Choosing the right health insurance agent to provide small business employee benefits is essential. Employers need more than standalone health plans for their employees; they also need business consulting services, superb ancillary offerings to supplement core benefits, and HR administrative support.

Benefits brokers and health insurance agents bridge the gap between an expansive healthcare industry and an SMB. They assist businesses with information, guidance, and evaluation of insurance carriers, but how does a business owner evaluate health insurance agents or employee benefits brokers?

Significant cost savings are in store for SMB owners when they find the right benefits broker, especially one that partners with a professional employer organization (PEO). Many successful brokers are already partnered with top tiered PEOs.  Small business owners who are looking to connect with a PEO broker may have some questions and be looking for insights on how the relationship works. Below, you will find some helpful

Independent health insurance plans can be expensive and risky for employers. SMBs have unique challenges such as budget constraints and difficulty meeting group health insurance participation requirements. Partnering with a professional employer organization (PEO) broker is an ideal alternative to get better rates and current insights on regional benchmarking to ensure their benefits plans remain competitive.

When evaluating potential agents, these are a few helpful questions to ask:

• How can you and your PEO partner save me money on my core health insurance premiums?
• How can you protect my rates during annual open enrollment?
• What voluntary benefits can you offer my employees?
• How will you service my employees and their dependents when they have benefits questions?

When delving into these questions, employers and decision-makers should look for brokers who can walk them through the process of how their PEO partner is able to offer large group rates and voluntary benefits to small businesses.

Through a co-employment relationship, professional employer organizations can offer large group rates that small and medium-sized businesses can’t typically access on their own. PEOs leverage their collective buying power to negotiate better rates for benefits such as basic medical, dental, and vision as well as 401(k) plans, life insurance, and other high-value ancillary benefits. These resources help foster growth and scalability for small businesses at a lower cost.

A PEO broker should also explain how they analyze the unique benefits needs of individual businesses, including how they gather complete and accurate data to provide custom plan recommendations.

To do this, PEO brokers should facilitate a conversation about flexible offerings, such as ancillary benefits. The PEO partner will manage the heavy lifting for the SMB and the broker. They review the SMB’s needs to determine which voluntary benefits will contribute the most value to the overall employee benefits package.

From there, the professional employer organization will work with the SMB to provide a variety of employer and employee information sessions and materials to ensure that the benefits offerings and the advantages are understood.

After that, the benefits broker or health insurance agent will work with the SMB’s decision-makers to complete enrollment and assist with the integration of benefits. Agents should also be able to offer transparency for each product they recommend.

SMB owners should expect to see a range of terms, rates, and benefits for any health plans they consider for their business. This will help avoid miscommunication, confusion, and dissatisfaction down the road.

Highly skilled PEO brokers are equipped to do more with less. The broker-PEO partnership focuses on SMB cost efficiency, product breadth, and client service.

• Which PEOs do you partner with?
• What has your experience been with them?
• Do the PEOs you partner with provide additional support for your clients outside of what you can provide them?

Services provided by a professional employer organization can be transformative for small and medium-sized businesses. To ensure a partnership with the right agent and the right PEO, an SMB can benefit from some due diligence research.

Employee benefits brokers may be partnered with one or several PEOs. When discussing their PEO partners, make sure to ask about a few crucial signs that the PEO is trustworthy and can support the SMB.

First, decision-makers should find out whether the PEO is certified. IRS Certification means that the PEO meets the IRS’s background, experience, business location, financial reporting, tax compliance, and bonding requirements. A PEO without IRS Certification may not be the best option.

Next, SMBs should inquire about any other certifications and accreditations a PEO holds. Decision-makers may want to inquire about Employer Services Assurance Corporation (ESAC) accreditation and the Certificate Institute’s Worker’s Compensation Certification for peace of mind.

After discussing their PEO partners’ accreditations, qualified health insurance agents should be able to share examples of how they liaised with their client and their PEO partner to successfully build custom business health plans for the client. A positive experience between the broker and the PEO can be a sign that the SMB will also have a positive experience as well.

Workplace compliance is essential to the success of small and medium-sized businesses.

A PEO broker or health insurance agent can empower SMB owners with the support and confidence they need to meet and maintain compliance standards.

Helpful questions to ask benefits brokers:

• How is workplace compliance evaluated?
• How will you keep me updated on new and changing HR regulations and compliance?
• What other workplace compliance services and communications can I expect?

The best PEOs have in-house workplace compliance experts to ensure SMBs have a comprehensive and effective approach to staying apprised of and compliant with labor law changes. This can include a plan for disseminating physical materials such as compliance posters and certificates of insurance, a strong communications strategy to notify the SMB and their PEO broker of updates to state and federal regulations, or even simply being available and responsive when a business or their employee benefits broker has questions.

With these measures in place, the health insurance agent or benefits broker can connect with their SMB client to go over how shifting regulatory and compliance guidelines will impact their client’s small or medium-sized business. Additional PEO offerings such as payroll services also help with workplace compliance for the SMB. From administration to payroll tax filings and withholdings, the right PEO will stay on top of state and federal payroll regulations for the businesses.

As business owners explore questions to ask benefits brokers, they should be sure to also evaluate their potential agent’s ability to provide access to these crucial compliance resources.

