Employee Benefits Market Check Survey: 2024 Annual Enrollment Methods

Annual enrollment season brings both anticipation and concern for employers and their workforces. A well-crafted and thoughtfully planned benefits and communication strategy plays a pivotal role in assisting employers with achieving their employee benefits goals. Many employers deploy various enrollment and communication methods to reach as much of the workforce as possible and accommodate the diverse preferences of employees.

This year’s annual enrollment may be particularly stressful for employers and employees alike, as medical renewal rate increases are trending higher than in the past three years. Any efforts employers make to provide clear and frequent communication and a stress-free enrollment process for employees will help to lessen the tension in this time of economic uncertainty.

We conducted two polls to gain insight into employers’ benefits enrollment and communication approaches. We compare these results against responses taken from the same poll over the last three years. The results are in the charts below.

2024 results based on 291 employer responses (allowed to select multiple responses).

Key Findings

Our findings underscore a clear shift toward digital channels for benefits enrollment, with online and mobile enrollment becoming an overwhelming preferred choice among employers. Reliance on paper enrollment plummeted 14% from last year’s responses. Certainly, some employers provide a mix of enrollment options to address a diverse workforce’s needs. While the continued adoption of technology is welcome, employers should ensure that the digital option provides a positive user experience.

Employers understand the need for clear communication and support to assist employees in navigating the complexities of benefits selection during a time of financial instability, and we found that most communicate their benefits program through a variety of channels. As with annual enrollment, digital options were the top choice for communicating information about the benefits program, with 73% of respondents using a website, mobile app, and videos. Despite the technological shift, in-person events and printed materials remain popular.

Organizations that prioritize comprehensive employee education and seamless enrollment processes boost employee confidence, satisfaction, and engagement with benefits and leverage technology for reduced HR workload, fewer errors, and enhanced access to enrollment metrics. We encourage employers to continuously evaluate their methods and ensure they support the organization’s overall benefit goals.

Should you have any questions regarding any of this information, want to explore solutions for your company, or want access to industry-specific data, please contact your local Assurex Global adviser.