Category Archives: Employee Benefits

More Than Just a Broker: CorpStrat Delivers Value

Older executive business man meeting bank manager consulting client with tablet.

What’s 5% worth? It’s worth A LOT, if you’re an employer who provides benefits to your employees.

As an employer in California, you might be surprised to learn that the insurance broker handling your employee benefits earns 5% of your premiums. This percentage is fixed, non-negotiable, and embedded in the cost of every health insurance product sold to employers in the state.

But have you ever stopped to consider what you’re actually getting for that 5%?

At CorpStrat we believe that 5% should deliver more than just the basics. It should bring real value, support, and expertise that enhances your business operations and takes the hassle out of employee benefits. Here’s how we stack up against the competition.

What We Offer at CorpStrat

Custom-Designed Employee Benefit Communication Tools

We know that clear communication is key to employee satisfaction and understanding their benefits. That’s why we craft tailored communication tools that make it easy for your employees to grasp the full value of their benefits package.

Online Enrollment Portal

Gone are the days of cumbersome paperwork. With our online enrollment portal via EASE or Employee Navigator, open enrollment and benefit administration become seamless processes. Your employees can easily navigate their options, while you maintain control with less administrative burden.

COBRA Administration Services (for companies with 20+ lives)

Navigating COBRA compliance can be tricky, but with CorpStrat, you don’t have to worry. We manage COBRA administration for you, ensuring that your company remains compliant while saving you time and resources.

On-Demand Support from Licensed Technicians

Whether it’s a claims issue or a question about benefit administration, our team of licensed and skilled technicians is just a call away. We provide on-demand support to ensure that your employees get the help they need when they need it.

Benchmark Tools and HR Support

Staying competitive in today’s job market means keeping up with industry standards. We offer benchmarking tools and HR on-demand support, including essential services like sexual harassment training and learning resources. With CorpStrat, you’re never left in the dark about how your benefits stack up.

How Does Your Broker Measure Up?

If your current broker isn’t providing these services, it might be time to reconsider. At CorpStrat, we’re passionate about delivering exceptional value and support without any additional surcharge. Our goal is to make sure that every dollar you spend on employee benefits works as hard as you do.

So, what’s 5% worth? A whole lot when you partner with CorpStrat. Contact us today to see how we can make your benefits package sizzle.

How Your Company Communicates Your Benefits Matters

Leave a reply

How Your Company Communicates Your Benefits Matters

It’s 2024, so by now most companies have some type of technology that they use to communicate and enroll their employee benefits, beyond the insurance company brochures. (IF your company doesn’t have a system and you’re using scans or faxes or .pdf’s, stop reading and call us IMMEDIATELY!)

Considering that costs for employee benefits are a multiple, six-figure expense for most companies and the single most important tool for attracting and retaining employees…. The question is: are you getting the maximum amount of mileage from the communication of your company employee benefits?

Perhaps the single, most important advancement in employee, culture, and engagement is to provide a clear understanding of how their benefits work; not only HOW they work, but specifically to them and their family’s needs. With benefits being one of the least understood and most important assets people have, it’s too late to learn ‘where to go and whom to reach’ when in time of need – people get sick.

Employees need a place (online) to constantly have access to, be able to review and understand what their plans do, how they work, and where the resources are for the problems that are going on in their lives at that moment!

At CorpStrat, our #1 tool for helping companies communicate benefits is a technology called EASE. EASE is a simple, easy-to-use, custom designed tool for each client portal/app that allows for benefit enrollment, benefit communication, premium elections, dependent eligibility, as well as purchasing various voluntary benefits. They get access to their pre-tax accounts, and contacts for who to reach and where when they need it most – not just open enrollment. We simplify the enrollment process for HR administrators so they can be productive, and easily and simply port contributions to payroll and communicate ads, and delete and make changes to carriers.

CorpStrat brings EASE to our clients without charge at expense to our agency, because we believe it is the single and best way to communicate your offerings in the marketplace.

Many companies have an HRIS system (Human Resource Information System), but they don’t always do a great job for benefits, because they’re trying to do perhaps too many things at once. For some HRIS systems, the limitations of the system can ‘short’ the benefit communications. We encourage all of our clients to work closely with us to find the right tools to help their companies succeed, to grow, to attract, and reward the most important assets of every company, their people! This component is only one of the key ingredients that make their company successful.

Reach out to us at CorpStrat to discuss how you communicate and enroll benefits at your company.

Team CorpStrat

#TeamCorpStrat

Enhance Your Benefits Package for Pennies: The Power of Voluntary Benefits

Leave a reply

As open enrollment season approaches, most companies are looking to enhance their benefits packages without breaking the bank. Voluntary benefits offer an excellent solution, providing added value to employees, at little to no cost for employers. Among these offerings, AFLAC stands out as the most requested employee benefit, delivering products that resonate with employees and their bank accounts.

Why Voluntary Benefits Matter

Voluntary benefits, like those offered by AFLAC, Guardian , Sun Life, and many others, can significantly improve your company’s benefits package without straining your budget. These supplemental insurance options allow employees to customize their coverage based on individual needs, filling gaps in traditional health insurance plans.