This is where a PEO broker truly differentiates themselves from those who do not work with a PEO. A strong broker-PEO partnership can help SMBs access a vast array of low-cost employee benefits plans that enhance recruitment retention rates. Even better, they can put together custom benefits plans with their SMB client to make sure employees get the core and ancillary benefits they need and want. A happy workforce is the key to a successful business.

There are several areas in which a PEO can provide additional benefits for SMB clients and their employees. In addition to basic health, dental, and vision benefits, they look to the SMB owner for practical benefits that can help improve their quality of life inside and outside of the workplace.

Helpful questions to ask benefits brokers:

• What software or online tools can you offer that offer modern solutions for things like employee education and benefits administration?
• What voluntary or ancillary benefits can you offer to differentiate my business for job seekers?
• What other services can you provide to add value to our partnership?

Effective brokers stay on top of the latest tech and help their clients find what is genuinely useful. SMBs should look for a broker who is partnered with a PEO that utilizes digital platforms to increase day-to-day functionality, flexibility, and efficiency. Brokers can help their SMBs improve communication and automate data recording with secure web-based HR software applications.

In addition to day-to-day HR support, PEO brokers can provide a rich suite of high-quality ancillary benefits. A wide array of ancillary offerings give SMBs a competitive edge in talent acquisition, improves their current employees’ job satisfaction, and improve value perception for the company.

Additionally, PEO brokers can get their clients access to business services that will streamline operations and free up time for the SMB to focus on its core competencies.

By acting as an extension of an SMB’s HR team, here are a few examples of what PEOs can provide to SMBs on the broker’s behalf:

• Small business consulting services
• Payroll administration
• Webinars and continuing education to benefit both employers and employees
• Assistance in maintaining workplace compliance
• Retirement planning assistance
• Benefit strategy and plan recommendations
• Supplemental health insurance and voluntary benefits
• Wellness programs
• Support for employer, employee, and PEO broker

Brokers also play a critical role when it comes to helping decision-makers and their employees become well-informed healthcare consumers. One of a health insurance agent’s main responsibilities is helping employees choose the best benefits and get the best value for their client’s investment.

A broker should have the proper tools, practices, and resources to help SMBs save time and money during open enrollment. They should also be equipped to provide ongoing support to their SMB clients.

Helpful questions to ask benefits brokers:

• How can you streamline the open enrollment process?
• Does the PEO negotiate a new rate for renewal every year?

Effective open enrollment processes should include enrollment tracking and workplace compliance record-keeping. The ideal broker will prepare employees for open enrollment with educational resources that explain structures and processes. SMB clients should be able to rely on ongoing support from their benefits advisor and a support team from their PEO partner, even beyond open enrollment season.

During open enrollment, PEO brokers can give clients access to transparent, line-by-line pricing for health plans and other benefits, intuitive portals through which the broker and the SMB can work together to build benefits packages, and employee benefits portals, so the SMB client’s staff can easily manage or review their benefits online.

Benefits brokers in partnerships with professional employer organizations like PrestigePEO can help SMBs succeed. According to NAPEO, small and medium-sized businesses that work with a PEO see an average ROI of about 27% in cost savings. Additionally, their research found that SMBs connected with a PEO grow faster, have lower turnover, and are less likely to go out of business than SMBs that are not connected with a PEO.

Our professional employer resources help simplify open enrollment, daily operations, employee benefits service offerings, and various administrative responsibilities.

Top-Tier PEO Health Insurance Options

• Nationwide medical coverage through well-known insurance carriers
• HMO, EPO, PPO, POS, and HDHP plans
• Multiple plan options for dental and vision
• Extensive “in-network” options for physicians, specialists, and hospitals

Supplemental insurance plans

• Term life
• Whole life
• AD&D
• Short- and long-term disability
• Accident, critical illness, hospital
• EAP

In-demand ancillary benefits

• Identity and fraud protection
• Legal plans
• Pet insurance
• Home & auto
• Financial wellness programs
• PLUM benefits
• Commuter benefits

Concierge-level PEO Services

• Expert human resources consulting
• Payroll processing
• Small business HR management and administration
• Workplace Compliance assurance
• Risk management solutions
• Employee relations

PrestigePEO’s support teams, including HR business partners, benefits specialists, and more, become the point of contact for both the broker and the SMB owner. Our dedicated, in-house staff are available to the broker, SMB owner, and their employees to address concerns, resolve issues, and advocate for the client’s best interests.

To learn more about how PrestigePEO can help SMBs find the right employee benefits broker for their company, give us a call at 888-PEO-PEO1 or visit our contact page to send us a message.

In a recent survey, 60% of employees said employee benefits were extremely or very important when considering whether to stay with their current employer. This means that it is critical for business owners to get their employee benefits packages right. With few exceptions, SMBs only get one chance every year to lock in the benefits that make them competitive: annual enrollment.

More than ever, this is when benefits advisors become indispensable to their SMB clients. Annual enrollment is the time to help your clients find and select the most competitive employee benefits offerings and packages for the year ahead. It is crucial that employee benefits brokers and other insurance professionals seize this opportunity to show their clients that they’ve picked the right person to entrust with pivotal differentiators for their company.

During annual enrollment, benefits advisors can reinforce their value to their SMB clients with a diverse portfolio filled with the recruitment and retention benefits they can access with a PEO plan.

