Cowan Benefits Ltd.’s annual client event, THINK 2024, brought together experts to share actionable insights for businesses looking to strengthen their employee benefits programs. The opening session, led by Tari Duguay, Principal Consultant and Practice Lead in Group Benefits Consulting, set the tone for a day of strategic learning. Tari’s presentation, Evolving Your Benefits Plan, focused on aligning benefits programs with corporate goals, fostering employee well-being, and ensuring measurable outcomes.
Tari introduced attendees to the Five Pillars of a Benefits Plan Philosophy, a framework designed to help organizations craft a benefits strategy tailored to their unique needs. Each pillar builds upon the last, ensuring a holistic approach to benefits planning.
Why does your organization offer benefits in the first place? Defining the purpose is foundational, as it sets the tone for all subsequent decisions. Whether your focus is on attracting top talent, supporting employee health, or enhancing engagement, your program’s complexity should match your organization’s goals.
Tari emphasized that the scope of a benefits plan can vary significantly. Whether simple or elaborate, the plan should be an extension of your organization’s identity. This alignment strengthens your role as a leader in supporting your team.
Organizations are responsible for considering what types of coverage will best serve their teams. From life insurance and disability coverage to health and dental plans, the options are vast. However, navigating these choices requires strategic decision-making.
Key considerations include:
These decisions are opportunities to reflect the organization’s values and culture, ensuring that the benefits offered resonate with employees’ needs.
Employees are the ultimate beneficiaries of a benefits program, so their role in funding and participation is pivotal. Tari highlighted mechanisms like co-insurance and payroll deductions as ways to share costs while encouraging thoughtful use of resources.
Promoting smart consumerism was another focus. Tools like dispensing fee caps or partnerships with online pharmacies can reduce costs while improving convenience. For instance, online pharmacies enable timely refills, promoting medication adherence and healthier outcomes.
Perhaps the most critical pillar is ensuring that benefits align with your organization’s culture, vision, and mission. Tari posed vital questions for organizations to reflect on:
Whiteboarding sessions with leadership and advisors can clarify these aspects, ensuring that the benefits program mirrors organizational priorities. Flexibility also emerged as a key theme. From modular plans to full cafeteria-style flex plans, tailoring benefits to employees’ diverse needs can significantly impact satisfaction and retention.
To ensure that benefits plans remain effective, organizations must track their impact. Tari advised using metrics such as:
Continuous improvement is crucial. Organizations can ensure alignment with evolving employee and business needs by refining and redesigning benefits plans based on measurable outcomes.
Tari’s presentation also shed light on emerging trends and tools that are reshaping the benefits landscape:
Each of these innovations underscores the need for a benefit plan to reflect both employee demographics and organizational priorities.
At the heart of Tari’s message was a powerful reminder: Your employees are your most valuable investment. Beyond being a significant expense, your workforce drives organizational success. A well-designed benefits program can enhance employee health, engagement, and productivity, ultimately delivering a strong return on investment.
Tari closed her session with actionable takeaways:
Evolving a benefits program is not a one-time task—it’s an ongoing journey. As Tari noted, the best plans are those that adapt to the shifting needs of employees and the organization. By investing thoughtfully in employee benefits, companies can create a culture where team members feel supported and valued.
The THINK 2024 event reinforced the critical role of benefits in fostering thriving workplaces. With guidance from experts like Tari Duguay, organizations can confidently navigate the complexities of benefits planning, ensuring long-term success for both employees and employers.