Opportunities for ChatGPT with benefits

Gallagher's HR technology consulting practice embraces any new technology that effectively supports and advances an organization's people strategy. We're excited about the potential of ChatGPT to support HR functions. While its use with benefits raises some concerns, there are opportunities, so long as appropriate guardrails are in place. Consider these uses:

Benefits analysis – ChatGPT can analyze and report differences between plans. Suppose an employer offers two tiers of benefits. ChatGPT can create descriptions and compare plan features to help employees choose best-fit coverage.
Research competitors' benefit offerings – You must know what the market offers to be competitive. ChatGPT can provide insights into average salaries and benefits in your market, comparing similar organizations (size, industry, etc.).

Onboarding – Assuming benefits enrollment is part of your onboarding process, ChatGPT can deliver a more consistent experience for new hires. HR can use it to create enrollment instructions that provide clear guidance and benefit descriptions that convey a comprehensive value proposition that speaks to the profile of your new hires. For example, if the typical age of your employees is under 40, descriptions should emphasize family benefits, e.g., paid parental leave, versus long-term care. ChatGPT can also answer common questions about benefits and guide the new hire through enrollment.

Benefit survey development and analysis – Survey tools with ChatGPT can generate and personalize questions, create answer options for a question, generate recommended actions based on survey results, create a SWOT analysis, summarize the findings and more. These tools can help HR engage employees about their benefits and assess usage and satisfaction.

As with any cutting-edge technology, we advise HR leaders to be informed and to assess the benefits and risks of using ChatGPT before proceeding. Core recommendations include:

Know the limitations. HR leaders must understand the known limitations of ChatPGT to make an informed decision about its use. Also, know the limits of the technology's users. Assuming your HR team and employers can recognize erroneous information may be a leap of faith — especially for a new employee with little context to evaluate the information.
Keep a human involved. Responsible use of ChatGPT requires a human review of the outputs (and likely some editing) before adopting them. Verify the outcomes you're expecting. Anything less is inviting problems. Also, while ChatGPT can streamline and improve some functions, it should be viewed as a tool to help HR teams, not replace them.
Identify safeguards. While developers continue to incorporate safeguards based on identified threats, the employer is ultimately responsible for any bad outcomes (including illegal ones). There is no simple approach to safeguarding your organization's use of ChatGPT, so enroll multiple stakeholders to bring various perspectives and expertise to the task.
If you want to explore, start small with something manageable and provable, e.g., eligibility dates for health care. Small, innovative companies that can easily spot errors and identify safeguards are best suited to developing beneficial applications.
Stay informed. While we caution against being on the bleeding edge of new technology, it's important not to get too far behind the curve. ChatGPT will improve and increasingly be integrated into HR technology tools. Follow what's happening through industry groups and online resources.

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What you need to know about using ChatGPT for benefit administration

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