While managing multiple clients through one of the most stressful experiences of business ownership, benefits advisors can rely on their PEO partners to facilitate a smoother annual enrollment experience for their clients and worksite employees.

Let’s get into the most common pain points SMBs encounter during open enrollment season and how professional employer organizations can help their broker partners guide SMB owners.

A lack of clarity around the details of annual enrollment causes frustration for SMB owners and their employees. Which benefits are available? How can they use them? With so many plans, coverage potential, and carriers to choose from, it’s easy for anyone to feel lost.

There are plenty of pitfalls during annual enrollment that can result in communication failure. Plan changes may not be relayed effectively from SMB owners to their employees and people largely don’t understand or even remember all of the information they’re bombarded with during a single presentation. Worse, poorly executed emails or even verbal discussions can widen knowledge gaps.

Client and employee frustration is caused by a lack of clear, consistent communication about benefits plans and other considerations that come during annual enrollment season. A lack of understanding and the stress that come with all of this can be exacerbated by a lack of preparation for the season, incomplete or confusing communications, and other details that can be easy to overlook.

It’s no secret; many people struggle with benefits enrollment. Without expert support, most business owners have a bad user experience when trying to choose tiers, plans, and packages.

The complexity can feel endless. Every plan comes with its own set of terms, conditions, and limitations. These can include things like deductibles and copayments, out-of-pocket maximums, and varying coverage for prescription drugs.

The sheer volume of information can be overwhelming for business owners who are not specifically trained to understand the nuances of benefits plans. This, along with the fact that annual enrollment platforms are not always intuitive, can make it especially difficult for brokers or SMB owners to get support or find useful resources during annual enrollment seasons.

Managing a variety of options, understanding all the details of each, and selecting plans suitable for their business can be overwhelming for SMB clients.

The pressure on having a once-a-year opportunity to understand all options, decide which work best, educate employees, and still give the appropriate amount of time for employees to make their benefits selection can increase the chaos of annual enrollment. Even so, your client’s employees need diverse benefits offerings to meet their diverse needs.

One of the major hurdles SMB clients encounter during annual enrollment is the limited availability of enrollment options. Traditional insurance plans may offer a one-size-fits-most approach, leaving employers with few choices to tailor benefits to the needs of their workforce. This lack of flexibility can lead to frustration among employees who might need specialized coverage or additional benefits.

PEOs offer a unified HR solution for annual enrollment. Benefits advisors who partner with a professional employer organization are empowered to offer customized benefits solutions to their clients while also helping with workplace compliances concerns, changing regulatory considerations, and confidently connect SMB owners to a smart way to alleviate their administrative burdens.

PrestigePEO’s open enrollment resource center and year-round support for brokers, clients, and their employees simplify annual enrollment and day-to-day HR functions for everyone. Whether your clients are already partnered with a PEO and looking to transition to a new one, or new to the versatility of a professional employer organization, the relationship between a PEO, a benefits advisor, and an SMB owner makes annual enrollment better for everyone.

PrestigePEO, also known as The Broker’s PEO, has the plans, dedicated support, and expertise benefits advisors need to create an improved annual enrollment experience for their SMB clients Get in touch with us today to make sure your clients don’t dread their next annual enrollment season.

The PEO industry is growing every year. According to the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO), there are 523 PEOs operating in the US right now. As PEOs gain popularity, benefits advisors have a lot of potential PEO partners to choose from. Many benefits consultants have found partnership with a broker-friendly PEO to be highly rewarding.

Broker–friendly PEOs create an ecosystem in which the broker, their clients, and the PEO can all succeed. Rather than exclusively selling directly to small businesses, these PEOs are built on a foundation that puts the broker partnership first. Because of the services and HR solutions they provide, partnering with a PEO can be a huge value add, both for the employee benefits advisor and their SMB client.

Even though broker-friendly PEOs do exist, misconceptions about the industry at large still give benefits consultants and employee benefit advisors pause. Let’s clear up some of the most common myths brokers tend to hear about PEOs.

This is a foundational value at PrestigePEO, which is why we never compromise on the measures we use to safeguard our broker partners:

• No broker of record letters (BORs)
• Broker partners are included in all PEO-SMB client communications
• Elevated renewal process: employee benefits consultants work directly with their clients to customize their benefits packages and choose service offerings
• Transparent pricing on proposals and quotes so the benefits broker can see what their clients are being charged, line by line
• PEO partnership enhances the benefits consultants’ portfolio so they can offer their SMB clients Fortune 500-level benefits at large group rates, plus additional benefits that keep clients competitive in the job market

Broker-friendly PEOs keep benefits consultants and employee benefits advisors actively involved throughout the lifetime of their client’s relationship with the PEO.

• Broker partners and their clients get dedicated human support with direct lines to their support team
• Some of the best PEOs also have greater reliability for renewal costs
• Broker partners have access to web-based HR software solutions that provide a smoother experience for benefits consultants and their clients during Open Enrollment season and specialized software that provides year-round support for benefits consultants, their clients, and their clients’ employees

Broker-friendly PEOs keep benefits consultants and employee benefits advisors actively involved throughout the lifetime of their client’s relationship with the PEO.

