Tech

Commentary: Smartphone apps improve adherence and plan member health, and brokers can serve as catalyst for change in this new environment.

Applying the appropriate technology to boost benefits engagement may also require managers considering that technology in light of consumerism, compliance, cost and culture.

Any benefits technology employers adopt should always engage and educate employees throughout the entire benefit experience. Don’t offer access to technology simply for technology’s sake.

EBA's first-ever technology survey reveals how benefits agencies plan to invest in internal systems.

On the whole, benefits professionals do feel a high level of satisfaction with the majority of technology they use, but shortcomings in end-user experience remain a frustration.

Commentary: Are private exchanges just a flex benefits reboot? Lockton’s Mike Smith shares what he thinks will affect their success and adoption.

EBN’s inaugural technology survey indicates that 41% of respondents plan to increase their spending on technology next year, with 45% having already increased their spending from 2013 to 2014. Much of that spending is directed toward new employee portals and front-end systems to better integrate and utilize various benefits functionalities (health, retirement, voluntary benefits and more).

If employers only look at wellness from a 9-to-5 point of view, they are missing valuable opportunities to engage employees. Wellness doesn’t end at 5 p.m., said one expert at the National Business Coalition on Health’s annual conference.

Acquired by Towers Watson in November 2013, private exchange provider Liazon is navigating a unique space. It is both owned by a consultancy and used by that firm’s competitors. Alan Cohen, co-founder and chief strategy officer of Liazon, discusses how all brokers fit into the exchange equation and what, in his view, makes an exchange, an exchange.

Aetna’s planned acquisition of private exchange operator bswift may signal the start of more insurers acquiring private exchanges, experts in the industry say.