Job Description

Official Title:  HR Consultant 1 â“ Benefits
Working Title:  Benefits Consultant - Time Away, Disability & Life

As a member of the University of Minnesotaâ™s Total Rewards department, oversees the Universityâ™s time away, disability and life insurance benefits ensuring a competitive set of offerings that are fiscally responsible and responsive to employee needs. Provides expert benchmarking, analysis, design, implementation, monitoring, and communication of these programs and assists with other benefit projects as assigned. Responsible for vendor relationships.  Provides consultation to University stakeholders and committees.

Essential Responsibilities 

• Designs, implements and analyzes the Universityâ™s time away, disability and life insurance benefits to ensure plans meet the Universityâ™s stated strategies.  
• Conducts benchmarking to ensure time away, disability and life insurance benefits are competitive with the Universityâ™s stated employments markets. Proactively recommends design changes to ensure plans remain competitive.
• Works closely with the University Budget office and the Health Programs finance team to provide financial models of proposed policies and benefit plan designs.  Works with data warehouse vendor when appropriate.
• Provides in depth consultation to human resource staff and employee governance groups to ensure optimal time away benefit offerings are developed on University and employee needs.
• Works with Leave team, OHR Contact Center and OHR Benefits Administration to ensure staff is trained on all time away, disability and life insurance benefits and are effectively administering the programs.
• Partners with OHR Communications and OHR Benefits Counseling to develop and implement communications and education strategy that brings practical understanding of benefits to our employees, retirees and their family members in simplified terms.
• Significant leader and partner in preparing change management plans for significant benefit changes and introductions.
• Manages all time away, disability and life insurance vendors including RFPs, price negotiations, agreements about benefits provided, performance guarantees and expectations, identification of systems requirements, and reporting expectations.
• Assists in the design and modification of time away and leave policies.  Including gaining support for recommended changes and effectively communicating the final policy. Examples of policies currently include:
  • Paid medical leave and disability benefits for faculty and P&A employees
  • Parental leave for employees
  • Bereavement leave for faculty and P&A employees
  • Unpaid personal leaves for faculty and P&A employees
  • Vacation leave for faculty and P&A employees
  • Professional development leaves for P&A employees
  • FMLA leave
  • Vacation donation program for civil service and union-represent
  • Sick & Safe
  • Paid MN Family Medical
• Works closely with Compliance and Contracting consultant to ensure time away, disability and life insurance documents, contracts and policies are in regulatory compliance.
• Assists with other health and welfare benefits on an as-need basis.
  

Minimum Requirements 

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources or a business-related field
• Minimum of 6 years of progressively responsible benefits experience, including experience with making benefit changes that require cost/benefit assessment, financial modeling and change management. 
• Knowledge of benefit issues, trends and practices with experience in translating benefits benchmarking into proposed changes for the future.
• Knowledge of benefit regulations. 
  Required Competencies & Skills
  
• Strong analytical, problem solving and decision-making skills
• Comfortable managing mid to large-scale benefit changes
• Strong communication skills across all levels of an organization
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team environment. 
• Ability to foster positive partnering relationships among a variety of University stakeholders, employee governance committees and carrier/vendors. 
• Able to see the large picture as well as the granularity of a situation/project Strong negotiating skills

Preferred Education & Experience 

• Masterâ™s in Human Resources, Business, Public Health, Healthcare Administration or related field
• Professional benefits certification or demonstrated work toward certification, from a recognized professional or educational organization is preferred. (i.e.: CEBS, CBP)
• Experience with HRMS system and outsourced benefits administrator 
• PeopleSoft experience

About University of Minnesota Twin Cities

The University of Minnesota, founded in the belief that all people are enriched by understanding, is dedicated to the advancement of learning and the search for truth; to the sharing of this knowledge through education for a diverse community; and to the application of this knowledge to benefit the people of the state, the nation, and the world.

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