• Broker partners and their clients get dedicated human support with direct lines to their support team
• Some of the best PEOs also have greater reliability for renewal costs
• Broker partners have access to web-based HR software solutions that provide a smoother experience for benefits consultants and their clients during Open Enrollment season and specialized software that provides year-round support for benefits consultants, their clients, and their clients’ employees

It’s true that this is a large and growing industry, but no two PEOs are the same. Although brand and name recognition were once synonymous with dependability, employee benefits advisors now have to dig much deeper to get an accurate read on a professional employer organization they may be considering.

If you are brand-new to the PEO space, it can be hard to know which professional employer organizations can make or break your client relationships. Fortunately, those who are looking for an honest, responsible organization can look for several indicators that will help them identify a trustworthy PEO.

Not all PEOs compensate brokers the same way. Broker-friendly professional employer organizations, such as PrestigePEO, can have ways for benefits consultants to generate multiple revenue streams:

• Lifetime payouts on each case brought to the organization for as long as the client stays with the PEO
• Broker referrals (you refer another broker to the PEO)
• Commissions on service fees
• Commissions on individual product lines
• Broker incentive programs (click here to see what incentives PrestigePEO may be running for our broker partners!)

A trustworthy PEO partner can offer HR services and solutions that delight your SMB clients and support a good relationship with your client. One of PrestigePEO’s greatest differentiators from other professional employer organizations is that we truly operate in partnership with benefits consultants. We don’t only rely on our brokers to refer business to us; if we get a lead directly, we assign prospects to our broker partners so they can continue their own growth as well.

Some of the happiest brokers (and their clients!) are those that partner with a PEO.

To help debunk the misconception that all PEOs are the same, here are a few differentiating “green flags” to look for:

• What information is disclosed by the company on its website
  • Employee benefits and services for you, your clients, and their employees
  • Client retention rates
  • Industry qualifications
  • Industries served
• Reviews and/or references from clients

To be clear, it can be tricky to verify a PEO’s business transparency without personal experience. In most cases, it’s best to pick up the phone and have a conversation with a company representative. Speaking with a human gives you additional opportunities to gather more information that may not be included on the website.

PrestigePEO’s commitment to transparency extends beyond the basics for benefits consultants. Unlike many other PEOs, we are proud to offer our partners fully transparent pricing on each of our products and services. Our unbundled pricing allows brokers and their clients to see itemized costs—and cost savings—line by line. Additionally, our teams work with our broker partners to build custom quotes with the versatility SMB owners need.

Since many PEOs are privately held, another smart way to get a read on a professional employer organization’s differentiators is to do a little creative exploration.

Take some time to examine a PEO’s website for additional context around the company and the folks who power it. Beyond certifications and accreditations, here are a few items to get curious about while looking for a broker-friendly PEO:

• How long the company has been in business
• Why the business was founded
• Who leads the company and whether their background positions them to understand what is valuable to benefits consultants
• Whether the company provides broker-specific content, resources, and/or contact information

Additionally, you can take a look at additional online resources to get an impression of the company.

One of the easiest ways to quickly determine whether a professional employer organization might be a good partner is to find out which industry certifications and accreditations they hold. Benefits brokers will want to specifically focus on the accreditations and certifications that are held by those that meet the PEO industry’s highest standards.

1. IRS certification: Certified PEOs (CPEOs) have the distinction of meeting and maintaining the most rigorous government requirements for IRS-mandated certification requirements. A few of these include financial reporting, tax status, background, experience, and bonds calculated by federal tax liability.The IRS publishes a list of all Certified Professional Employer Organizations and the effective date of the certification. You can find PrestigePEO listed as “Prestige Employee Administrators.”
2. Employer Services Assurance Corporation (ESAC): ESAC accreditation is paramount in the industry. To date, only about 9% of PEOs have achieved this, PrestigePEO being among them. To receive ESAC accreditation, an organization must meet and maintain rigid financial, ethical, and operational standards. Accreditation provides established verification and financial assurance of all key areas of PEO reliability.
3. The Certificate Institute’s Worker’s Compensation Certification (CI): This confirms a PEO’s risk management program meets and maintains industry best practices to reduce work related accidents and exposures to control workers’ compensation losses.

PrestigePEO is among only 1% of PEOs to earn and maintain all three of these distinctions. To learn more, visit our accreditation page.

A common misconception about PEOs is that they merely act as staffing agencies, HR outsourcing, and nothing else. In actuality, PEOs serve as a full-service support partner to benefits consultants and their small and medium-sized business clients.

Recent Market Tracking Research found that more than half of decision-makers already outsource health insurance benefits, payroll administration, and 401(k) plans. Facilitating a relationship between your PEO partner and your client simplifies their existing outsourcing by offering single-source solutions and services.

The same survey found that business associates, peers, and trusted advisors are highly influential sources of information for to decision makers. As your client’s trusted advisor, this may mean you’ll have to do some myth debunking for your client as well.

NAPEO’s PEO Industry Footprint 2023 reported that 208,000 SMB owners are PEO clients. Through those partnerships, PEOs co-employ millions of workers, resulting in access to healthcare and other benefits for a workforce comprising roughly the same number of people employed by the four largest companies in the United States, combined.

