Companies are looking to better communicate with their employees via apps and mobile-enabled websites, which is one way technology is increasingly being used in the benefits industry.

Walter Fagan, regional director for employee benefits technology at Hub International Insurance Services, said that employers think it is increasingly important to eliminate multiple data entry points.

“Eliminating multiple data entry points is important, so many companies, especially smaller ones, are looking for either an all-in-one solution or one that will provide bilateral connectivity to their existing payroll and/or human resource information system (HRIS),” Fagan told HR Daily Wire. “Also, employers want to provide additional value to their employees and are offering platforms that include nontraditional benefits such as group purchasing, student loans and pet insurance.”

Fagan has seen a big shift toward human capital management, with solutions that start within applicant tracking systems and onboarding and include all benefits, payroll, time and attendance information. These can all be included in a single database, with one log in and one invoice number, Fagan said.

“While there is still a demand for true, quality benefits administration systems, there is tremendous value in both the data integrity derived from a single system, as well as the ease of burden to administer it,” Fagan said.

He added there is always a potential for greater innovation as far as technology is concerned.

“For one, there needs to be higher quality connectivity between insurance carriers, payroll and HRIS,” Fagan said. “However, the cost of this connectivity continues to be an issue for many clients. In addition, single platforms that include all aspects of HR employee administration such as COBRA, HSA/HRA and other aspects of an employee’s work/life are needed."

In addition to insurance and wellness benefits, the single platforms could include enrollment and financial tools instead of simply redirecting users to a financial website to complete the process.

“Transparency and consumerism tools exist but are not core to a single platform," he said. "Platforms are needed that offer many drivers that transcend the basic benefits and company information.”

These drivers could include anything from employee discounts to research tools, Fagan said.

“The value is in the capture and availability of current, relevant data achieved by employees 'living in' an employer provided site rather than just logging in at open enrollment, how most tools are used today," he said.

Fagan said there are a lot of benefits administration platforms that cannot “handle the intricacies of individual and group voluntary plans, such as the ability to buy additional life insurance each year."

“This limits what employers can offer, so the platform dictates the benefits, rather than the benefits dictating the platform,” he said. “In addition, despite technological advances regarding functionality and automation, companies with fewer than 250 employees are widely considered to be an underserved market.”

If a company is looking to invest in technology, the biggest issue is to make sure it understands the problem it's trying to solve and to make sure that the technology meets that need, Fagan said.

“There are a lot of shiny pennies out there, and many companies are disappointed after they go through implementation because the platform doesn’t deliver everything they thought it would," he said. "There is a disparity between quality technology and quality service. It is easy to be sold on the sizzle of a modern user interface and quality functionality. However, if the service from the vendor building the site, managing changes and performing the maintenance is poor, which unfortunately, is very common, it can leave the HR department regretting their choice of vendors, a potential costly mistake both in time and money."

On transparency tools, Fagan said there are a number of options. Carriers offer them on their platforms, and many vendors have gone down market allowing smaller companies to access transparency tools, he said.

“There are options that allow the employee to share in the savings if they utilize a less costly vendor," Fagan said. “While the options are greater and we’ve seen more interest lately, we haven’t yet seen a huge jump in the utilization of these tools.  We think that this will continue to grow as the high deductible plans continue to evolve.  However, the issue again is with their separation from the core systems, requiring a separate app, log in, charge, etc.”

In short, the biggest challenges “surround the availability of the correct platform, knowing how to select the right vendor, the time and effort to implement, and of course, the cost,” Fagan said.