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How a 400-person engineering firm ran open enrollment with zero paper forms.
Skillfi set up the HRIS benefits module, connected every carrier and gave employees a simple guide to choosing a plan. Enrollment that used to drag on for five weeks closed in ten days. It's part of our HRIS implementation service.
Five weeks of forms, chasing and fixing.
Every year, open enrollment took over the HR team. Employees across six offices filled in paper and PDF forms for medical, dental, vision, life and disability cover. HR keyed each one into carrier portals by hand, then spent weeks chasing the people who hadn't sent theirs in.
Mistakes slipped through. About 1 in 8 enrollments reached a carrier with an error, which surfaced in January as denied claims and frustrated employees. HR fielded more than 300 questions per season, most of them some version of "which plan should I pick?"
Every November, HR stopped being HR and turned into a help desk for benefits forms.
HR Director, client
Make the right choice easy, and let the data flow itself.
We moved enrollment into the company's HRIS, connected it directly to every carrier and gave employees the information they needed to choose with confidence. Plan design and costs stayed with leadership and their broker, with a fractional CHRO available to advise on benefits strategy.
Benefits module, set up properly
All 14 plans, rates and eligibility rules for each office, plus life events, so the system only showed employees the options they could actually choose.
Direct feeds to 5 carriers
Elections flowed from the HRIS to each carrier automatically, with test files validated before enrollment opened and error reports reviewed weekly.
A decision guide employees used
Side-by-side plan comparisons, a cost calculator, short explainer videos and automated reminders until every employee had enrolled.
Nine weeks, week by week
From paper forms to a self-serve enrollment that closed early. Here's how the engagement unfolded.
- Week 114 plans mapped
Plan & eligibility audit
We documented every plan, rate and eligibility rule across six offices and found where last year's errors came from.
- Week 2–36 office rule sets
Benefits module configured
Plans, rates, eligibility and life events set up in the HRIS and tested with real employee scenarios.
- Week 4–55 carrier feeds
Carrier feeds tested
Direct data feeds built and test files approved by each carrier before a single real election was sent.
- Week 6Guide + 3 videos
Decision guide & comms
Plan comparisons, a cost calculator and short videos, plus an email and text reminder schedule.
- Week 7–8Closed in 10 days
Enrollment window
Employees enrolled online from any device, with reminders until every election was in.
- Week 9−90% errors
Clean data to carriers
Elections sent automatically and reconciled, so coverage was right on day one of the new plan year.
Four pieces that made enrollment self-serve
Employees don't need more forms. They need fewer choices to worry about, clear costs and a nudge at the right time. Every piece was built around that.
Plans & rules
- 14 plans with rates by tier
- Eligibility rules by office
- Life events all year round
Carrier feeds
- Direct data feed per carrier
- Test files approved before launch
- Weekly error reports
Decision support
- Side-by-side plan comparisons
- Annual cost calculator
- Short explainer videos & FAQ
Nudges that work
- Email & text reminders
- Manager nudges for their team
- Live completion tracking
The first enrollment season on the new system
Days to complete open enrollment
Enrollment closed 25 days sooner, with every employee enrolled on time.
For the first time, enrollment closed early and nobody's coverage was wrong in January. Our people noticed.
VP of People, clientDreading your next open enrollment?
We'll set up your HRIS benefits module, connect your carriers and give employees a guide they'll actually use. If benefits costs are part of the conversation, a fractional CFO can model the options with you.
- A benefits module set up for your plans
- Direct data feeds to every carrier
- A decision guide & cost calculator
- Automated reminders & live tracking
30 minutes. No obligation.
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