Benefits & Wellness Manager

Job Purpose:

The Manager, Benefits & Wellness will develop and implement strategies and plan design for employee benefits and wellness programs and ensure processes and procedures are aligned with organizational objectives and legal compliance. This role partners with the Employee Experience Team, department leaders, brokers, and carriers to assess program effectiveness. Benchmark against industry best practices and deliver competitive rewards that attract and retain top talent. Additionally, the Manager leads and develops a team to provide exceptional counsel and support to employees and retirees.

Primary Functions:

Strategic Leadership

• Build a comprehensive strategic roadmap for the Benefits and Wellness department.
• Establish long-term departmental goals that align business needs and strategy.
• Evaluate external market offerings regularly to maintain a highly competitive market position.
• Collaborate with Employee Experience leadership on complex plan designs and modifications.

Benefits Programs

• Formulate and implement a comprehensive benefits strategy that balances cost-effectiveness with workforce and retiree needs.
• Conduct market research and benchmarking to evaluate plan effectiveness and competitiveness. Propose new or revised benefit plan design to meet evolving organizational needs.
• Balance traditional health offerings with progressive initiatives, to build a streamlined benefits portfolio that appeals to a multi-generational workforce.
• Host targeted events and workshops to build deep employee understanding of offerings, eligibility, enrollment processes, and changes to maximize benefits program utilization.

Wellness

• Design and execute evidence-based wellness initiatives addressing preventive care, mental health, chronic disease management, and lifestyle modification.
• Formulate strategic recommendations that balance cost-containment measures with high-impact employee wellness experiences.
• Analyze actuarial and claims data for demographic risk factors to build progressive wellness initiatives, mental health support, and targeted preventive health interventions.
• Partner with marketing and external partners to deliver engaging wellness campaigns across the organization to enhance health outcomes.

Retirement

• Direct the end-to-end administration, respond to audits, regulatory compliance, and fiscal health of complex Defined Benefit (traditional pension), Defined Contribution (401a/457b), and hybrid Cash Balance plans.
• Partner with external actuaries, trustees, and investment committees to oversee plan valuations, monitor compliance testing, and evaluate funding levels.
• Lead the design and execution of comprehensive financial education workshops, communication strategies, and tools to boost employee enrollment and plan understanding to enhance employee financial health.

Leave & Accommodations

• Oversee the comprehensive management of Short-Term Disability (STD), Long-Term Disability (LTD), Family Medical Leave (FML), and specialized time-off programs.
• Facilitate formal accommodation requests by objectively evaluating medical documentation to determine appropriate, sustainable workplace solutions.
• Partner with Employee Relations, Risk Management and department leaders to assess operational impacts, manage leave extensions, and coordinate seamless transitional light-duty assignments.

Systems and Analytics

• Leverage HRIS tools to manage administrative workflows, ensure data transmission accuracy, and drive the seamless execution of annual open enrollment cycles.
• Monitor and audit carrier billing statements, monitor payroll deductions, and analyze health insurance claims trends to isolate cost-saving opportunities.
• Maximize departmental efficiency by monitoring service response times and employee satisfaction while maintaining audit-ready metrics and records to satisfy regulatory compliance.
• Develop regular data-driven dashboards, productivity metrics, and high-level reports to provide senior leadership with clear, actionable insights for long-term strategic decision-making.

Contract & Vendor Management

• Lead formal procurement processes and high-stakes contract negotiations with external insurance brokers, healthcare carriers, and program vendors
• Oversee and collaborate with brokers and actuarial consultants to forecast claims risk, model plan design changes, and calculate the financial impact of premium structures on both employer and employee cost-sharing.
• Resolve complex tier-3 employee claims or carrier disputes.

Financial Compliance

• Oversee multi-million-dollar benefits budget and pension funds.
• Direct the execution of mandatory compliance requirements, including ACA reporting, state reporting (112.08, 112.662, 112.664), OPEB reporting, retiree drug subsidy (RDS) coordination and reporting and non-discrimination testing.
• Maintain operational alignment across all departmental processes with key federal and state frameworks, including §125, COBRA, HIPAA, and FMLA.
• Secure sensitive employee benefits data and conduct routine internal audits to ensure data accuracy and reporting.

Leadership

• Lead, mentor and develop a high-performing team across Benefits and Wellness, fostering a culture of agility and service excellence.
• Equip the team to deliver high-caliber customer service and employee and retiree counsel.
• Act as a thought leader and change agent, driving communication strategies that educate the workforce on the full value of their benefits and wellness portfolios.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to business partners ensuring that benefits and wellness strategies align with talent attraction and retention goals.
• Present strategic recommendations to employee experience leadership to influence the enterprise-wide benefits and wellness strategy.
• Perform other duties as assigned.