Open enrollment (also called annual enrollment)
should be a simple process. How do you create an effective, efficient process for your employees without oversimplifying or jeopardizing your strategy?
Our team identified seven key ways to simplify the enrollment experience for your people and meet your organization’s strategic goals.
1. Align your strategy
Setting tangible goals for your enrollment is vital, but if they don’t align to your enrollment tactics and strategy, your results may be ineffective. If your goal is to encourage participation in a high deductible health plan (HDHP) but the HDHP is not competitively priced, your strategy is not aligned with your goal and results may be unsuccessful. The same can be said about providing differentiation between plans. If you aim to increase participation in specific plans but fail to provide details to distinguish key components (deductibles, co-pays, etc.), employees may not know the difference and choose an unsuitable plan. In such cases, you must provide differentiation between plans or leverage technology to help employees see the distinctions.
Think about your measurable goals for your upcoming enrollment and consider the tactics you will implement to execute them.
- What are you are trying to accomplish?
- Are your execution strategies aligned?
- How will they support your overall enrollment goals?
Aligning your goals with your strategy will set you up for success.
2. Make it personal
Communication during enrollment is key, and people respond more positively to messages that feel personally targeted toward them. You want your people to know that there are multiple options catered to what they need and want in a plan, and you need to communicate it clearly through the right mediums.
Does your employee have a new baby on the way? Is a family member going off to college? Find ways to personally reach your audience and let them know that there is a situation for every employee and their family.
People like to feel special. Put some personality behind your enrollment and see how your results are impacted.