The Internet and Media Applications for Employee Benefits

Certified Employee Benefits Specialists
(This text does not include any accompanying audio visuals.)

March 6, 2000

Richard L. Hannah, Ph.D., CEBS
Professor of Economics, MTSU
rlhannah@mtsu.edu

Introduction

Thank you for the invitation to speak and apologies for my many absences
from our meetings.  While I have intents of attending, I guess there is
something to the old saw that the road to hell is paved with good
intentions, or perhaps more accurately in my case considering my
scheduling of the past year, the road to good intentions is paved with
hell.

Most of what I'd like to do today centers on sharing a glimpse of the
technological transformation of higher education in general, and how this
is, or is not, related to the practitioner's world.  For you as
practitioners, and me as an academic, our game is employee benefits.  I
think of electronically networked information technologies as a bouncing
ball in this game.  There are essentially two questions to ask ourselves
about this bouncing ball of technology.  First, are we resigned to think
the bounces are random, and we simply adjust?  I doubt anyone in this room
is such a fatalist.  So, my second question is do we have a game plan in
which to harness the energy of the bouncing ball?

Now the game plan to which I allude is not necessarily what the choices
are before us today.  Instead, our minimum vision must include a strategic
tummy feel of how electronic networks will continue to rip some industries
apart, bring new alliances together, and force us all to get out of our
boxes and silos.

As a final introductory note, because I've managed the Benefits-L list so
long, I have come to have immense respect for practitioners in this
extremely complicated profession.  One of the reasons I seldom
editorialize on the list is that other list members know much more than I
about the subject matter.  Hence, my desire to stick primarily to the
educational dimension of the topic.



Higher Education

In the College of Business at MTSU we are in the process of completing our
internal review for AACSB accreditation.  The committee I co-chair is
responsible for a detailed assessment of our instructional
resources.  This agonizing exercise has absolutely convinced me that from
the perspective of learning many traditional categories no longer
apply.  For example, there has been a profound shift from the concept of
intellectual holdings in our library from books and journals to remote
retrieval of interlibrary electronically networked indexes and databases,
increasingly complemented by online search and retrieval of full text
documents.  While this technical shift is the glitz in the pubic eye, I
must relay that this is only the surface of the transformation to new
models of continuous, lifelong learning.  This new and rapidly expanding
industry of intellectual capital access and retrieval really means we
all--faculty, students, and employer constituencies--must learn and apply
knowledge in continuously expanding dimensions of cyberspace.  

This new world is infinitely rich in applied knowledge, raising the
possibility of our delivering to you a vastly superior student than was
possible just a few short years ago.  I underscore the word, possibility,
because in the current budgeting environment in Tennessee, we are at best
breaking even in student preparation--not because the technology is not
available, but because the resources are not in place to facilitate the
hard thinking about how we use the technology to raise the bar of
educational quality.  I suspect this is much like the business world
model, whereby corporate HQ sends you the technology and your job is to
decide how to enhance your profit with it, all the while undergoing a
talent drain of the people best equipped to accomplish this
objective.  Well, so much for this dilemma.  I now turn exclusively to
benefits.

Teaching and Learning Employee Benefits in the Networked Environment

I will use my own course in employee benefits as a descriptive example of
the learning possibilities in the networked environment, first describing
this status the course today and then describing how it will likely be a
year from now.  This particular course is a senior/graduate level course
that I teach once a year.  The student mix typically includes economics,
finance, insurance, actuarial, HR, and IO/Psy majors.  The class fills up
to the cap of 30, and I usually finish the semester with about 20,
something of a testament to the difficulty and perhaps the dearth of humor
in the course.  



Networked Components of Benefits Course

(1) Course Web Page (Syllabus)
Embedded external links--e.g. SSA, PWBA, NCQA
Online lectures
Cases (all real)
Paper topics
Instructions for subscribing to Benefits-L
Link to Benefits-L Page: e.g.-BenefitsLink, IFEBP, EBRI, Wharton PRC
How to contact me

The above items may seem a fairly standard list, but keep in mind that I
don't give students any paper syllabus in class and in fact, I try to
capture their email addresses before the semester starts and forward them
the course web page address so they can make a better informed decision as
to whether they want to take the course.  From a teaching perspective this
is no trivial matter since many of our students fish for courses the first
two or three weeks of the semester and this places a heavy burden on
course progression because the student participants are not solidified.