Key advantages of offering voluntary benefits include:

Increased employee satisfaction and retention
Improved ability to attract top talent
Enhanced financial security for employees
Minimal administrative burden for employers
No direct costs to the company

While AFLAC has earned a reputation as the #1 provider of voluntary insurance in the United States, most voluntary policies offer quick cash benefits- paid directly to policyholders, helping cover expenses that major medical insurance doesn’t. This unique approach has made voluntary benefits the most requested employee benefit, with features that resonate strongly with workers:

Fast claims processing, often within one day
Cash benefits paid directly to policyholders
Coverage that travels with employees even if they change jobs
A wide range of policy options to suit diverse needs

Easy Implementation, Big Impact

Adding voluntary benefits to your offerings is a straightforward process that can yield significant returns in employee satisfaction and loyalty. The enrollment process is typically digitally, through your benefits portal – and the programs CorpStrat offers are best in class.

As you prepare for open enrollment, consider the power of voluntary benefits to enhance your benefits package. With minimal effort and expense, you can provide your employees with valuable financial protection and peace of mind, setting your company apart as an employer of choice. Ask your CorpStrat representative about voluntary benefits for your team.

How CorpStrat utilizes Employer Health Benefits Surveys and Benchmarking Reports to recommend plan designs and cost-sharing strategies for clients

Leave a reply

CorpStrat analyzes multiple survey data, such as the annual Kaiser Foundation Survey of Employee Benefits, alongside other industry intel reports, to provide clients with a holistic view of market trends.

This allows companies to benchmark their offerings against similar-sized businesses in their industry, ensuring competitiveness in attracting and retaining talent.

For example, using insights from the KFF survey, CorpStrat works closely with clients to design benefits plans.

We consider factors such as:

– Premium costs (average annual premiums were $8,435 for single coverage and $23,968 for family coverage in 2023)

– Employee contributions (workers contributed an average of 17% for single coverage and 29% for family coverage)

– Popular plan types (PPOs covered 47% of workers, followed by HDHP/SOs at 29%.

CorpStrat helps clients develop cost-sharing approaches that balance affordability for employees with the company’s financial objectives.

For example, employers might consider that:

– 90% of workers with single coverage have a general annual deductible

– The average deductible for single coverage is $1,735

– 31% of covered workers have a general annual deductible of $2,000 or more for single coverage.

Trend Analysis and Innovation – CorpStrat analyzes multi-year data to identify emerging trends, such as:

– The growing importance of telemedicine (91% of large employers covered telemedicine services in their largest health plan)

– The prevalence of wellness programs (62% of small firms and 80% of large firms offered at least one wellness program)[1]

Compliance Guidance – With its understanding of industry benchmarks and regulatory requirements, CorpStrat ensures that clients’ benefits packages meet market standards and comply with relevant laws such as affordability requirements of the ACA.

Communication Support – CorpStrat assists clients in effectively communicating the value of their benefits packages to employees, contextualizing the company’s offerings within broader market trends.

Ongoing Optimization – The firm provides continuous support, regularly reviewing and adjusting benefits strategies based on the latest survey data and client feedback. This ensures that benefit offerings remain optimized and aligned with both employee needs and company objectives.

By leveraging these industry tools and its expertise, CorpStrat empowers clients to make informed decisions about their benefits strategies, creating competitive, cost-effective packages that support employee well-being and contribute to overall business success.

Citations:

https://www.kff.org/report-section/ehbs-2023-summary-of-findings/

It’s Renewal Time – Now What??

Leave a reply

The majority of US employers will be getting a very thick package in their inboxes from their insurance company in the next 60 to 90 days. Included in this is their plan renewal for their benefits, which may include potentially a rate adjustment, as well as plan benefit changes – some of which are mandated by law, and some of which are a function of an evolving landscape of benefit plans and design structures.

What to do?

If you’re an employer and you deliver benefits to your team, which by and large includes nearly all businesses, especially those mandated by law to provide at 50 lives, this is a critical time for you to review both the opportunity to renew your existing plans, and/ or consider the opportunities that the insurance market might bear, as there are many choices, plans, benefits, and programs.

At CorpStrat, the process starts with a strategy call with your Account Manager, and an understanding of how your benefit programs play into your recruitment and retention planning – and also understanding the specific nuances, health care concerns, and cash flows that dictate what you offer and how.

Your call might involve benchmarking, a review or your culture, workers preferences, surveying employee opinion on benefit choices, and understanding the cost sharing structure that you currently offer to your team – which can drive net costs to you as an employer.

Once an understanding of your goals is achieved, our team reviews the marketplace, as well as your current offering and makes a recommendation for the coming plan year. Our experienced and veteran advisors are live humans, no call centers!

Open enrollment typically is done with digital engagement tools and employees get time to select plans and cost sharing and most companies offer voluntary plans as well.

If you or someone on your team would like CorpStrat guidance, leadership, and direction or you know of a company that could benefit our services, please reach out.

The highest compliment we can get is a referral from our existing clients!

Note that insurance companies are overwhelmed at this time of year too, so the sooner you get a planning and strategy done, the better your outcomes will be.

Remember, CorpStrat is one of the states leading providers of employee benefits, and we get paid directly from insurance carriers. There’s no additional charge for our services. Why not work with advisors, not call centers? Call or email us.