At Avidon Health, we’ve come to understand that offering a comprehensive benefits package is essential for attracting and retaining top talent, especially in a remote work environment. As a small business operating in the competitive Health Tech industry, we’ve encountered unique challenges in delivering benefits that meet the diverse needs of our employees while staying within our budget. Here’s how we’ve addressed 5 challenges with innovative and strategic solutions, which might spark ideas for your employee benefits solution.
1. Securing Comprehensive National Coverage
The Challenge:
For small businesses with a remote workforce spread across the United States, finding health plans that offer comprehensive national coverage can be daunting. Employees need access to quality healthcare no matter where they are located, but smaller companies often struggle to find affordable healthcare plans with access to a large provider network that caters to a dispersed team.
Our Solution:
We partnered with a benefits broker who truly understands the unique needs of remote businesses like ours. This partnership has been instrumental in navigating the complexities of the healthcare landscape and securing plans that provide the necessary national coverage. If your broker is unable to secure the plans you need, consider exploring alternative brokers who may present additional solutions. We also explored options like ICHRA, which might better fit your team’s needs. Staying connected with peers through networking groups like SHRM or HR Advisory Board has helped us keep up with the latest trends, ensuring that our benefits package is both comprehensive and tailored to our employees.
2. Managing Rising Healthcare Costs
The Challenge:
Rising healthcare costs are a significant challenge for any small business. As healthcare expenses continue to climb, providing comprehensive coverage without passing the cost onto employees becomes increasingly difficult. A single large health event within a small company can drastically impact the plan’s performance and renewal rates.
Our Solution:
We focus on preventive care through our wellness programs, which are designed to reduce overall healthcare expenses while maintaining high-quality benefits for our employees. By encouraging employees to attend annual exams and preventive screenings, we’ve seen a decrease in urgent care and emergency room visits, which has improved our plan’s performance, making it more attractive to insurers at renewal time. Additionally, we take a proactive approach by partnering with healthcare providers to negotiate better rates, with help from our brokers who can advocate for our unique organization.
3. Maintaining Employee Engagement in a Remote Setting
The Challenge:
With the shift to remote work, maintaining employee engagement and fostering a sense of connection has become more challenging.
Our Solution:
We implement virtual team-building activities, regular check-ins with managers, and use collaboration tools like Teams to keep our remote team members engaged and connected to the company culture. This is a great opportunity for People Operations and HR teams to collaborate with IT departments to explore platforms and tools that might help bridge these gaps. Don’t be afraid to experiment with new initiatives and keep communication transparent with employees. These efforts ensure that your team remains cohesive and motivated, even when working from different locations.
4. Balancing Work and Life in a Flexible Work Environment
The Challenge:
While flexible work arrangements have been beneficial, they also blur the lines between work and personal life, leading to potential burnout.
Our Solution:
We emphasize the importance of setting boundaries, encourage employees to take regular breaks, and offer resources on time management and stress reduction techniques. Avidon Health recently held our first Giving Week, encouraging employees to step out of their office and volunteer for a good cause in their local communities. We also recognize that federal holidays often center around specific occasions, so we offer a flexible holiday day for employees to use as they choose, in addition to their normal PTO. For example, Microsoft users can utilize Viva Insights to schedule focus times automatically and set up “no-meeting” days, helping employees strike a healthy balance. Our Engagement Rx® platform allows us to set up personalized challenges, like step challenges, encouraging employees to stay active. These efforts help our team maintain well-being and productivity.
5. Supporting Mental Health and Wellness
The Challenge:
Mental health has become increasingly important, particularly in a remote work environment where employees may feel isolated or stressed.
Our Solution:
We’ve expanded our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to include a broader range of mental health resources. Additionally, we offer mindfulness or meditation sessions during mental health awareness month, and our training for managers includes information to recognize and support employees facing mental health challenges. Our Engagement Rx® platform also offers personalized digital health coaching and cognitive behavioral training, helping employees achieve their wellness goals.
Bridging Other Gaps
In addition to these solutions, we provide a range of health and wellness programs, including medical, dental, vision insurance, 401k, and access to our EAP. Our EAP offers confidential counseling services available 24/7, ensuring our team has the support they need when they need it. We also invest in our employees’ growth through continuous learning stipends and internal professional development training through our own highly skilled staff, empowering our team with the skills and knowledge to excel in their careers.
At Avidon Health, we review our entire employee benefits package every year as we are committed to continuously improving our benefits and addressing the challenges we face. Ask employees to complete feedback forms or have one-on-one conversations with them to get a better understanding of your workforce and their needs. By doing so, you create a supportive and thriving work environment for all your employees, ensuring that you can adapt to the ever-changing needs of your team and customers.
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