Benefits and Vendor Advisor, Ancillary Program

Company Description

By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills and expertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcoming environment where everyone can thrive.

Why join Harvard University Central Administration?

Harvard University's Central Administration (CADM) is a 5,000+ employee organization that supports the university's overall excellence by understanding and serving the needs of its schools, students, faculty, staff, alumni, and surrounding communities. Through dynamic and collaborative partnerships, CADM provides high-quality and efficient services to the schools to help them achieve their goals.

Job Description

Job Summary:
Responsible for analysis and administration of benefit programs(s). Manage vendor relationships and identify opportunities for plan improvements and cost savings.

Position Description:
The Health and Welfare team sits within the department of Total Rewards. This position reports to the Sr. Director, Benefits & Retirement Strategy and plays a key role in ensuring the ancillary benefit program administration is in compliance with design and contract provisions. This position works closely with Benefits colleagues and the Total Reward Customer Service, Operations and Finance teams to mitigate escalations by faculty and staff and manage health and welfare processes. This role also completes data requests to aid or identify utilization opportunities for plan design modifications, new programs and process improvements. This position would also have oversight of the Unemployment insurance process.

Responsibilities:

• Plays a key role in the management of ancillary benefits, and the Unemployment Insurance process.
• Coordinate and follow up vendor management activities for ancillary benefits: hosting regular service meetings, maintaining issues log, working with the vendors to ensure timely resolution of problems, and communicating status and decisions to appropriate BCW teams.
• Assist in the design of new processes and procedures to improve efficiency and participant experience, working directly with relevant BCW teams and with our vendor partners.
• Collaborate with team members from BCW in the development, and implementation of plans.
• Project lead for implementations or changes to current plans/vendors.
• Develop and maintain reporting needs for BCW Finance and ensure communications among teams for transparent and timely knowledge updates.
• Respond to data requests for union negotiations.
• Conduct internal benefits audits and provide guidance to teams for changes.
• Be a participant on Request for Proposal (RFP) team for current and new benefit requests, as requested and possibly be a team lead.
• Other duties as assigned.

Typical Core Duties:

• Administer and review benefit programs(s); develop, document and implement all administrative processes and procedures and provide input to plan changes.
• Serve as vendor manager for select benefit programs; facilitate meetings, review and approve invoices, manage claims processes, etc.
• Review and analyze reports, identify trends and ways to reduce claims; recommend plan improvements and cost savings.
• Assist employees with benefits program(s) including claims processing and customer service issues.
• Identify trends in customer service inquiries and develop processes to address and mitigate concerns.
• Develop and foster relationships with local HR and Faculty Affairs staff to ensure benefit programs are administered appropriately.
• Ensure compliance with University Human Resources policies, procedures, and requirements and applicable legal regulations.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required
• Minimum of 5 years’ relevant benefits experience

Additional Qualifications and Skills:

• Proven analytical and numeric skills
• Project and program management experience
• Strong and current working knowledge of ERISA and related state and Federal laws and regulations
• Collaborative vendor management style
• Understands organizational complexity and shifting priorities and incorporates knowledge into program design and management
• Demonstrates insight and creativity and offers options and solutions when approaching issues or problems
• Is proactive in identification and communication of issues or barriers
• Effective communication and influential skills, both written and oral, with the ability to share information and ideas clearly and co