Category Archives: Employee Health

Group Disability Insurance: Just How Important Is it? (Hint: Very)

Getting disabled. It’s easy to think, “that’s never going to happen to me” or “stuff like that only happens to other people”. We get it, nobody thinks they’re going to be the victims of a disability. Did you know that 1 in 7 Americans can expect to be disabled for 5 years or more? You heard us right, 1 in 7.

Most people dismiss the idea of becoming disabled without giving it a second thought. We think it’s one of the biggest mistakes employers and employees can make. Becoming disabled could be financially catastrophic, especially for families that rely on a single income. If you’re a close relative of Bill Gates or Jeff Bezos, becoming financially burdened may not be a problem for you. But if you’re not, you need to ask yourself: how are you going to replace your income in the event that you can’t work? Both business owners and employees who earn and need to continue to generate incomes must protect themselves and their families.

That’s where Group Disability Insurance comes in. Group Disability Insurance is:

1.) Extremely affordable
2.) A fantastic Employee Benefit
3.) Protection for people who need to protect others.

Some people are under the false impression that Group Disability Insurance is expensive. This couldn’t be further from the truth. In the event of the unthinkable, NOT having Group Disability Insurance is far more costly. Even though it’s not a flashy benefit, none of your employees are going to jump for joy, it’s one of the most important benefits you can provide. Because when life happens and someone gets disabled, this will be the lifeline that keeps their family financially afloat.

If you’d like to set up Group Disability Insurance for your team, contact us at marketing@corpstrat.com and we’ll get you started!

8 Ways Not Having Workforce Automation Can Get You Into Trouble

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When it comes to your people management systems, are you in iPhone or a flip phone?

If you haven’t gone paperless, your company is stuck in the past. It’s time to avoid major headaches, increase employee satisfaction, track time & attendance in a single database, and make onboarding a breeze with Workforce Automation. You may be thinking, “isn’t going paperless a hassle?” We’d say by not going paperless, you’re leaving your company at risk for potential law suits, compliance issues, and major fines. If you ask us, that sounds like a MUCH bigger hassle.

Setting up Workforce Automation will ensure that:

1. Onboarding doesn’t have to be a time suck.

Onboarding no longer has to be a tedious process that spans a few days. Switching to a cloud-based database with a powerful web and mobile application makes onboarding a breeze for both new hires and for the HR department. With workforce automation, the new employees know exactly what forms they need to sign, the signatures are stored in a secure database, and documents never go missing. Also HR teams can rest easy that employees can’t claim they didn’t sign a document or weren’t made aware, everything is easily accessible and laid out in easy to understand checklists.

2. Time and attendance is ALWAYS accurate.

Tracking accurate time and attendance is more critical than ever. Take punching-in and punching-out into the 21st century with a powerful mobile app that allows your employees to clock in and out once they’re within a certain distance of the office or work site. California has especially stringent labor laws so as an employer, going paperless with time and attendance means you can pull a report on your workforce attendance in just a few minutes.

3. No one’s missing out on PTO days.

Nothing benefits a company more than having a motivated team. Part of maintaining employee engagement is to make sure they’re taking their PTO days and getting the rest they need to reset. Give employees visibility into their accrued hours via a self-service portal they can access from anywhere. Having transparent PTO accrual and usage hours ensures that PTO is properly paid out and reduced against balances.

4. Benefit enrollment is easy and your team has exactly the plan they need.

Benefits don’t have to be a headache for HR and confusing for employees. With an automated application, you’re able to offer your employees clear guidance on their benefit options. Once they choose their option, enrolling is simple and straightforward. Sometimes employees drag their feet on signing up for benefits, by going paperless, HR teams will know exactly who has yet to sign up, and can easily send a gentle reminder. Finally, going paperless protects the company by maintaining a reliable record, employees can’t come back and say they weren’t made aware or were never offered benefits.

5. Important forms and documents don’t go missing.

In the past, it was common for companies to have entire storage rooms dedicated to keeping paperwork. Nowadays, HR teams may keep a combination of hard copies and hard drives with computer files. This often leads to important documents getting lost, deleted, or simply overlooked. When important documents go missing, it can mean costly consequences if you’re faced with a law suit. Going paperless allows you to keep all mandatory files on current and past employees, all on line and easily accessible for employees and HR. No more taking up unnecessary office space and no more worrying about compliance.

