Providing Value Through HRO Research

HRO service providers can derive significant value from producing and sharing research information. Vendors can show thought leadership, establish service and subject matter creditability, and reinforce brand differentiation, even as they gain a source of marketing materials and a lead-in to client discussions, as well as some free public relations coverage.

Much HRO research is designed to directly reinforce the need for the services and consulting offered by the service provider. A recent article by Ceridian discusses whether U.S. employers will drop employee health care plans when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) coverage requirements become effective in 2013. After providing some PPACA information, Ceridian moves to support services it offers, specifically consumer driven-health plans and health saving accounts.

When providers are not conducting primary research, it is important to reference other reputable resources. In this case, Ceridian quotes America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), which recently reported that enrollment in Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) had reached 11.4m people in January 2011, a more than 14% increase over 2010. According to the AHIP, HSA enrollments have nearly doubled in the last three years and large group coverage was up 26% last year. Ceridian also quoted its executives, one of its own statistics, and ended with links to its web pages on CDHCs.

This is a solid, but perhaps overly focused on service offerings and marketing, communication designed to help it further tap a market where only 11m of a potential 160m are currently enrolled in an HSA.

A second example comes from a Mercer press release about the impact of automatic enrollment on defined contribution savings rates. It also directly supports Mercer services and it additionally offers information that is a bit more consultative.

Mercer used its own database of its 1.2m DC plan participants to show the positive impact of automatic enrollment and automatic increases on contribution rates. Participants who were automatically enrolled in their plan and use the automatic contribution increase have a 25% higher contribution rate (4.4%) than those who do not use the feature (3.5%).  Even better savings rate results come from self-enrolled participants (7.4%), and those who do self-directed increases, had the highest rate of all (8.5%). Company executives are used to further the messaging by commenting that those who self-enroll and set their own contribution rate contribute nearly two and half times more than those who are automatically enrolled.

With a bit more subtle communication, Mercer is establishing that it is a major player in DC by sharing information on what its 1.2m participants are actually doing that can help employers make policy decisions, support additional consulting, and reinforce the need to keep up proactive employee communications programs (which is a brand differentiator for Mercer) to support maximum effectiveness of the offered benefits of a DC plan.

Do you look at your vendor as a trusted and value-added source of information?

Linda Merritt, Research Analyst, HRO, NelsonHall

Explore posts in the same categories: Consulting, Employee Health Care, hr outsourcing, hr outsourcing research, hro, HRO providers, HRO Service Provider, nelsonhall

Tags: AHIP, America's Health Insurance Plans, Ceridian, Consulting, DC, enrollment, Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) CDHCs, HR, hr outsourcing, hro, HRO providers, HRO service providers, Mercer, nelsonhall, Paitent Protection and Affordable Care Act, PPACA

You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.