These findings prove that your clients can indeed trust your Certified PEO partner to responsibly handle important business functions. The PEO industry has successfully assumed payroll administration duties and kept up with workplace compliance regulations for hundreds of thousands of businesses, not to mention benefits administration for millions of individuals.

Similarly, PrestigePEO can help your clients stay on-target with these and other critical functions. We assign dedicated teams of experts to accurately processes payroll and offer payroll tax guidance for your client’s remote and in-office employees.

This is why the certifications and accreditations detailed in this article should be non-negotiables for PEO partnership. Meeting the industry’s gold standard for ethics, fiscal responsibility, reporting, and independent auditing can give you and your clients peace of mind when entrusting the functions to a PEO. These are the drivers that give you a powerful tool to empower your clients for short and long-term prosperity.

With an exceptionally broad scope of services and solutions for critical business operations, PEOs cast a wide net of expertise that can positively impact your clients’ payroll administration, HR management, workplace compliance, risk management, and more.

Not only does PEO partnership pave a way to provide clients with day-to-day support, but it also creates opportunities for small and medium-sized business owners to broaden their employees’ benefits offerings.

PrestigePEO is mission-driven to meet all the industry’s highest standards in order to furnish benefits consultants and health insurance brokers with the best possible employee benefits and HR services. We nurture mutually beneficial relationships with our broker partners so they can do the same with their clientele.

Our dedicated teams are always available to support clients with employee payroll administration, benefits, and other critical HR functions. We also work with brokers to customize proposals to include the services their clients need and exclude anything they don’t.

Whether you are brand-new to the PEO space or interested in learning more about partnership with PrestigePEO, reach out!

PrestigePEO, one of the nation’s largest professional employer organizations (PEO), announced today it ranked #4285 on Inc. Magazine’s annual Inc. 5000 list, the most prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The placement demonstrates PrestigePEO’s 67 percent growth in revenue over the past three years and marks the 10^th time since 2008 in which the company has appeared on the list.

The list represents a distinct look at the most successful companies within the American economy’s most dynamic segment—its independent small businesses. PrestigePEO received this honor because of their client first focus that provides personal, one-on-one HR, compliance and benefit support.  The clients that PrestigePEO service are fully supported as if they have an in-house HR staff.

“We are honored to be included on the Inc. 5000 list again, for the 10^th time. The Inc. 5000 list has always been an indicator of business growth and success and we have won again because of our dedicated teams.  It was imperative this year more than ever before that we supported our clients and help educate them on COVID-19 processes and protocols.  I am extremely proud of my colleagues and the efforts put forth, all of which contributed to this prestigious ranking,” explained Andrew Lubash, PrestigePEO founder and Chief Executive Officer.

Companies on the 2021 Inc. 5000 are ranked according to percentage revenue growth from 2017 to 2020. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2017. They must be U.S.-based, privately held, for-profit, and independent—not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies—as of December 31, 2020. Not only have the companies on the 2021 Inc. 5000 been very competitive within their markets, but this year’s list also proved especially resilient and flexible given 2020’s unprecedented challenges.

“The 2021 Inc. 5000 list feels like one of the most important rosters of companies ever compiled,” says Scott Omelianuk, editor-in-chief of Inc. “Building one of the fastest-growing companies in America in any year is a remarkable achievement. Building one in the crisis we’ve lived through is just plain amazing. This kind of accomplishment comes with hard work, smart pivots, great leadership, and the help of a whole lot of people.”

 

About Inc. Media

The world’s most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including web sites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Vision Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

 

About PrestigePEO

Melville, N.Y.-based PrestigePEO, also known as Prestige Employee Administrators LLC, provides integrated, end-to-end human resources (HR) solutions to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) for managing all integral human resources operations. This includes support for employee benefits management, payroll administration, workers’ compliance and HR guidance, among others. PrestigePEO’s full spectrum of HR services and solutions helps SMBs lower employee benefit costs, reduce administrative workloads and manage critical HR functions.

PrestigePEO is among only 1% of PEOs accredited by the Employer Services Assurance Corporation (ESAC), certified (CI) through Workers Comp Risk Management and classified as a Certified Professional Employer Organization (CPEO) by the IRS – demonstrating financial stability and strict adherence with a diverse range of regulatory and security standards.

To learn more, visit www.prestigepeo.com and follow PrestigePEO on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.

This year’s open enrollment period is more significant than ever. Right off the heels of the worst global health crisis of most people’s lifetimes, employee benefits like health insurance are sure to be top priority for both employers and their employees. Employers want to take care of their employees (and also retain talent over time), while their employees are thinking differently about their own health and wellbeing – and perhaps taking it a lot more seriously than before.

What’s Different This Year?

As we edge closer towards the end of the pandemic, individuals continue to face circumstances that are vastly different than that of just one year prior. This may be due to financial circumstances, health concerns, mental health challenges, or a combination of all these factors. Even if some employees took these decisions lightly in the past, they’re likely to consider their options more seriously now.

From an employer’s perspective, the pandemic continues to present challenges as long-term impacts continue to unfold. Small and mid-size businesses in particular are among the hardest hit by the pandemic, with some businesses forced to downsize while others experience rapid growth. Both situations come with their unique challenges, making enterprise-level decisions like group medical coverage more important than ever. It could mean the difference between retaining the talent your business needs to grow or losing employees to competitors who offer them something better.