6. Communicating important changes (like COVID-19 policy updates) is simple and no one misses the memo.

Failing to have an expedient way to communicate rapidly changing policies, like ones pertaining to COVID-19, can cause compliance issues. Not only does it keep you compliant, it also makes things like updating your Employee Handbook as easy as can be. No more wasting paper by printing out memos or Employee Handbook updates, simple make edits and hit “update” and you and your team are good to go.

7. Even when your entire team is remote, you can continue to build company culture.

Don’t forget: people need people! It’s been a tough year for company culture as so many teams have gone remote. Adopting workforce automation can actually help you continue building culture while remote. You can share culture building, like employee of the month or promotions, and company mission related information to your team with the push of a button.

8. Employees can access all the information they need on their smart phone.

Employees have come to expect that their information is readily accessible via smart phone and web and not dependent upon one person or email requests, why should their work place be any different? Increase employee satisfaction by up to 183% when you go paperless and allow employees access to edit or check their documents, benefits, and records—any time, any where.

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Thinking of going paperless and bringing your team into the 21st century? Schedule a call with us. We’ll be there every step of the way and make it a seamless transition, using a combination of our cutting edge technology and unbeatable service.

8 Reasons Why You Need an Employee Benefits Audit

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When’s the last time you took a hard look at your Employee Benefits? If you’re running your Employee Benefits the same as it’s always been, you could be missing out on major cost-saving opportunities. We’d highly recommend getting an Employee Benefits Audit to make sure you’re not missing out on hidden benefits.

During an Employee Benefits Audit, we take a close look at your current offerings and work with you to create an efficient solution that’s better for your organization. Read on to see eight reasons why you should get an Employee Benefits Audit as soon as possible.

1. You’re not communicating clearly with your employees.

The technology around Employee Benefits continues to improve, we can connect you with better platform tech that can offer your employees a better experience and make it easier for you to communicate benefits plans to your employees more clearly.

2. You’re overpaying for the wrong benefits

A benefits audit can help you identify areas to improve your plan benefit, save you money, and reconfigure your total benefit package. Choosing to just go with a standard package can cost you—narrow networks and subtle benefit design differences can add up to big savings.

3. You’re not taking advantage of tax opportunities

If you’re not taking advantage of tax opportunities, you’re leaving money on the table. During an Employee Benefits Audit, you’ll work with an experienced benefits broker who knows their way around the various tax benefits.

4. Your Employee Enrollment Experience Isn’t Great.

Employee satisfaction is so important and surveys show that when the benefits enrollment experience isn’t approachable and easy to use, employee satisfaction begins to trend down. A benefits audit can help you find where your tech is lacking so you can take advantage of the best technology in the market to produce the best enrollment experience possible for your staff.

5. You’re not sure if you’re compliant.

Why stay up late worrying if you’re compliant. After a quick audit, we can ensure that you are compliant with COBRA, ERISA and other areas of exposures employers need to cover.

6. Your Team is Work From Home and Benefits details aren’t being communicated.

There’s no question, COVID has changed how we work. Now that most employees are working from home, it’s more difficult to make sure the value of your benefit program is being recognized. Not only are there benefits you can add to your package, designed for remote teams, there are also new tools that can help you better communicate with your employees, virtually.

7. You’re putting off a Benefits Audit because you don’t have time.

Don’t wait until enrollment is around the corner to do a benefits audit. You might be putting off big savings and you’ll be rushed to enroll may not have enough time to do critical analysis.

8. You don’t want to be met with hefty fines or costly litigation

Rules, policies, and plans are constantly changing, if you don’t do regular audits of your employee benefits package, you could be met with hefty fines or costly litigation. As an employer, you’re a fiduciary, which means you have compliance and legal obligations that can cost you if you fail to comply, communicate, and file.

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Need an Employee Benefits Audit? We can help you with that. Email us at marketing@www.corpstrat.com or schedule a call with one of our experts today.

When’s the Best Time to Choose an Employee Benefits Broker?

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Open enrollment is now over and we hope you’ve chosen a benefits package that works well for your team. However, if you found the process of choosing the right benefits tedious, you’re not alone. With so many options in the market, you might be looking for an Employee Benefits Broker to guide you through and help you make smarter decisions. You might be thinking “I’ll just wait until the next open enrollment to choose a great Employee Benefits Broker”. Here are a few reasons why we’d advise against that:

Don’t wait until the last minute and scramble ahead of Open Enrollment.

Before you know it, Open Enrollment is just around the corner. Waiting until the last minute can really cost you because you may not have time to carefully compare and contrast plans. Or worse, you opt to renew what you already have without taking a hard look at your other options. Choosing a broker to partner with well ahead of enrollment cuts down on your stress and allows you to build a benefits package that works best for your team. Plus, you’ll rest easy knowing they’ve found you the lowest cost plan in the market.

