Employee benefits have taken a huge leap in importance, according to two new studies from the insurance-industry research group LIMRA. Listen as LIMRA’s Kelly Landry and Unum Group’s Cindy Nevers discuss five mega trends expected to change the industry – and enrollment tips for employers to implement now. The full reports are available to LIMRA members, and previewed in this special episode for HR Trends listeners. 

• The studies: The first annual BEAT (Benefits and Employee Attitude) Tracker study surveyed employees to determine how benefits intersect with employee attitudes toward work. Harnessing Growth and Seizing Opportunity: The Future of Workforce Benefits presents megatrends to watch in the next several years, distilled from the insights of key industry stakeholders. [04:36]
• See the free LIMRA infographic [A1] on what employees think about work. [07:21]
• Money isn’t everything, especially for millennials: Only about 30% of millennials said salary was the top reason to choose an employer. The rest prioritized factors like work/life balance, flexibility and benefits. [10:38]
• Benefits education and communication are vitally important: All stakeholders agree that helping employees understand their benefits is of mounting importance, especially for supplemental benefits.
•  Rethink the emphasis on total self-service for benefits, especially for younger workers who have less experience buying and using insurance coverage [12:00]
• More is more: There is a strong correlation between employee satisfaction and the number of benefitsoffered. With five generations in the workforce, employers need to offer a large number of benefits employees can choose from based on their individual circumstances. See the free LIMRA infographic on what employees think about benefits. [20:38]
• Rethink your benefits spend: Because employees value quantity and choice, it may not always make senseto commit the vast majority of benefits spending to offering the most generous health insurance plan. Supplementing a less generous plan with voluntary benefits like accident and critical illness can offer similar protection for employees while allowing them to tailor benefits to fit their age, lifestyle, income and other circumstances. [23:38]
• Brokers aren’t going anywhere, but their role will likely change: As it gets easier to obtain digital quotes for benefits, employers will call upon brokers more for advice, guidance and strategy consultation [26:07]
•  Enlisting leadership in the communication effort will make employees feel more valued. [32:00]

Featured speakers 

Kimberly Landry
Associate Research Director, LIMRA

Kimberly Landry is an Associate Research Director for Workplace Benefits Research at LIMRA. She conducts quantitative and qualitative research on hot topics within the employee benefits industry, with a specific focus on employer and employee perspectives. 

 Cindy Nevers
National Sales Leader Voluntary Benefits, Unum Group 

In her more than 30 years with Unum Group, Cindy Nevers has held a wide range of leadership roles for both Unum and Colonial Life brands. She has led oversight for Group Client Services, Global Services/Project Implementation & Journey transformation, Field Operations and Field Compensation, and Client Management. Cindy led national broker strategy at Colonial Life and most recently became the National Sales Leader for Voluntary Benefits at Unum.