WHAT DOES A BENEFITS ADMINISTRATOR DO?
The Benefits Administrator synthesizes information from various sources, reconciling discrepancies to maintain the confidentiality and security of data, and ensures compliance with legal standards. This role involves setting up and refining processes to manage organizational needs and actively participating in teams to achieve set goals. Additionally, the administrator will conduct internal surveys, participate in external research, and provide necessary support for audits and system security adjustments.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Benefits Administrator
1. Benefits Administrator Duties
- Benefits Processing: Ensures benefit changes are processed following Company Plan Documents.
- Inquiry Handling: Responds to end-user, associate, and vendor inquiries concerning policies, procedures, guidelines, rules, and regulations.
- Verification Support: Supports dependent verification process by processing changes.
- M&A Support: Provides support to benefit integrations for mergers and acquisitions.
- Record Maintenance: Maintains accurate records in the system, evaluates and manages staff performance.
- Leadership: Provides support, guidance, leadership, and motivation to promote maximum performance.
- Performance Monitoring: Monitors management reports relating to the area/office performance.
- Policy Implementation: Implements procedural and policy changes to improve operational efficiency.
- Staff Management: Reviews and manages staff time cards, reviews, and approves staff overtime.
- Project Analysis: Performs review and analysis of special projects and keeps the management properly informed.
2. Benefits Administrator Details
- Project Management: Oversees the work of assigned analysts, including project assignment and workflow.
- Audit Analysis: Analyzes and performs audits of existing members for liabilities and adherence to company standards.
- Issue Resolution: Resolves and adjusts errors and complaints, and supports the organization's quality programs.
- Operational Management: Completes operational requirements by scheduling and assigning employees and following up on work results.
- Policy Administration: Administers company personnel policies in membership areas and follows company staffing standards and training recommendations.
- Performance Optimization: Maximizes performance within the team with the development of strategies that enhance productivity.
- Record Management: Processes changes and updates and keeps updated member records on both database and file systems.
- Client Support: Effectively and courteously handles all queries, issues, or disputes that clients may have and escalates appropriately.
- Data Verification: Verifies data correctness and communicates any discrepancies with the client concisely and politely.
- Compliance Assurance: Establishes policy and procedures to assure compliance with best practices, membership management services standards, state regulations, and client service requirements.
3. Benefits Administrator Responsibilities
- Eligibility Management: Verify eligibility and manage enrollment of new members and members’ families.
- Billing Verification: Prepare and verify bills and other applicable reports per each client’s requirements.
- Communication Management: Respond to communications and information requests on time.
- Issue Notification: Identify and notify any issues with any of external facing interfaces/portals to supervisor.
- Third Party Administration: Handle all the Third Party Administration tasks related to Cost-Plus and H.S.A. customers as per the respective client contracts.
- Benefit Plan Administration: Responsible for the administration of benefit plans/programs for active and former employees.
- Benefits Inquiry: Research and respond to employee inquiries about benefits.
- Issue Resolution: Help resolve issues or concerns effectively and proactively.
- Benefits Advising: Advise employees regarding benefit plan coverage and costs.
- Employee Advocacy: Act as an employee advocate with benefit providers to resolve issues.
4. Benefits Administrator Job Summary
- Benefits Administration: Administer all benefit enrollments, terminations, changes in coverage, and beneficiaries.
- Employee Support: Serve as primary benefits contact for employee inquiries and the main point of contact for benefit carriers.
- Education: Conduct new employee benefit orientations and provide other educational opportunities throughout the year.
- Program Management: Manage a variety of established benefit-related programs and processes.
- File Management: Oversee maintenance of employee benefits files and maintain benefit data in the HRIS system.
- Communication: Create and update professional collateral, communications, and branding for programs.
- Newsletter Production: Produce a monthly benefit newsletter and maintain benefit information in HRIS and on the firm intranet site.
- Plan Design Analysis: Examine possible plan designs and benefits cost changes.
- Invoice Auditing: Work with the HR Coordinator to audit monthly benefit invoices and ensure timely submission to Finance for payment processing.
- Documentation: Evaluate and update internal benefit process documentation.
5. Benefits Administrator Duties and Roles
- Benefits Design: Work closely with the benefits broker to research, and design.
- Coordination: Coordinate new benefits, programs, and educational opportunities.
- Program Management: Responsible for the implementation and maintenance of ABCD’s benefits programs.
- Policy Oversight: Responsible for the oversight of the agency’s leave of absence policies.
- Guidance: Guide employees and managers on all benefits and leave of absence-related policies and procedures.
- Process Coordination: Coordinate leave of absence processes including the preparation of medical leave and worker’s compensation paperwork.
- Orientation Conducting: Conduct the agency’s weekly Orientation for newly hired staff including personnel policies and review enrollment.
- Plan Administration: Manage the day-to-day administration of ABCD’s retirement plans.
