Byron joined Edina, Minn.-based aerospace and defense company Alliant Techsystems (ATK) three years ago to help the company build a shared services center for HR administration. Her goal was to eliminate redundant benefits activities at multiple locations through technology, eliminating up to 20 positions in the process.
ATK employees have access to an Authoria-powered knowledgebase online. If they can't find their answer, or don't feel comfortable with the technology, they can call the shared services center. Yet some employees at remote sites have resisted the change, says Byron.
"The HR professional there is someone they know and trust, who they've been working with for a long time. They're comfortable going to the HR person. They're not as comfortable contacting the service center because they feel that corporate doesn't know them."
HR professionals find it hard to say no because it's part of their professional identity to help people, says Byron. But the new business model for HR requires them to find more valuable ways to help employees or risk losing their jobs. Meanwhile, the jobs of call center representatives are becoming more sophisticated as employees increasingly turn to the shared service center for help.
"We're finding that you need college-educated people, almost benefits professionals, to get on these calls now because our employees have become very knowledgeable about benefits since we gave them information online," says Byron.
"Yoda" exiled
American Family Insurance, based in Madison, Wis., did away with all of its HR generalists - roughly 20 positions - after implementing Authoria-based online benefits communication and providing a call center for its 8,000 employees. The shift began in 2000 and was completed last year.
"We got some pushback initially because it was a big culture change," says Russ Evansen, human resource brand and content manager. "We did hear from some people, particularly in the outlying offices, where HR might have been one person. For them, this one person down the hall was the Yoda' of HR. People really relied on that individual. So when those individuals were pulled out, we did hear some complaining."
Employees still need a lot of face-to-face hand holding for certain benefits issues, like preparing to retire from the company, says Evansen. But the new service delivery model is working well in most cases, he says, and it's expected by new hires.
"Some people really miss that human contact," concludes Evansen. "There are always people who say, Technology's too cold, it's too impersonal.' But if you look at it objectively, it is superior because it's available when you want it. What happens if you need the person down the hall when they're on vacation or they're out sick or they quit?"
"You no longer have to think about those things. The information is there for employees when they need it. They can go get it themselves. They're not dependent on someone else to bring it to them." - J.E.
Posted by Craig at November 24, 2003 02:39 PM