Why Is Plan Variety Important to Employers?

Most businesses want to be able to take care of their employees, but cost remains the single most important deciding factor. Choosing the right plans for your business can help reduce overall HR costs and attract better talent, thereby significantly improving your bottom line over time.

A company’s industry and bottom line are most often the ultimate determining factors for how much a company spends on employee benefits packages. A finance company, for example, is more likely to have larger profit margins than a manufacturing company; and its employees are likely to be paid more, too. This has a direct impact on whether or not a company will offer its employees benefit options, and if so, what kinds of options will best meet their employees’ expectations.

Why is Plan Variety Important to Your Employees?

With cost rising in all aspects of life, plan variety is paramount to meeting your employees’ budgets. As workforces become larger, employers must remain mindful of how budgets and individual healthcare needs may vary from employee to employee. A family with members who have chronic illnesses, for example, is likely to need a much more robust healthcare plan than a young individual shopping for themselves and their pet. It’s important to offer a wide range of employee benefits in addition to medical options –like hospital and pet insurance options — at a number of price points. This ensures there are options suitable for all types of individuals and families.

Offering a variety of plan options also expands access to employees who may have passed on medical and other benefits in the past due to high costs. Now that we’ve all experienced a global pandemic first-hand, many employees are reconsidering their budgets to accommodate for health insurance and other benefits, like 401(k) and retirement planning services. It’s a good time for employers to take critical look at their employee benefit offerings and add any missing services that could be valuable for your employees. For example, it might help to add the option of cybersecurity protection if more employees are working from home. Thinking outside the box and offering employee benefits that go beyond basic medical, dental, and vision insurance can go a long way in showing your employees you care and are there for them in more ways than one.

How Can a PEO Help?

Partnering with the right PEO can help SMBs save thousands on employee benefits. The wrong advice, on the other hand, can easily lead to greater expenses and unhappy employees.

With its broad purchasing power, a PEO is able to offer its clients exclusive group rates on premium employee benefit plans from leading national providers. When it comes to plan variety, a PEO can help businesses identify the best employee benefit options at overall rates far more competitive than what SMBs are likely to find in the open market. The right PEO also works to ensure consistently low renewal rates on all employee benefit plans year after year.

When it’s time for employees to enroll in their benefit plans, a PEO steps in to fulfill critical administrative tasks on behalf of your business. The unbeatable support provided by a PEO during open enrollment and all year round significantly alleviates the burden on your internal HR staff, giving them more time to focus on core business issues. It also offers your employees peace of mind to know their benefit questions will always be addressed by a team of certified professionals, as quickly as possible.

Ready to learn more about how PrestigePEO can help your business design a custom employee benefit package for your team? Contact us today.

PrestigePEO, one of the nation’s largest professional employer organizations (PEO), announced today that the Company was named winner of a Gold Stevie® Award in the Company of the Year – Business & Professional Services – Medium category in The 19^th Annual American Business Awards®.

Judges recognized PrestigePEO for its unparalleled client support and the broad range of services it delivers to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). During 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, PrestigePEO’s proactive support and services were highly valued by its SMB clients as PrestigePEO helped equip them to successfully navigate the various challenges presented during such an unprecedented time.

“It is both an honor and a privilege to be recognized as a Gold winner in the prestigious American Business Awards program. We are extremely proud of the efforts put forth by our more than 100 colleagues every day. Their commitment truly makes a difference to the SMBs we serve and their employees. Our dedicated team is unrelenting in the ways in which they serve our clients, and we are very grateful the judges recognized this commitment,” said Andrew Lubash, PrestigePEO founder and chief executive officer.

The American Business Awards are the U.S.A.’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.

A record number of nominations – topping 3,800 – from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted this year for consideration in a wide range of categories. More than 250 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select this year’s Stevie Award winners.

“The American economy continues to show its resilience, and as we’re poised on the beginning of what should be a phenomenal period of growth, we celebrate the remarkable achievements of a wide range of organizations and people over the past 18 months,” said Stevie Awards president Maggie Gallagher. “This year’s Stevie-winning nominations in The American Business Awards are testament to the ingenuity, the commitment, the passion, the adaptability, and the creativity of the American people. We look forward to celebrating this year’s winners during our virtual ceremony on June 30.”

Details about The American Business Awards and the list of 2021 Stevie winners are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.

 

About the Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in eight programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, the Middle East & North Africa Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards®, The International Business Awards®, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Great Employers, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. The Stevies also produce the annual Women|Future Conference. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 12,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 70 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.

 

About PrestigePEO

Melville, N.Y.-based PrestigePEO, also known as Prestige Employee Administrators LLC, provides integrated, end-to-end human resources (HR) solutions to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) for managing all integral human resources operations. This includes support for employee benefits management, payroll administration, workers’ compliance and HR guidance, among others. PrestigePEO’s full spectrum of HR services and solutions helps SMBs lower employee benefit costs, reduce administrative workloads and manage critical HR functions.

PrestigePEO is among only 1% of PEOs accredited by the Employer Services Assurance Corporation (ESAC), certified (CI) through Workers Comp Risk Management and classified as a Certified Professional Employer Organization (CPEO) by the IRS – demonstrating financial stability and strict adherence with a diverse range of regulatory and security standards.

