Human Resources: Workscape Client Survey Reveals High Adoption Rates for Web-Based Benefits Enrollment

MARLBOROUGH, Mass. (March 29,2007) — Workscape, Inc., a proven provider of outsourced benefits, compensation and performance management solutions, today revealed significant trends in its 2007 open enrollment activities. Hundreds of thousands of employees made benefits elections through Workscape’s outsourced benefits administration (OBA) solution in the last three months of 2006 alone. Of these, more than 83% opted to use the Web rather than a telephone-based enrollment solution or call center.

Companies traditionally hold an annual open enrollment period – typically in the fall – that gives employees the opportunity to review their benefits coverage and make choices for the upcoming year. With increasing complexities and sometimes confusing options – such as health risk assessments, health care reimbursement accounts and pre-tax premium options – employees usually require human intervention, such as from their employer’s HR department or call center, to make their selections unless a robust self-service technology platform is provided.

Daryl Ashley, Workscape’s senior vice president and general manager, Outsourced Benefits Administration, commented, “During the fall open enrollment period, Workscape managed up to 75,000 transactions a week, including more than 22,000 in a single day. Web self-service was clearly preferred by the more than 600,000 employees who relied on Workscape’s OBA solution in this time period – 83% used our Web-based self-service application, 11% turned to our HR service center and 6% chose IVR telephone-based enrollment.”

Tim Clifford, Workscape’s CEO, shared, “Workscape pioneered Web-based benefits enrollment self-service back in the late 90s, so we have significant history and expertise. Our experience with clients indicates that it’s even more challenging to drive these high levels of employee adoption because of the increasing complexity of benefits options and, oftentimes, geographically dispersed workforces. Our 2007 annual enrollment results attest to the popularity and ease-of-use of our OBA solution.”

As a longstanding industry leader, Workscape recognizes that not every employee within a client’s organization has ready access to a computer and that some issues are better dealt with through human interaction. In these instances, Workscape further distinguishes itself through its U.S.-based HR service center, which is located in a suburb of Boise, Idaho. Unlike other benefits administration outsourcers that are running generic call centers located offshore, Workscape’s expertly trained service staff is measured on resolving benefits inquiries and advancing client requests for assistance on the first call, rather than focusing on reducing call length.

During the 2007 open enrollment period, Workscape’s HR service center team fielded up to 4,000 informational and enrollment calls per day. Setting Workscape further ahead of other benefits administration outsourcers is the Company’s ongoing stance that employees need to conduct benefits enrollment whenever and however they choose. Workscape demonstrated this support by providing 24 x 7 service center access. Many Workscape clients’ employees preferred to complete their enrollment information and inquiries outside normal business hours, as evidenced by the fact that 30% of all calls came into Workscape after 5:00 p.m. and before 8:00 a.m. eastern time.

Ashley said, “While many individuals can make their benefits enrollment elections via the Web, others don’t have access to a computer and need the option of calling the service center after business hours. We can accommodate these preferences, day or night, with our 24 x 7 support. Our HR service center also plays a vital role in answering complex questions that are often personal and require a tailored response that cannot be delivered exclusively by technology.”

The release of Workscape’s 2007 open enrollment client survey results follows the company’s recent announcement about its relationship with WebMD, the leading provider of online health information. Their association will provide an integrated solution that helps employees make more informed benefit, treatment and provider decisions. “The open enrollment period represents a ‘teachable moment’ when employees can readily realize rewards for healthy behavior,” said Ashley. “We anticipate significant interest in linking healthy behavior to reduced healthcare premiums.”

About Workscape
Workscape is a leading provider of business-critical HR solutions that enable hundreds of organizations to manage their two largest workforce expenditures: employee benefits and performance-driven compensation. Both offerings share a common technology platform, can be readily integrated with existing IT investments, serve millions of employees, and are scalable and configurable to meet the distinct requirements of organizations ranging from 2,000 to over 400,000 employees. One client uses the company's award-winning multi-lingual compensation solution to compensate hundreds of thousands of employees across 70 countries. Workscape’s outsourced benefits administration offerings are backed by U.S.-based 7 x 24 support for managers and employees on policies and processes.

For more information about Workscape, visit www.workscape.com or call (888) 605-9620.

Contact:
Jeanne Achille
The Devon Group
(732) 224-1000, ext. 11
jeanne[at]devonpr.com