- Regulatory Assistance: Assist in the completion of government-required benefit plan forms and reporting.
- Premium Oversight: Oversee the timely payment of monthly insurance premiums, related to group health, dental, life/disability, and FSA plans.
- Benefits Analysis: Assist in research and review of new and existing benefits programs.
6. Benefits Administrator Job Description
- Project Management: Lead ongoing benefit initiatives/projects and act as backup for processing payroll.
- Operations Management: Oversee the ongoing operations/processing of benefits and ensure the accuracy and effectiveness of the benefits database are maintained.
- Project Planning: Develop and manage a project plan to determine the resources needed and the timing of those resources.
- Customer Service: Ensure timely, accurate responses to employee/HR queries.
- Issue Tracking: Track issues to determine trends or if the issue is more global.
- Cost Analysis: Analyze review and monitor the costs for benefits so budgets can be met or justified to the Benefits Manager.
- Invoice Management: Review vendor invoices for accuracy and processing.
- Communication: Develop effective, ongoing communications to employees to ensure ongoing education and awareness of benefits offerings/change.
- Vendor Relations: Interface with local vendors to ensure that the team and employees receive the expected level of service.
7. Benefits Administrator Additional Details
- Benefits Communication: Work alongside Human Resources to act as the main point of contact for employees regarding benefit information.
- Documentation: Review, approve, and request updates for approval for all documentation for new hire enrollments, open enrollments, life events, and dependent updates.
- Compliance Assurance: Ensure compliance with all federal programs such as HIPPA, COBRA, and FMLA.
- Reporting: Oversee and process all reporting for the end of the fiscal and calendar year.
- Materials: Create and maintain benefits processes and employee marketing materials.
- Payroll Coordination: Work closely with the Payroll Manager to ensure the accuracy of benefit deductions in each payroll cycle.
- Customer Support: Provide high touch and responsive customer support to all employees ensuring a positive experience.
- HR Support: Provide support to other areas of Human Resources and assist with ongoing projects.
- Legal/Tax Implications: Appreciate the differences in legal/tax issues within the various countries and the implications for the viability of the benefits offered.
- Relationship Development: Develop and maintain good relationships with employees, other groups within HR, and other groups outside of HR.
8. Benefits Administrator Roles and Responsibilities
- Benefits Development: Assist with the development, implementation, and maintenance of employee benefit programs.
- PTO Administration: Assist with the administration of all paid time off programs and resolve all data and system-related issues.
- Issue Resolution: Respond to and resolve associate issues escalated by third-party administrators; partner with management to resolve cases.
- Communications: Assist with the planning, drafting, and publishing of benefits communication articles.
- Legal Compliance: Process and file all court-ordered coverage and leave of absence (LOA)-related unemployment claims.
- Inquiry Response: Respond to questions and special requests from associates and managers on a variety of benefits-related topics.
- Event Support: Support all benefit events such as education workshops, health fairs, blood drives, flu clinics, etc.
- Reporting: Develop and generate reports to meet management requests and business needs for HR-related data and statistics.
- Relationship Management: Manage relationships in a manner acceptable to others and to the organization.
- Policy Adherence: Adhere consistently to all organizational policies related to a respectful workplace.
9. Benefits Administrator Responsibilities and Key Tasks
- Information Synthesis: Evaluate information gathered from multiple sources, reconcile conflicts, and summarize information.
- Data Confidentiality: Maintain the confidentiality and security of data accessed during daily activities.
- Team Collaboration: Actively participate as a member of a team to move the team toward the completion of goals.
- Procedure Setup: Set up ongoing procedures to collect and review information needed to manage an organization or ongoing activities within it.
- Comprehensive Task Management: Accomplish tasks by considering all areas involved, no matter how small.
- Quality Assurance: Show concern for all aspects of the job and accurately check processes and tasks.
- Regulatory Awareness: Stay informed of and communicate any legal or regulatory changes that may impact benefits programs.
- Benefits Research: Create internal benefit surveys and participate in external benefit market research surveys.
- Audit Support: Provide support for audit requests and ensure compliance with internal policies.
- Security Management: Add/remove security for any approved requests and troubleshoot system issues.
10. Benefits Administrator Tasks
- System Support: Provide support on the UltiPro Benefits Prime system
- System Testing: Test new business processes, system modifications, and updates
- Audit Support: Provide support for audit requests for compliance with internal policies
- Data Integrity: Maintain the integrity of data by performing monthly benefit audits and reports
- Reporting Assistance: Assist with the monthly benefit reports to finance, testing all changes to the system
- Enrollment Assistance: Assist with the benefits annual enrollment period and related activities
- Vendor Coordination: Work with external vendors to prepare new hire benefit packages for the new year
- Inquiry Response: Respond to employee benefit inquiries, FMLA and disability administration
- Compensation Support: Support core compensation functions such as report requests, transaction monitoring, data analysis, and system testing
- Project Participation: Participate in special projects and perform additional duties