Senior Benefits Analyst

Senior Benefits Analyst

Company: Western Governors University

Job Location:

Category: Human Resources

Type: Full-Time

Job Type: Full time

Job Number: JR-024545

Location: Salt Lake City, UT

If you're passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country-and you're committed to working hard to play your part in building that future-consider WGU as the next step in your career.

Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.

The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.

At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is:

Grade: Professional 309 Pay Range: $80,300.00 - $120,400.00

Job Description

The Senior Benefits Analyst will have a dynamic and challenging opportunity to meaningfully impact Western Governors University's (WGU) total rewards programs. The Senior Benefits Analyst works closely with all areas of People & Talent (WGU's HR function), Payroll, Finance, and numerous external vendors to assist in ensuring the smooth delivery of all employee benefit plans, programs, and policies. These include retirement, healthcare, wellbeing, EAP, life and disability, paid time off, absence management, recognition, and other ancillary plans. This role provides technical and financial expertise and work in support of the Director of Employee Benefits and Benefits Advisors. Provides day-to-day stewardship of processes, analysis, data reconciliations and auditing, reporting, communications, and project management critical to the operation of the WGU's employee benefit plans. Supports on-going benchmarking and strategy development in support of our total rewards philosophy, including participation in cross-functional initiatives and coordination with external advisers. Requires substantial prior experience in operational, analytical, financial, and strategic aspects of employee benefits within a large organization. This role operates in a high-pace, high-growth environment and demands positive passion and enthusiasm.

Summary
The Senior Benefits Analyst works closely with all areas of People & Talent, Payroll, Finance, and numerous external vendors to assist in ensuring the smooth delivery of all employee benefit plans, programs, and policies. These include retirement, healthcare, wellbeing, EAP, life and disability, paid time off, absence management, recognition, and other ancillary plans. This role provides technical and financial expertise and work in support of the Director of Employee Benefits and Benefits Advisors. They will provide day-to-day stewardship of processes, analysis, data reconciliations and audits, reporting, communications, and project management critical to the operation of the University employee benefit plans. The Senior Analyst also supports on-going benchmarking and strategy development in support of our total rewards philosophy, including participation in cross-functional initiatives and coordination with external advisors. This requires substantial experience in operational, analytical, financial, and strategic aspects of employee benefits within a large organization. This role operates in a high-pace, high-growth environment and demands positive passion and enthusiasm.

Job Duties

• Provides analytical, technical, process, and project support to the Employee Benefits function within the Total Rewards team.
• Collaborates closely with University People & Talent teammates and other University stakeholders to support the design administration and communication of programs, plans, and policies.
• Provides hands-on project support or ownership for annual insurance renewals, open enrollment, year-end vendor file updates, routine compliance filings, and other special activity and projects as necessary.
• Develops and maintains documentation of critical employee benefits processes and procedures.
• Conducts regular data reconciliations, audits, and configuration reviews of all internal and external administrative systems associated with employee benefits programs and costs.
• Performs root cause analysis associated with issues or problems from across the organization. Identifies and recommends process or system improvements regarding the same.
• Reviews benefit claims and utilization data on an ongoing basis; analyzes and interprets data for trends, improvements, and efficiencies.
• Provides support for tracking of Employee Benefits budget and associated fiscal year planning.
• Plays an active role in employee benefits education and communication across the organization, including assisting with annual open enrollment meetings, webinars, and wellbeing activities. Comfortable presenting information to employees at all levels of the organization.
• Fulfills information requests associated with routine audits and government reporting, and governance committee meetings.
• Assists with peer and industry benchmark analysis, survey responses, and preparation of program design comparisons to other companies.
• Executes assigned operational and strategic activities with consultants and advisors.
• Stays abreast of current and emerging market trends to identify and address potential opportunities and gaps.
• Performs other job-related duties as assigned.

KSAs

• Knowledge of and demonstrated prior experience with operational and strategic aspects of employee benefit plans, including insurance renewals, retirement plans, vendor management, government filings, communications, and benchmarking.
• Very strong work ethic, collaborative orientation, and eagerness to take on new assignments, with the ability to excel in a very fast-paced environment with frequently changing priorities.
• Strong interpersonal skills in dealing proactively with all levels of internal and external individuals including, employees, senior leadership, fellow team members, and external administrators and advisors.
• Keen interest in contributing to the success of teams and growth of individuals. Actively contributes to a feeling of belonging among individuals in the organization.
• Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize multiple and simultaneous operational and strategic activities within employee benefits.
• Ability to write, read, and interpret technical HR materials, contracts, plan documents or related documents.
• Data-driven orientation with ability to diagnose root causes, identify primary drivers of outcomes, and recommend positive changes.
• General understanding of laws and regulations as they apply to HR areas, especially employee benefits.
• Demonstrated strong proficiency with MS Office products - Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Solid technical understanding of HRIS and related processes associated with employee benefits, and the cross-functional impacts with other enterprise systems.
• Applicable knowledge in the design and management of all standard employee benefits programs; maintaining retirement programs; to include project management, enrollment, vendor management, auditing, filings, and training, education, and communication.
• Ability to provide creative and innovative thinking to identify inventive and unique applications of standard/common solutions. Ability to leverage concepts from for-profit environments to adapt to the not-for-profit space.
• Ability to make professional presentations and to communicate technical matters effectively and persuasively in writing, through emails and reports, or verbally.
• Superb verbal and written communication skills.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources or related field
• 5 years of experience in employee benefits administration and strategy
• Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is the discretion of the hiring manager.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a large, complex organization with 1000+ benefits-eligible employees.
• Strong knowledge and prior experience with HRIS/payroll systems.
• Workday experience
• Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS) Certification
• Spanish speaking a plus

Job Description Disclaimer: This position description provides the major duties/responsibilities, requirements and working conditions for the position. It is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current position, however management reserves the right to revise or change as necessary to meet organizational needs. Other responsibilities may be assigned when circumstances require.

This position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements.

Position & Application Details

Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.

How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday.

Additional Information

Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It's not all-inclusive.

Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu.

Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.

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