Working in the benefits business, every day I speak with employers facing serious challenges. Nearly every company wishes they could reduce their healthcare spend (or at least slow down inflation). The majority admit concern that they may have compliance blindspots in their processes or documents. Many wonder whether they are missing something, like the latest ideas in plan design or a new funding strategy. It is not with mirth that I report that oftentimes these fears are justified. The trouble isn’t that there aren’t fixes – the trouble is that it takes difficult decisions to make progress.
Lately I’ve spoken with several employer groups that have fallen into the trap of doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Sticking with the same funding strategy, the same plan designs, or the same broker… but continuing to lament issues around cost and/or compliance. Granted, the industry has trained employers to react this way – the broker side in particular is filled with loads of slick, aggressive salespeople, and it’s easy to just tune out… or give up, feeling that everyone is the same. But only by challenging that inertia can we make real progress.
Imagine that you told me that you’ve been wanting to lose 10 pounds, but your routine at Anytime Fitness hasn’t been getting the job done. I might suggest that you try CrossFit. I’ve had good results with it because all the programming is done for you, it continually challenges you to push your fitness limits, and – as a bonus – many gyms offer dietary advice as well. But, you say, CrossFit sounds really hard. So instead you decide to change it up and try Planet Fitness, where lots of your friends go (maybe because they offer free bagels and pizza). I suspect that if we checked in again after a year, you’d still be looking to lose those 10 pounds. (Maybe more, depending on how many pizza days you attended.) Well, I might say, you’ll recall I suggested CrossFit. Yes, but CrossFit is hard, you might reply…
Imagine a similar conversation in a benefits context. Perhaps you’ve entertained a presentation from a broker who has some new plan design ideas, or a compliance solution that would be really helpful. Yes, you might say, but many of my other friends use my current broker, and changing might be hard because his feelings might get hurt. See where I’m going with this?
One of the things that keeps me going in this business is that the solutions are out there, and I love bringing them to our clients. If you’ve been reading this blog over the past year, you have gotten a sense of some of the cool design and technology solutions that have me revved up. These ideas are out there for plan sponsors – if they’re willing to make difficult decisions.
Ready to make the leap and get serious about cost containment and compliance? Give us a shout. We might even bring you pizza or bagels.
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