How to Retain Key Talent

Launched as an online and more interactive version of my "My View" column in the Advocate print newsletter, Benefit Basics now gives you, the Human Resources professional, an easy to way to ask—and discuss—some of the pressing questions that come up in our industry. Submit your own question here or e-mail them to me at mkesel@benefitadvocates.net.

Your first question is one on a lot of people's minds lately...

Q: What can our companies do to prevent a talent drain once the economy improves?

Kesel: It’s a great question and the perfect time to ask is now while we’re still experiencing job losses and not quite out of the woods of this economic crisis. If we’ve learned anything from past recessions in the 1980s and 1990s, it’s that employees take a wait-and-see approach to career advancement when economic times are tough. But that doesn’t mean they’re not looking or making contacts or doing research or getting ready to make a change. The old adage, “The best time to look for a job is when you have one,” remains true and is happening again now.

Doing nothing and assuming they’ll stay is foolhardy. When the economy turns the corner—and the economists tell us it surely will—they’ll be long gone and it’ll be too late for you to respond.Realigning your compensation and benefit programs are key weapons against talent flight. With government policy affecting both, creative solutions become even more important. That means finding innovative and cost-effective ways to combine tangible and intangible rewards.

At Benefit Advocates, we think the future of compensation and benefits is individualization. What does this individualized approach look like? Smarter use of incentive programs, for one. Employees hate the “peanut butter approach” to merit pay for good reason. Spreading the rewards to everyone deters everyone. Your stars soon will be looking elsewhere while your underperformers will continue muddling along.

Certainly, pay isn’t the only motivator. Employees often want other rewards, whether it’s more leadership opportunities, better coaching, flexible schedules that offer better work/life balance or other intangibles. Now is a great time to have that discussion and find out which intangible rewards they value the most.

One-size-fits-all benefit programs are just as bad for your business as cookie-cutter compensation plans. You may offer a number of health and welfare plans and retirement options but with so many similar options that they’re nearly alike. Not every employee needs or wants the same benefits, and benefit options should mirror the changing needs of our lifecycles.

“But, Mary,” you’re probably thinking, “Are you kidding? We can barely keep up with the administrative tasks we have now.”

You’re right. It won’t be easy, but we believe the companies that examine their current strategies and find ways to adapt to changing employee needs will be the marketplace winners: saving money and engaging and retaining their employees.

How can your company get there? Let’s talk: 800.344.5677 or 336.721.2029 (in Winston-Salem) or mkesel@benefitadvocates.net.

Kesel, CEBS, is the CEO and founder of Benefit Advocates. She teaches Human Resources Management at Wake Forest University’s Babcock Graduate School of Management.

Voluntary Benefits Sometimes Need Advocacy

Does your company offer voluntary benefits like cancer insurance? If so, these employees and retirees may need advocacy services just as much as those covered by your health insurance.

This came to our attention recently when I helped a wife whose husband died of cancer in December 2008. He had purchased cancer insurance 11 years earlier through his employer.

In February 2008, the 54-year-old man I'll call Mr. C had been diagnosed with lung cancer. He underwent chemotherapy, radiation treatment and had one inpatient hospital stay. The insurer paid Mr. C directly under the cancer policy without issue.

Unfortunately, his condition worsened and he was admitted to the hospital again in November 2008 with septicemia and pneumonia—symptoms directly related to his cancer.

After his death, Mrs. C filed a claim to the cancer insurance carrier. This time, they refused payment. Mrs. C was in shock, wondering how payment could be denied for her husband's days in the hospital under the cancer insurance policy when he had just died of lung cancer.

The insurance carrier explained that it denied the claims because the hospital admission wasn't for cancer treatment. While both the septicemia infection and his pneumonia were byproducts of the chemotherapy treatment for his cancer, his main diagnosis wasn't cancer.

Mrs. C contacted Benefit Advocates to help appeal these denials. This was a case where we felt the insurance carrier was doing all they could do to deny a rightful claim for benefits. As our first cancer insurance case, we were resolute in our goal to get these claims paid for Mrs. C.

We reviewed the cancer policy in minute detail. We contacted the hospital and doctor. We obtained medical records of her husband's hospital stay and a letter from his oncologist outlining why he had been admitted to the hospital and the reason for his death. We obtained a death certificate. The primary cause of death was septicemia, but the secondary cause was lung cancer.
We reviewed medical literature on his condition and completed a legal search of any court cases filed that were similar to Mr. C's.

Fortunately, we found a lawsuit filed in Utah in 2005 with facts very similar to his case. We compiled all of our findings and filed a formal appeal to the cancer insurance carrier. We won the appeal on Mrs. C’s behalf—a decision that brought closure, peace of mind and saved her thousands of dollars.

Though she still grieves for her husband, Mrs. C can take comfort in the fact that the premiums paid for more than 11 years were not in vain. She received the coverage they bought and, most importantly, she didn't have to suffer yet another loss.

Our advocacy service is available to all clients’ employees and retirees for any type of insurance—not just health insurance. As we all pay more for benefits, remember that we're here to help. Your employees and retirees don't have to take 'no' for an answer.