As an employee benefits broker, you understand the importance of providing your clients with the best possible benefits package. One area of confusion that may arise in client conversations is how a standalone leave management solution like Tilt might differ from a traditional benefits carrier.
To help with that we’ve outlined some of the key factors below so that you and your clients can make an informed decision on what is best for their organization.
How do traditional carriers manage leave?
Some traditional carriers do have a leave management component to their offerings, but the process for employees to actually take a leave, and for HR to effectively manage that leave, creates friction and compliance risks.
Further, leave of absence (LOA) processes provided by carriers aren’t typically streamlined for HR. The LOA offerings they do provide aren’t designed specifically for efficient leave management or a supported leave journey. People teams relying on traditional carriers to manage leave are stuck navigating siloed systems where visibility is limited and employee information may be stored across multiple platforms, spreadsheets and email threads that are nearly impossible to keep track of and keep secure.
The lack of administrative visibility for HR and the “call center” experience for employees when questions arise are some of the factors that can create a negative LOA outcome. Traditional carriers are not set up to manage a leave of absence in a way that truly helps HR deliver an empathetic and supportive leave of absence to their employees.
How does standalone leave management software work?
If your client is exploring the possibility of a standalone leave management solution like Tilt, it’s important that the solution works in harmony with whichever carrier they use.
Unlike traditional carriers, standalone leave management solutions are 100% focused on solving the problems and pain points impacting People Teams and employees’ experience with a leave of absence. This means that your clients can be confident that their leaves are being managed by the experts.
Tilt’s approach to managing all types of leave across the country is by providing your clients with:
- Easy-to-use platform
- Scalability & automation
- Visibility for People Teams, Payroll, Employees and Managers
- In-house legal and compliance team
- 1-1 support by our Leave Success Managers (AKA “Empathy Warriors”)
- Carrier agnostic
Benefits of standalone Leave Management Software
Administrative Relief: Leave management software takes all the manual processes required by traditional carriers or in-house methods and automates them under one digital roof. This dramatically reduces the risks associated with mismanaging a leave all while alleviating the administrative burden on managers and HR pros. It allows your clients to provide a smooth, simple and supported leave experience to their employees so they can spend more time on the tasks they were hired to do.
Compliance: A major risk your clients are facing is the legal ramifications that can result from a manager misstep (intentional or otherwise), inconsistent leaves that could potentially be deemed preferential treatment, remote workforces in states the HR team has never known the leave laws for, and the evolution of those laws and state benefits.
Tilt’s in-house legal and compliance team ensures that the platform is always up-to-date with the most current federal, state, and city laws. This gives your clients the confidence that their leaves are being administered correctly.
Employee Satisfaction: A leave of absence is often an inflection point in an employee’s relationship with their employer. The way in which an organization comes through for their people when they need it most can play a major factor in them returning to the organization or seeking pastures elsewhere. Having a leave management process that is easy, supportive and empathetic increases trust with the employee and establishes a bond upon their return to work.
If your client currently depends on carrier call centers then there’s a greater chance that those employees won’t be walking through that door, and that increase in turnover due to a poorly managed leave sends a strong message to other employees about how they’ll be treated when a life event happens to them. A solution like Tilt provides your clients with the perfect tool to successfully administer leaves and have employees return feeling engaged and satisfied.
Money Savings: There are several ways in which a standalone solution like Tilt will save your clients money. For starters, legal fees from a mismanaged leave can submarine an organization, and the costs to replace employees who don’t return from leave at all are substantial.
Further, Tilt’s technology and team of leave experts ensure a smooth and simple process for employees to apply for state benefits, which would save your client $10,000-$18,000 per leave of absence (depending on leave type and state). More on the financial benefits of a solution like Tilt here.
How benefits brokers shine through leave management
At the end of the day it’s essential that your clients trust your ability to steer them in the right direction about what benefits are best for them and their given situation. Not all clients are the same and not all clients will have the same needs.
Every HR team is responsible for managing their org’s leave whether they like it or not, or whether they’re set up for success or not. As a benefits broker, you can give your clients a big win and earn their trust by letting them know there’s a better way to do leave management. A solution like TIlt works in conjunction with their current carriers and puts leave management processes into the hands and tools of the experts.
About Tilt
Tilt is leading the charge in all things leave of absence management through easy-to-use tech and human touch. Since 2017, our proprietary platform and Empathy Warriors have been helping customers make leave not suck by eliminating administrative burdens, keeping companies compliant, and providing a truly positive and supportive leave of absence experience for their people.
