Only 24 percent of employers at present urge employees to consider what their benefit choices mean for financial planning, including 401(k), health savings accounts, loan repayment and emergency savings. (Image: Shutterstock)
While their objective is to provide choices in health benefits, and tools to help employees select what benefits they need, employers don't have an effective strategy on how to listen to employees about what those needs are.
So says a new survey from Willis Towers Watson, “2019 Emerging Trends in Health Care,” which also finds that despite the fact that 54 percent of employers say they don't have an “effective listening strategy” to determine what exactly their workers need and want in terms of benefits, 31 percent say they're focused on providing or expanding benefit choices over the next three years.
In addition, 74 percent say they're confident that they're giving workers the right number of choices in benefits while not overwhelming them with options. But at the same time, despite the fact that 56 percent of employers say they believe they're offering effective tools to help employees with the choices they face during open enrollment, only 44 percent say they're confident that they provide workers with the information they need to make the right choices in their regular use of health care.
Still, 67 percent are prioritizing online and in-person training to educate employees; in addition, 74 percent also intend to improve their health care navigation tools over the next three years so that employees can get to the right providers when they need them.
While at present only 28 percent of employers provide a holistic approach to health care, that's where the trend is heading as they try to help employees take a broader financial context approach in choosing benefits. Only 24 percent of employers at present urge employees to consider what their benefit choices mean for financial planning, including 401(k), health savings accounts, loan repayment and emergency savings, but 59 percent say they plan to do so in the next three years.
Technology will also become more prominent over the next three years in supporting employee decisions. At present, just 31 percent of employers offer mobile apps or other digital means to support employees in their decision, but 61 percent say that such capabilities will be enhanced over the next three years.
In addition, look for AI, virtual assistants and/or machine learning to come online to personalize employee experiences in making informed enrollment decisions; only 9 percent of employers do this now, but 32 percent say they'll be adding such capabilities in the near term.
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Marlene Satter
Marlene Y. Satter has worked in and written about the financial industry for decades.
