Open Enrollment Preparation

Open Enrollment season can feel overwhelming, but we’re here to help! With our support for your Workday Open Enrollment setup, you can focus on what matters most: your employees’ needs.

To make your OE experience smoother, we’ve gathered some essential tips and tricks. Start with Workday’s Open Enrollment Checklist, and check out our list of common trouble spots that companies often encounter each year. Let’s make this OE season a breeze together!

Have you reviewed your current configuration? This is a crucial first step in preparing for open enrollment to avoid carrying over any existing issues into the new plan year. This thorough review helps identify existing problems and opportunities to automate manual processes.

Key areas to review include:

  • Benefit Groups & Plans
  • Coverage Types & Targets
  • Enrollment Events
  • Enrollment Event Rules
  • Enrollment Instructions
  • Elections
  • Relevant Business Processes
  • COBRA
  • Dependents & Beneficiaries
  • Rates
  • Evidence of Insurability
  • Earnings & Deductions
  • ACA

Reporting

Simple audits can help uncover common roadblocks to a successful open enrollment.

  •  View Workers in Multiple Benefit Groups Audit: This report identifies employees in multiple benefit groups. Run this report as of the effective date of your open enrollment; any results indicate an issue with your eligibility rules.
  • Benefit Event Status Report: This report lists workers with outstanding benefits events. Finalize these open events to enable employee elections during open enrollment. Use the “Finalize Open Benefit Events” function to clear forgotten events.
  • Dependent Audit: Ensure you’re collecting the required demographic information for covered dependents. Audit your data to determine if configuration changes are necessary to meet insurance carriers’ requirements.

Configuration Tips

  • Consolidate Plans: Life insurance plans with age reduction policies can be streamlined into one plan using the Age Reduction Policy functionality.
  • Calculated Rates vs Fixed Rates: Calculated rates attached to applicable plans make rate updates easier via EIB, reducing rate errors. Fixed rates, however, are beneficial for plans with individual rates, such as global medical plans and some US insurance plans.
  • Evaluate Business Processes: Transition from manual to automated processes for benefit events. For example, integrate Evidence of Insurability paperwork into the life event business process, providing instructions and forms for employees.
  • Enable People Experience: Use the Evidence of Insurability Link checkbox and related field on insurance benefit plans to remind employees to complete paperwork with a home page card reminder displayed 30 days after submission.

Integrations

Managing integrations with insurance carriers is crucial during open enrollment. Consider these points:

  • Setting Up New Integrations: Engage integration support early, as setting up a new integration file typically takes three months.
  • Impact on File Feeds: Ensure updates to benefit plans, coverage targets, tiers, and deductions align with carrier specifications.
  • Open Enrollment Files: Insurance carriers generally need your open enrollment file by the first week of December.
  • Notification Preferences: Review and update your notification settings.
  • Support for OE Integrations: Even if there are no carrier or benefit plan changes, we provide support for managing and coordinating OE integrations, communicating with vendors, and maintaining schedules and deadlines. 

Payroll

Ensure correct deductions by coordinating with payroll for a successful open enrollment.

  • New Deduction Codes: Add new codes for newly added benefit plans.
  • Updating Deductions: Update existing benefit deductions with any new plans.
  • Run Category Modifications: Modify the Run Category for new deductions, considering benefits on paid leave, arrears for unpaid leave, and final termination checks 

ACA Ties to Open Enrollment

Ensure employees averaging at least 30 hours per week are in the appropriate benefit group for correct coverage. Update your ACA configuration to include new earnings codes for hour calculations.

 Final Reminders

  • Create an announcement on your Home page for Open Enrollment! Here you can attach job aids, videos, and FAQs that your employees can reference for the duration of OE.
  • Have an effective communication plan in place: Keep your internal stakeholders, external vendors, and HRIS team aligned on testing, timelines, and plans.
  • Clean up outstanding Benefit Items: Close out pending EOIs and finalize any prior benefit events.
  • TEST! TEST! TEST!: Test the entire OE process, including your Payroll and Integration items as well.
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