(2) Students are required to subscribe to Benefits-L, the first such list
on the net, with a sustained subscriber base of about 500 members in the
U.S.  This exposes them to a multitude of practitioner problems and
issues.  I use these examples in class, and sometimes will use a message
as a test question.  At the end of the semester I invite list members to
submit final exam questions and have used at least one each year for the
past three years.

(3) While students are required to write short papers, they do not present
them in class.  Instead, I set aside two evenings of class time and we go
to MTSU's public access Channel 9 studio and they present (individually or
in group format) their findings in a 30 unedited videotaped program that
we telecast through Intermedia, which reaches about 50,000 households in
Middle Tennessee.  My objective of this activity is to ensure that
students have exposure to media delivery.  They are graded on delivery of
intelligent and informative topics.  As a supplemental note I also add
that I often go into the studio myself with my classes and videotape
special lectures as a public service.  Two benefits lectures of the past
year have been the history of pension systems and the governance of
pension systems.

(4) A current project I plan to complete this semester is to place the
Benefits Quarterly CD on our password protected shared drive in the COB so
that all my students will now have access to this important source. 

What I have described above is essentially the course as it is today.  Now
I'd like to describe what I think it will be a year from now.

(1) Web page will be re-engineered to include video and audio streaming of
lecture snippets and case introductions.
(2) A comprehensive set of 30 minute video tapes on special lecture topics
will be developed.
(3) A customized benefits text built around the idea of cases and database
applications will be readied.  This will include a comprehensive overview
of credible and stable public Internet sites and reference niches of
intellectual and practical interest.  
(4) The text will include a section on networked applications in the field
of employee benefits--e.g., new and emerging practices.

This item # 4 is probably what you were most interested in today.  There
are two problems with this item.  First, it's a moving target.  Second,
this is an area where there should be more interface between academics and
practitioners.  Let's take these in order.


Benefits Applications of Electronic Networks

Forgive me for being a bit presumptuous, but I will skip through the usual
articulation of terminology and just briefly mention a few with cursory
descriptions so we will all have a common base point.

First, the Internet is a diffused electronic network that is nearing
ubiquitous dimensions in the U.S.  The only editorializing I add is that
as the Internet achieves such levels of penetration in other parts of the
world, I suspect we'll see literature emerge describing the "American
Model," the "European Model," and the "Chinese Model."  This notion is in
part derived from the distinctly different cultural and political views of
privacy and control. 

Second, Intranets are typically networks that are internally secured for
specific organizations.  Third, Extranets are networks that cut across
different organizations, such as supply chains, service providers,
collaborative business ventures, and client/vendor relationships.  Other
networked offspring include discussion lists, push technologies, and new
methods of consumer profiling.

When I began thinking about my comments today, my first inclination was to
do the academic thing, look at the recent literature.  With two
exceptions, I decided to forgo that exercise.  One exception was a WSJ
article I had laying on my desk that was written about 2.5 years ago.  I'd
like to read a stream of short quotes from industry experts given in the
article.  "By the turn of the century, interactive employee benefit
systems are expected to be mainstreamthese new systems are expected to
change fundamentally the way people deal with their benefits by giving
them more ownership, more control.Where is it going to go?  It's going to
the home."  (Lynn Asinof, "Click & Shift: Workers Control Their Benefits
Online, WSJ, 11/12/97, pp. C1 and C7).  Well, my question to this group is
whether we made it by the turn of the century?

My second exception is derived from already being in the midst of reading
two books that I thought offered rather profound insights into economic
restructuring made possible by the Internet and the WWW.  One was Philip
Evans and Thomas Wurster's Blown to Bits: How the New Economics of
Information Transforms Strategy.  Purely from a business perspective, I
can recommend this highly readable text.  It contains a very rich
descriptive quality that is relevant to us all.  Time will not permit
further comment here.

