George Lane

Principal

Lane is a principal and client manager in the Washington, DC office of Mercer. Throughout his 30-year career, George has worked with clients on numerous employee benefit issues, including benefit plan design and strategy, financial analysis, vendor performance, employee communications, recruitment and retention, and work/life issues. He is a frequent speaker on benefits and human resource issues and has participated in seminars and conferences for Employee Benefit News, SHRM, CEBS, the Washington Area Compensation and Benefits Association (WACABA), the HR Consortium, and the Human Resource Association of the National Capital Area (HRA-NCA).

Advisor strategies

Benefits Think 4 areas where advisers can make a difference for clients

Brokers have work to do on prescription drug costs, price transparency and more, says Mercer’s George Lane.

By George Lane

April 24

Employee benefits

Benefits Think Avoiding the trap of a one-size-fits-all benefits strategy

Employers need to analyze their workforce and then find out from employees – through whatever means possible – what benefits are working for them and which aren’t.

By George Lane

March 3

Practice management

Benefits Think Avoiding the pitfalls of a ‘one size fits all’ benefits strategy

Nearly 40% of workers are considering leaving their current employers, new research shows. Advisers can help employers craft a plan to minimize the consequences of high voluntary turnover.

By George Lane

March 2

Benefits Think Should we really fear the excise tax?

Commentary: If your New Years wish is for the demise of the excise tax, be careful what you wish for, says Mercers George Lane.

By George Lane

December 17

Practice management

Should life and health agents be in the financial services industry?

Mercers George Lane on why life and health agents should consider being in the financial services industry.

By George Lane

July 1

Practice management

Eye on fiscal reform

Post-election, for those who were waiting for something to happen that might change the course of health reform, you can stop waiting. A recent Mercer study found 15% of clients were waiting on the election to start implementing health reform, anticipating a change in administration would either repeal it, fundamentally change it, or roll back some of the provisions – which was probably more feasible. That not being the case, I think everybody out there should start making plans for 2014 based on the law as we know it.

By George Lane

December 1

Wellness

What’s the real return on investment from wellness programs?

I've written previously about wellness and health management, but since it's a topic that comes up in virtually every client planning meeting I have these days, it seems worth revisiting. The biggest challenge facing HR professionals looking to devote resources to wellness initiatives at their workplaces is responding to the question, "What's the ROI?"

By George Lane

June 1

Practice management

What exactly is an employee benefit, anyway?

Sure, there's the obvious medical, dental, life, disability, 401(k). Over time, things such as legal, auto/home and, yes, pet insurance, have been added to the list of employee benefits.

By George Lane

May 1

Law and regulation

Buckle your seatbelts, kids

It was just last March when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law. Now, one year later, the one thing that seems to be most certain … is that nothing is certain at all.

By George Lane

March 1