To learn more, visit www.prestigepeo.com and follow PrestigePEO on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.

It’s no secret that cost is a huge decision driver for employers when it comes to offering employee benefits to their workforce. Small and mid-size businesses in particular are often under the impression that they can’t afford to offer their employees benefits like medical, dental, vision, or life insurance, let alone additional benefits like 401(k) plans or entertainment discounts. With the purchasing power of the right PEO partner, however, many SMBs find it much more affordable (and beneficial to their business) to offer their team top tier employee benefits.

But not all PEOs are the same – while many PEOs may help SMBs reduce overall employee benefit costs, SMBs should also consider exactly what they’re getting for the price they pay. Keep reading for a rundown of one of the most important points employers should consider when shopping around for a PEO to access employee benefits: the level of support they’ll receive from their PEO after securing the great rates.

Open Enrollment and Onboarding Support

Employee benefit decisions involve much more than simply selecting the plans that fit your company’s budget. In between your decisions and your employees’, there is an entire process around communicating plan differences, ensuring your employees are aware of all their options, and answering any questions they may have before they make their own selections.

It’s important to select a PEO who doesn’t plan to step away during this crucial process. The right PEO will be able to present a detailed plan on how they’ll support your internal HR team throughout this portion of the open enrollment period.

Some important questions to consider are whether the PEO will provide administrative help to complete all the necessary paperwork in order to get everyone properly enrolled, or communications support around how to explain different plan options to your employees. It’s also important to choose a PEO that will serve as a true partner to your team from end-to-end – not just the during plan selection . That includes having a team of professionals ready to answer any questions you or your employees may have about plan options and costs, coverage, and even claims – not automated responses. It also means having the right support by your side to help decipher and implement any changes required throughout the year.

Compliance Support

Employers who manage a team of any size know of the fast-paced nature of business regulations. This is especially true when it comes to regulations around the health and safety of  worksite employees in light of COVID-19, such as COBRA and sick leave eligibility or vaccine mandates. Since the onset of the pandemic, law makers and compliance experts have been working around the clock to develop and implement laws to protect the American workforce from the detrimental impacts of COVID-19. This requires employers to constantly remain abreast of evolving legislation from local, state, and federal authorities.

Partnering with a full-service PEO relieves your team of this hefty responsibility, and it also guarantees your company will always receive fully vetted information in real-time, along with expert analysis to help your team understand how evolving laws may impact your organization. A full-service PEO will also provide best practices to help guide next steps, as well as personalized support to figure out the best way forward for any unique business situations. Some PEOs are taking it a step further by proactively offering clients and network contacts access to exclusive webinars, resource centers, and powerful technology solutions that keep up with evolving workplace demands.

Comprehensive Benefits Support for your Employees

Support for your employees should be available long after they’ve selected which plans are best for them. Health insurance is confusing for everyone, especially employees who have little or no knowledge around how their benefits work. Employees may not raise any questions while signing up for their benefits, and then suddenly have questions when they need to visit a doctor or get a new pair of glasses – and at that point, they’ll need fast answers.

Internal HR teams are often ill-equipped to field these kinds of questions from employees, as they often lack clarity around the nuances between plan details and coverage. It’s critical to partner with a PEO that will match your employees with a team of benefits specialists dedicated to helping them understand their benefits whenever they need help.

A report from Bay Medical utilizing data from the National Compensation Survey’s Employers Costs for Employer Compensation indicates that the average cost of employee benefits is almost $22,000 per employee, per year. For such a hefty spend, it’s critical for employers to carefully consider options to help reduce employee benefit costs, as well as the value they’ll receive for their money. Be sure to weigh costs against the level of service your PEO is dedicated to providing to both your company and your employees.

Contact us today to learn more about employee benefits and strategic HR support from PrestigePEO.

COVID-19 has cast an intense spotlight on employee health and wellbeing, leading many employers to want to take better care of their teams. According to a recent study by Harvard Business Review, nearly all – 98% – of senior executives surveyed indicated that they plan to offer their employees at least one new or extended employee benefit this year.

That makes this year’s open enrollment period especially crucial for businesses of all sizes, especially small and mid-size businesses (SMBs). As small business leaders like yourselves shop around for employee benefits this year, PrestigePEO will be offering a look at some of the key points you should consider. Continue reading below for a look at one of the first and most important considerations for many SMBs when PEO shopping for employee benefits – how much these costs will impact your company’s bottom line, and how much you can save by partnering with a PEO. 

How Partnering with a PEO for Benefits Can Help Your Bottom Line

In the past, many SMBs passed on offering employee benefits altogether due to the high costs. That’s because open market rates are typically based on the number of employees to be covered, which means small groups face very high rates while larger groups enjoy steep discounts. This disparity makes it possible for large enterprises to offer employees more lucrative benefits packages, and ultimately attract and retain the best talent in the long run.

SMBs who find themselves in this position may find it beneficial to partner with a PEO. Working with a PEO grants SMBs access to exclusive group rates on top-tier employee benefit plans that are typically reserved for large companies. This can help SMBs improve their employee benefit offerings while reducing overall HR costs, and attract the top talent they need to grow their businesses.

