After nearly a year of anxiety, grief, fear, anger, and stress, your people are looking to you for guidance. When and how you communicate can provide reassurance.
2020 has been such a challenging year for all of us, so as the holidays approach, we would like to wish all of you a safe and happy holiday season!
Segal is no stranger to industry legends. Our halls have seen the likes of employee benefits and HR innovators for over 80 years. But few have had both the professional and personal impact that Howard Fluhr has had. He’s been a sagacious, trusted advisor to his clients and colleagues for decades and has dedicated his career to strengthening the U.S. retirement and health care systems.
To say that we are living in a unique time is an understatement. And one of the greatest challenges for employees adapting to this new normal is that this was not an evolutionary change. Instead, like the flip of a switch, your employees’ lives turned upside down in a moment. So what can your organization do to help employees cope? The answer is surprisingly simple: Communicate.
Benefits can be difficult for employees to understand. And reading a 20-page handbook about benefits doesn’t motivate most people to action. But videos can.
It would be an understatement to say 2020 has been a difficult and unsettling year. And now we’re in the middle of open enrollment—and the election—season. Those of us responsible for communicating important information to employees, participants, and the public understand that words matter and that messaging needs to be clear, concise, and easy to understand. But words alone won’t grab attention. Good design married to the right words will.
I’m a library lover. Well actually, I’m a print lover. And I’m not alone. Print is tangible. It’s physically shareable. And it can feel more personal. That’s why print should be a part of your communications mix.
A critical part of our work in benefits communications is helping our clients—and by extension, their participants—navigate change. Whether you’re introducing a new benefit, revising your retirement plan design, or updating health plan offerings, helping people understand what’s changing and why is key to driving acceptance and to changing behaviors.
How should you move forward in conducting this year’s annual enrollment? For starters, create a plan that is thoughtful, thorough, and agile; communicate frequently; and show empathy. This can go a long way toward making annual enrollment a good experience for both employees and your team.
Ten years later and the ACA is still being debated. With all this uncertainty during an election cycle, what topics matter for communications?