Communicate
The most influential aspect of a Canadian benefits plan is the communication and education that stems from it. Because employees can source any amount of data online, it is increasingly important to ensure that they receive consistent and focused information about the positive opportunities that are available from the organization, the plan and its suppliers. While the plan may not be the inspiration for positive and healthy change, education can be. Remember, improvements in behaviour require knowledge of how to use your plan to help achieve them.
Targeted, consistent communication can truly influence positive behaviours in a population. For your plan to be a success in behavioural management, employees need to understand it, know how to use it and regularly hear about its achievements.
This does not mean that you must inundate staff with extra messaging about your plan. On the contrary, find a permanent corner for this subject matter in your newsletter or some other regular communication that goes out to all employees. The plan must have a prominent place in the list of tools connected to any global rewards strategy.
In addition to sharing information, you can engage experts (e.g., your suppliers) to contribute informative articles on topical subjects that make it easy for employees to draw the line between their actions and the outcomes. Reading about the benefits to a specific colleague could be a powerful motivator for increased participation.
An American perspective
There is no question that our U.S. neighbours are somewhat ahead of Canada on this curve. The obvious reason is the enormous monetary implications of their health costs. Jason Schroeder, manager of benefits with Waste Management Inc. (WM), shared his organization’s initiatives in behavioural management. (He also oversees WM’s Canadian benefits plan.)
First, Schroeder indicated that behavioural influence within the benefits plan is a necessity. People will generally not take action unless there is something in it for them to gain or lose, and this is no different in Canada.
In the U.S., WM has developed a custom-designed incentive program that uses modern tools to contain plan costs and to ensure the optimum treatment options for the patient. The result is a behavioural program that Schroeder refers to as, essentially, an “EAP on steroids.” Through sophisticated tools accessed online or by phone, an employee can earn monetary rewards by participating in specific tasks, such as an annual health risk assessment, which include recognition points (that can be redeemed for merchandise) and premium reductions.
Second, most important to the process is the third party’s role in data mining and analysis that, without revealing any person’s individual results to WM, results in a number of positive opportunities. Coaches can help with everything from disease management to lifestyle management programs, financial management, improved disability management, design options and cost control. Schroeder was also quick to point out that there is a good dose of reality to the process, as the professionals engaged to interact with employees are also trained to recognize the person’s degree of willingness and capability to change. For example, encouraging someone to quit smoking while in the middle of a personal crisis does not result in success. Patience and timing are key.But do WM’s benefits plan and the related processes influence behaviour? Schroeder would say they do. Yet despite the obvious benefits of such a program to the employee, not everyone who is eligible participates. It will be some years before the concept reaches its full potential, but WM is committed to the project.
In Canada, WM has started to examine ways to bring the same type of behavioural-based elements to its plans here. Schroeder noted that the biggest barriers to developing a complete Canadian program are the challenges presented by government legislation and the absence of a strong financial driver.
Know the barriers
When examining your organization’s potential to introduce behavioural incentives into the benefits plan, be careful to address real and potential barriers. As WM discovered, and experts here are well aware of, Canada’s privacy laws present the greatest barrier to any real connection between action and reward. If you can’t easily determine who took an assessment, for example, without legal and administrative headaches, it will be difficult to move this process forward. Tread carefully, but work to
find legal and reasonable solutions.
Ensure that you also thoroughly address the capabilities of your involved suppliers and the resulting administrative tasks. Find out what you can do and the implications before you draft your plan and objectives. Administrative restrictions are another powerful barrier to change, so design within your capabilities.
Lastly, keep it real. Don’t present incentives for which the action outweighs the potential result (e.g., encouraging people to drive miles out of their way to save a few dollars on a dispensing fee). Make sure the ROI of a process is worthwhile and sensible.
A benefits plan alone may not be able to strongly influence behaviour, but it can play an important role in any corporate behavioural program and bring tangible benefits to both the organization and its employees.
Deborah Cameron is vice-president with Krieger & Associates. dcameron@kriegerandassociates.com
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