When employees don't use the benefits available to them, it can be a waste of resources. However, sometimes employees don't even realize that they have certain benefits to use or how to use them.
There are some simple ways to educate employees on their benefits and keep track of which benefits employees find most useful. Below, seven members of Forbes Human Resources Council share the best ways to tell if certain benefits haven't been useful and suggest ways to educate employees better so that they understand what benefits are available and how the process works.
Forbes Human Resources Council members share their insights.
Photos courtesy of individual members.1. Continue To Communicate Throughout The Year
It’s important to provide ongoing communication throughout the year to remind employees of their benefits, answer questions and seek feedback on what other benefits are of interest. Monitoring usage and participation and creating engaging, targeted communications helps too. Aligning these to events (i.e. World Mental Health Day) can cut through the noise and create stronger engagement and uptake. - Leah Sutton, Elastic
2. Listen To Feedback, Conduct Surveys, Offer Training
Since employees do not always fully utilize benefit offerings, we review utilization data to track usage. We listen to feedback to make decisions about enhancing or eliminating certain benefits. We conduct benefits surveys and talk to staff for feedback. We offer year-round benefits training, promotional materials, intranet postings, and updates through our weekly staff newsletter. - Misty Johnson Oratokhai, Events DC
3. Run Monthly Well-Being Events In Different Areas
Each month we run well-being events that have different focus areas. As part of these sessions, we align available benefits that could potentially support that particular focus area. Drawing these parallels has driven both adoption and impact. - Paul Phillips, Avanade
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4. Use Video To Ensure The Employee Understands
Video is a great way to make sure that both the employee and their family understand what they’re getting. Send it along a few times a year to check in—not just during open enrollment periods—to remind them what they have and encourage using them. - Keri Higgins Bigelow, LivingHR, Inc.
5. Make Use Of Employee Assistance Programs
I find that the usage of employee assistance programs can always be higher. Especially as this is traditionally a free benefit to employees and their households. Over the past year, I’ve stressed the importance of EAP brown bags and webinars, educating on the benefits of the EAP program, and promoting Mental Health Awareness Month. - Nakisha Griffin, Virtual Enterprise Architects
6. Be Proactive Discussing Benefits And Enrollment
A good place to discuss benefits and enrollment regularly is during staff meetings, but be sure to do it weeks in advance prior to the enrollment period. Give people the time they need and deserve to process the information and think about what is available. It’s a great way to be part of these important conversations and allow people to ask questions in a different setting. - Danny Speros, Zenefits
7. Measure The Success Of Benefits Annually
I measure the success of our benefits annually with both a market research survey and with an employee survey focused on what is being used, what is still needed or wanted, what is not working, etc. This allows me to tailor our offerings to the employee population. We also step into more parts of the lifecycle with benefit education outside of just open enrollment, this allows for more visibility. - Kelly Loudermilk, BuildHR, Inc.
