Value of HCM integration led to expanding benefits and outsourcing leave management

“What first drove us to the market was service,” said Laura Wood, Chief People Officer at Healthesystems. The pharmacy and benefits provider was seeking a new carrier for group benefits after continual communication issues sparked inefficiencies and delays. “What we found with Unum was great service, but also this ADP Workforce Now solution that has made our life so much easier.”

In fact, the Healthesystems' team identified so much value and convenience in the API-enabled connection between Unum HR Connect and their ADP Workforce Now system that the organization not only selected Unum for group benefits, but ultimately added voluntary, individual disability benefits and outsourced leave management through Unum Total Leave.

Plan setup without the “burden”

Healthesystems experienced the difference right away, beginning with plan setup. “It was a breeze,” reports Wood. “We really wanted to make sure we had all our ducks in a row, with the right language to match our culture. And Unum and ADP Workforce Now went off and just made the magic happen.” Previously, the team had a “good amount of manual work” needed to complete setup. According to Wood, “We had to pull down reports from our previous carrier, reconcile and submit back up to their system. It was a burden we had to do every month.” Post-implementation, the process looks much different. “Now it is reconciled automatically. All we do is pay the invoice.”

“Convenient” enrollment doubles utilization

These time-savings and process improvements continued into the enrollment stage. “Enrollment has been great,” said Wood. With improved ease of use, the company saw significant gains in utilization. “Our Critical Illness and Hospital Indemnity enrollment doubled,” Wood reported. “Voluntary Life products went up 60%. Voluntary spousal product went up an additional 35%.” Wood believes these numbers speak to a strong demand for employee benefits that people can easily access and understand. “Now, we offer a benefit that’s really important for our people, and they can take advantage of it in a convenient way. Bottom line, it’s working. And I would attribute that success 100% to the convenience that we’ve been able to offer through HR Connect.”

”Amazing” EOI process

Another friction point for Healthesystems was the evidence of insurability process. When using other systems, this could take months and involve endless back and forth. According to Wood, “Previously, employees would have to get a piece of paper, they’d have to fill it out. A lot of times I would fill it out.” With HR Connect, Healthesystems found a whole new digital experience: “The EOI process is amazing, from both the employee and administrative side. From the employee experience, when they decide they want to add additional Life that is going to require evidence of insurability, 90% or so are auto-adjudicated, approved and sent right back.”

Unum Total Leave “a great solution for our team”

While Healthesystems outsourced leave administration with their previous carrier, they experienced service issues and inconsistent communication. Their search for a better solution led to Unum Total Leave. “From implementation to administration, Total Leave has been great. There’s a lot of complexities in leave administration, different rules in different states. That’s why we wanted to move to an organization where we can rely on their expertise. The service has been fantastic.” This mix of experience and expertise positively impacts both Healthesystems' employees and HR. “It provides a level of support to our employees to help them through whatever their situation may be,” said Wood. “To have employees feel comfortable in a space where they might normally not is a great add.” From an HR perspective, Wood found great value in Unum Total Leave: “Being able to go in and understand where everyone is with one quick view – it’s been a great solution for our team.”

ADA Assist: “Another layer of support”

For more complex leave management cases, Healthesystems is able to access specialized expertise through ADA Assist from Unum. “ADA Assist adds another layer of support,” said Wood. “We’re really pleased with the level of service, and the tools that are available have been fantastic.”

Unum has “raised the bar”

“Through this experience, I really feel like Unum has raised the bar for the competition,” said Wood. “Looking at carriers or providers in the future, if they don’t have an API solution, I’m going to be a lot less interested. You’ve set the standard now. The integration with our system has just been amazing.”