You want to save money and choose the best possible plan for your team.

If you don’t have a Benefits Broker, you may completely miss out on cost-saving opportunities, new plan updates, or simple ways to make your benefits package more appealing to your employees. Having an ongoing advisory relationship with your broker means they can give you a better evaluation of your current plan and help you eliminate plans that aren’t as effective.

Every broker gets paid the same 5%.

Now that you’ve decided on working with a great broker, be aware that not every broker is created equal BUT all brokers cost you the same amount. You should shop for a broker just like you shop for anything else—when you buy a TV, you shop around for the best quality at the best value. Ask yourself: Am I getting the best value for my money when it comes to my Employee Benefits Broker? The best and worst health brokers get paid exactly the same percentage so make sure you’re getting one who gives you the best value: high advisory support and data driven tools to help you with your business.

You’re not just choosing a Broker. You’re choosing an advisor.

In looking for the right Employee Benefits Broker, remember you’re not just choosing someone to manage your benefits, you’re choosing a long term advisor. When you work with CorpStrat, you get a number of value added services—we essentially become an extension of your HR team. We also have a bevy of tools that can help you choose the right plan, save money, communicate and deliver the plans to your employees, and remain compliant. A good Broker has your back, you don’t just hear from us when it’s time for enrollment, we’ll reach out to you with answers before you even think to ask the question. You’ll never have to call the carrier, we’ll solve any claim issues and billing issues. We’re always looking for how to better manage these plans and better serve you.

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Looking for an Employee Benefits Broker? We can help with that. Schedule a FREE 30 minute consultation with us today.

8 Things You May Have Missed In Your Benefits Plan

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Open enrollment is over, are you confident in your benefit planning for the year? At CorpStrat, we’re not just experts in Human Capital Management, we’re actually health insurance brokers first. Many employers or individuals shop for health care plans on their own, which is fine but can quickly become overwhelming. What we want to do is understand your exact situation so we can help you choose a benefit plan that aligns with your medical and financial needs.

As health insurance brokers, we’ll aid you in the selection process from start to finish. On top of that, you won’t only hear from us during Enrollment Season, we’re here to advise you all year round. We can also help you find coverage and hidden benefits that will keep you and your team healthy and happy. As brokers, we’re able to freely shop plans in the market, we’re not tied to any one insurer, meaning you can rest assured you have the right coverage for your team at the most affordable price.

Here are a few things you may have missed when benefits planning for 2021:

1. Talking to an actual human

After page 7 of browsing healthcare plan options, you may feel overwhelmed and nowhere closer to choosing the right plan for your team. This is where we as health insurance brokers can really step in and take that stress off your plate. You’ll have quick access to support, personalized recommendations, and our specialized health insurance knowledge.

2. LifeBridge

LifeBridge is an affordable, basic term life insurance policy with guaranteed acceptance. To learn more about LIfeBridge plans, please email us at marketing@www.corpstrat.com.

3. Paperless enrollment

If you haven’t gone paperless yet, 2021 is the time to make that change. Using an online enrollment system streamlines your processes, ensures nothing falls through the cracks, and makes it easier for your employees to make an informed choice.

4. Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

FSAs are a pre-tax benefit account used to pay for eligible medical, dental, and vision care expenses that aren’t covered by your insurance plan. With an FSA, as long as you have relatively predictable medical expenses each year, you can expect to save around 20-25% in taxes on every dollar you put in.

5. Extra Plan Benefits

There are often extras that carriers provide that your team may not be be taking advantage of. We can help make sure you’re not missing anything.

6. ERISA Plan Document Updates

There are various reasons why keeping your ERISA Plan Documents updated is so important. Check out our full blog post on why.

7. Open Enrollment Support

We want you to have a health insurance broker during Open Enrollment that can answer any questions you can have, help you choose the right plan, and make sure the plan you land on is executed properly. From being available by phone or email at all times to providing you side-by-side comparisons so you can evaluate different plan options, we make choosing a plan painless and easy.

8. Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

EAP is a voluntary, work-based program that provides benefits for people with real problems and no one to turn to. If an employee is undergoing personal or work-related problems that might impact their job performance, mental health, or emotional well-being, an EAP can offer confidential assessments, short-term counseling, and more.

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To learn more about these things you may have missed in your benefits plan and how CorpStrat can help, schedule a call with us today.