It’s important to partner with a PEO that offers line-by-line pricing so you can see how much you’ll be spending – and saving – for each of our services. Since the purchasing power of a PEO affords a business much better rates on medical, dental, vision, life, and supplemental insurance plans, SMBs are likely to see a reduction in overall HR costs when they partner with the right PEO. Offering employee benefits also helps SMBs reduce employee turnover and avoid the high costs of replacing top talent, so the savings can add up to be significant over time.

How Partnering with a PEO for Benefits Can Help Your Employees

The COVID-19 pandemic led many working professionals, and especially those with families, to shift their financial priorities. Depending on their circumstances, this could mean they’re planning a reduction or increase in their healthcare and supplemental insurance benefits for the next calendar year. Either way, there are likely to be a lot of employees looking to make a change.

With the situation still so volatile across most regions of the United States, it’s important to offer employees a diverse range of choices when it comes to their employee benefits. By providing your employees multiple plan options at various price points, you can help ensure they get the coverage they need at a cost that works for them.

This is a critical year for many when it comes to their employee benefit decisions. There’s never been a better time for businesses – especially SMBs – to reconsider their employee benefit offerings and shop around for a better deal. Whether or not your business already offers employee benefits, a PEO can help your business maximize your HR budget and take better care of your team. Reach out to PrestigePEO today to learn how we can help.

Your employees are your most valuable asset. Without the right team, it would be impossible for any business to grow and scale. Smart businesses are already adapting to the impending changes in employee demographics projected over the next few decades in order to remain competitive in a fast-changing world. This year consider how your business can improve its recruitment and hiring practices and attract the talent it needs to propel toward success. Reach out to PrestigePEO to learn more today.

Did you know? – Glassdoor reports that offering an exemplary employee hiring and onboarding experience can improve retention by over 80%. After an exceptionally unusual 2020, businesses everywhere are rethinking how things are done heading into 2021, with recruitment and hiring practices at top of mind for many. Keep reading to learn how employers can improve recruitment, hiring, and onboarding of employees this year and beyond.

Your employees are your most valuable asset. Without the right team, it would be impossible for any business to grow and scale. Smart businesses are already adapting to the impending changes in employee demographics projected over the next few decades in order to remain competitive in a fast-changing world. This year consider how your business can improve its recruiting, hiring, and onboarding employee best practices with 3 tips to attract the talent it needs to propel toward success.

When the pandemic hit, it became clear that businesses that were prepared to operate remotely for the long-term are going to fare better under the excruciating circumstances – and so far, that’s been true. Now, with the pandemic still affecting millions of people across the U.S., most businesses are looking to apply a digital-first mindset across all operations, especially recruitment and hiring.

After successfully working from home for over a year, most skilled professionals are unwilling to return to an office full-time. Many companies have already announced permanent remote-friendly policies, making those employers much more attractive to highly skilled employees. In order to attract and retain talent in a post-COVID world, businesses will have to accommodate these shifting employee expectations – and they’ll need a solid HR technology stack in order to do so.

From the right software to post job openings and screen candidates, to an employee onboarding platform that enables new hires to complete all paperwork digitally, powerful HR technology platforms are quickly becoming the backbone to successful recruitment and hiring. Prospective employees want to know that their new company cares about them, and a digital-first hiring and onboarding process is key to a positive first impression – it shows employees that your company is forward-thinking, agile, and eager to adapt to a changing world.

Take a look around your company – is it truly diverse? Are there people of color among your leadership team? Do women hold decision-making power? If not, it’s well past due time for your business to reconsider its diversity, equity, and inclusion policies – and this involves much more than press releases and company statements.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion aren’t just buzzwords – they’re complex concepts rooted in addressing generations of systemic inequality and discrimination. The issue often begins in the recruitment stage, as the hiring practices of many companies are actually much more biased than they may seem.

Listen to our podcast, HR in 15, to learn about common discriminatory pitfalls and how companies can avoid them.

From a business perspective, diversity, equity, and inclusion are statistically proven to enrich both the culture and the profitability of businesses of all sizes. As candidate demographics continue to skew younger, more culturally diverse, and more tech-savvy, companies will need to provide a much more robust and fair recruitment experience. That will require businesses to understand and recognize the bias throughout their current recruitment and hiring processes and revamp them to be more inclusive.

One way to begin DEI efforts is to create a clear statement addressing the issue and your company’s response on your website. This communicates your company’s dedication to creating an inclusive workplace for all to both prospective employees and potential clients – for some, partnering with a PEO that demonstrates a commitment to its own corporate social responsibility may be an important deciding factor.

Employee benefits were already a critical factor in most people’s employment decisions long before COVID-19; now, in the midst of a global pandemic, benefits like health and life insurance are even more important to professionals considering a job change. Furthermore, both employers and employees are recognizing the value of a truly comprehensive benefits package that goes beyond health insurance – one that includes additional options like supplemental hospital insurance plans, pet insurance, and access to mental health care.

Offering better employee benefits isn’t just good for your employees – it’s also good for your bottom line. When employees are happy with their benefits, your company is much less likely to experience employee turnover and the high costs associated with it. Combined with effective and fair recruitment practices, this could help your business save a significant amount of money and even increase profits over time.

Reach out to PrestigePEO to learn more today about the onboarding process for new employees.