The Value of a Benefits Strategic Plan The employee benefits marketplace has become increasingly complex and competitive. The central questions that need to be addressed are: What is your organization’s current strategic view of benefits and HR? What are today’s human capital management priorities? What is the role of your benefits program? Why do you spend money on benefits? And what do you want to accomplish with your benefits program over the next 3-5 years?

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Benefits Strategic Planning Made Easy…We advocate a nationally recognized, six-step process that simultaneously serves as a project plan, and a springboard for future management decisions regarding the benefits program.

 

When engaging in the strategic planning process the following themes should be emphasized:

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• Clearer alignment of the total rewards strategy with the overall business strategy is a critical key to success for all employers today. HR must play a strategic role in the organization and be the driving force behind the workforce becoming a unique competitive advantage for the company.

• A well-defined road map (i.e. – Benefits Strategic Plan) is an essential tool to ensure proactive management of the rewards program and its alignment with the business mission. This is a philosophical approach that will aid HR professionals and make their job easier. The absence of such a plan results in HR being relegated to a reactive role that diminishes the potential of a company’s biggest asset – their workforce.

 

The Benefits Strategic Plan in Practice  Embracing the concept of the Benefits Strategic Plan will cause a long-term, positive change in the planning and management of your benefits program.

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We will start with a discovery meeting to discuss your overall organizational philosophy and how the ABC Company employee benefit plan fits into that. RBA will work jointly with the ABC Company team to develop a benefits strategic plan that aligns with your overall corporate mission and goals, and will formalize this in a Benefits Strategic Plan document.

The ABC Company Benefits Strategic Plan will serve as the roadmap for managing benefits and containing costs, modifying plan design and introducing new voluntary benefits, enhancing or improving benefits communications, adjusting or implementing new administration processes, and leveraging technology.

Looking further into the future, on a semi-annual or annual basis we will utilize the Benefits Strategic Plan to review progress and to ensure all activities are aligned with the current business circumstances.