HRO is Never Static or Still

During every stage of the economic lifecycle, HRO service providers are doing something to either anticipate or react to changes in the marketplace and client needs while simultaneously striving to achieve strategic goals. This week I wrap-up NelsonHall’s review of 3Q 2010 HRO activity with a look at what’s new in offerings, partnerships and acquisitions.

One way to quickly expand a service line or fill-in gaps is to partner with a provider that is already offering the service or operating in the target geography. Last quarter was most active for RPO. Those announcing new RPO-related partnerships included Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS), Kelly Services, Kenexa, Pinstripe and The RightThing. Notably, two of the partnerships were to continue to expand RPO services internationally in the Asia Pacific region, with AMS adding reach into India and Kelly in Vietnam.

A more committed path to rounding out or adding new services is to buy it. Making small to large acquisitions is another constant in the world of HRO as players define and redefine their portfolios. In addition to the close of the three game changing major acquisitions in the benefits community (ADP/Workscape, ACS/ExcellerateHRO, and Aon/Hewitt), other folks were also making deals. For example, Mercer acquired IPA and ORC, and Xafinity bought PwC’s pension consulting and administration business in the U.K. Further, Randstad continued its acquisitive ways, this time outside of Europe, with its planned acquisition of FujiStaff in Japan.

Health and welfare (H&W) outsourcing used to be limited to the U.S., and that will remain the major market. But no matter how health insurance and care is funded, H&W concerns are growing globally. In the U.S., Fidelity is partnering with RedBrick Health to offer its clients wellness services, and in the U.K., Capita is acquiring FirstAssist Services to add to its health service offerings.

Finally, if you cannot find what you want in the marketplace, you can build or expand it yourself. Ceridian wants to truly offer a new line of BPO services and has announced it is ready to consult, build and manage the health insurance exchanges that some states will need in a couple of years as part of the U.S. health care reform program. 

Most announcements of “new offerings” are incremental additions. For example, Hewitt is adding Micromedex medical reference information to its advocacy service offering. You can also simply package what you have and call it new. Aditro has done that with a standardized set of payroll services that include preset services levels and implementation process to make a lower cost bundled option.

Yet another variation blends supply chain partnerships with building it yourself to make a new service offering. Take a SaaS HR service from Oracle or Sap and wrap in value added enhancements and services additions and, voila, you have a new HRO service platform. Mercer introduced its Human Capital Direct that uses PeopleClick Authoria’s talent management suite as the core, surrounded by Mercer’s consulting, tools and methodologies such as decision support, competency models and analytics.

In HRO, somebody is always doing something. What have you done lately?

Linda Merritt, Research Director, HRO, NelsonHall

Health and Welfare Services are a Nice Slice of the HRO Pie

Wellness programs have been around for years, but employers needing to manage ever increasing health care costs are looking for a stronger connection to results. HRO vendors and programs that can show proof of progressive results over time and an impact on health care costs will strengthen client relationships and do well in a still tight market.

Fidelity is adding RedBrick Health’s wellness programs as an optional service offering in its employee benefits and outsourcing program. RedBrick Health is a 2006 start-up specializing in wellness, disease and chronic care management programs that often include employer-funded financial rewards tied to participation in activities and programs. Fidelity selected RedBrick for the uniqueness of its interactive programs, technology, analytics and results that include rates of participation as high as 40-60 percent, compared to industry averages of five-10 percent. And it tracks health assessment biometrics that show improvements of six-30 percent in areas such as blood pressure, cholesterol and weight, which can lower the total cost of health care.

“Nice to have” HR programs are now expected to show value to employees and employers based on outcomes. HR and its HR service providers are under greater pressure than ever to show impact. Some HR services are “need to haves,” and demonstrating lower operating expenses, improved process performance and strengthened compliance are often enough proof in the pudding. Also improving the employee experience is icing on the cake.

Optional HR benefits and services outsourcing in a down economy have a higher hurdle as the looming question is, “why offer the benefit at all?” But outsourced services in the health and welfare (H&W) area that can make the connection to lowering the cost of benefits, health care and the total cost of labor have been bright spots.

Even the larger HRO vendors are aware of this trend. Hewitt has been expanding its H&W offerings with absence management, and it recently acquired HR Advance to add to its dependent verification capabilities. Others, like Fidelity, are selecting specialty partners to build out H&W services.

Where H&W services are transactional, like flex spend accounts, look for innovation in technology and processing efficiency. Other services – such as absence management – need to blend in consultative and deeper subject matter expertise, and the bench strength of the care center personnel is very important. In all cases, the quality of the employee communication and experience is critical, even if cost savings is the driver. If employees are not aware of the program, or do not understand the benefits of participating in it, outcomes will not be maximized. And you need awareness and participation to get to impact and capture a healthy slice of the H&W pie.  

Linda Merritt, Research Director, HRO, NelsonHall