Post-open enrollment is a pivotal time for employers to effectively wrap up the year. It’s a valuable opportunity to determine what worked well and identify areas for improvement ahead of next year’s renewal and open enrollment seasons.

To optimize your post-open enrollment period and set your organization up for success in 2025, ensure your to-do list includes these essential tasks:

Submit Enrollment Data

After employees have made their benefits selections, it’s time to send that data to your insurance carriers. However, it’s important to take the time to ensure all data is accurate and enrollment forms are complete prior to submission. If your carrier receives your enrollment data and discovers that key information is missing or inaccurate, this will likely disrupt your post-open enrollment process.

Once your insurance carrier has received your enrollment data, we recommend:

• Looking over year-end compliance reminders to ensure your organization is up to date with all regulatory and legislative requirements 
• Reviewing your process for handling qualifying life events 
• Checking your invoice and payment information for accuracy 
• Updating payroll deductions and your COBRA vendor 

Keep Employees Informed

Connect with employees to let them know when they will receive their new ID cards. If they’ll be entering the new year without ID cards in hand, be sure to send a communication that assures them they can access coverage without their ID card, providing clear instructions on exactly how. This will minimize employee stress and complaints.

Also, remind employees to check their paystubs to ensure all benefits-related deductions are accurate and in accordance with the selections they made during open enrollment. Catching any discrepancies as early as possible can help prevent HR headaches down the line.

Gather Feedback & Analyze Data

Collecting employee feedback immediately following the enrollment process is a smart way to gain constructive insight while the experience is still fresh in their minds. Many organizations conduct surveys or focus groups to check in with their workforce on the overall enrollment experience.

In addition to employee feedback, dive into your enrollment data. This analysis will allow you to glean a wide range of valuable insights, such as how many employees participated in open enrollment, which benefits they found most valuable and which offerings may be underutilized.

The combination of employee feedback and data analytics can help your organization make more informed benefits decisions during your next health plan renewal. In addition, this valuable information can aid in determining whether you need to better prioritize employee communication and education surrounding open enrollment going forward.

Looking for tailored guidance to help your organization effectively wrap up the post-open enrollment period from start to finish? Connect with our team at CBIZ today.