The second book was Tim Berners-Lee's Weaving the Web, which I first
thought too abstract to bring to you attention--containing such references
as the semantic web, logic and trust engines, and the virtues of
XML.  However, when I posted my inquiry about applications of information
technologies to the benefits profession on the CEBS and Benefits-L lists,
guess what?  A number of replies illustrated a direct linkage between what
some benefits firms are already practicing and the ideas laid out by Evans
and Wurster, and Berners-Lee.  Here are a few examples.  (Complete
responses are included at the end of this document.)

Benefits Intermediaries
Application Service Providers
Web Enabling Systems
Standardized Interfaces
XML
HR-XML Consortium: www.hr-xml.org
HIPAA Mandated Standard Formats: www.wpc-edi.com
Society of Professional Administrators and Recordkeepers (SPARK):
     Working on standard formats for DC, DB, and Non-qualified Pension
     Plans:  www.connix.com/~rjzegare
Blending Employee Sponsored Value Plans with Online Benefits Information
     www.employeesavings.com

Why Do Any of These?
(1) Cost reduction
(2) Conformance with new business models
(3) Blurring lines between work and family
(4) Recruitment, retention, productivity, morale
(5) Compatibility with evolving network culture

Let's consider another kind of example, the merger or acquisition.  The
best example I've seen lately is Cisco System Inc.'s acquisition of Cerent
Corporation.  The reason I like this example is the illustration of how
electronic networks can be leveraged.  Perhaps the best way to convey this
is by direct quote,

"the secret to Cisco's merger success kicked in even before the deal was
signed, when the company mobilized a transition SWAT team to oversee every
detail of the start-up's assimilation.  [T]he team drew on its pool of
three dozen Cisco staffers who work full-time shepherding newcomers into
the fold.  When Cisco formally took control two months later, every Cerent
employee had a title, boss, bonus plan, health plan, and direct link to
Cisco's internal web site.  [M]ost of them hardly noticed the
changes."  (Scott Therm, "Under Cisco's System, Mergers Usually Work; That
Defies the Odds," Wall Street Journal, Vol. CCXXXV (43), 3/1/2000, pp. A1
and A12)  


Concluding Remarks

I'd like to finish by offering the realistic assessment that
communications between the academic community and business interests in
mainstream America aren't good enough to address the kinds of challenges
that e-commerce and electronic networks are offering.  I'm sure you often
lament the quality of applied skills of some of the students we send you,
and I can share with you the frequent frustration of academics that real
applied learning requires real data and insights into your industry and
firms and no one is knocking my door down with that offer either.

So I hope these comments have been helpful in a quick review of the new
dynamics in both higher education and in business, especially in pointing
out that producing more talent for the trade requires more collaboration.  

To return to a point I made earlier about no student ever coming to me
proclaiming a desire to advance their studies in benefits.  I accept
possibility that some of that may be my lowly teaching and inspirational
abilities.  But I also know that employee benefits was the most
complicated course I taught--before I even thought about the Internet,
Intranets, Extranets, XML, ETC...  Maybe it is my myopic academic view,
but I am not satisfied with the quality or quantity of academic or applied
learning in the field.  I witness this with the observation that in the
Southeast I dare say you could count the number of institutions offering
benefits courses on one hand, and have fingers left over.  Is it any
wonder that even college graduates, whose total compensation will be about
one third in benefits, have virtually no working knowledge of their value?  


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
APPENDIX OF DISCUSSION LIST RESPONSES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 22:36:12 -0500
From: Richard Keatley 
Reply-To: benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu
To: benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu
Subject: Re: Information Technologies & Benefits

As you are probably aware, the benefits industry is ripe for the positive
change that technology can make possible.  Our business is incredibly
inefficient.  There are multiple intermediaries between the benefits
provider and the ultimate beneficiary.  So as with all other inefficient
business models, technology will spawn change in the benefits industry at
a very rapid pace. There are a number of firms working to build a more
efficient conduit for product pricing, analysis, delivery and
enrollment.  In my opinion, brokers will need to change their value
proposition significantly to survive.  The insurance transaction will be
streamlined significantly through the use of these conduits or
exchanges.  If a broker's sole value is to make the transaction, then that
firm will perish.

As mentioned, there are a number of web enabling systems either currently
built, or in rapid development.  The best of these will be linked from one
end of the supply chain to the other.  At one end will be the carrier or
provider, the other the employee.  In the middle will be the benefits
advisor/broker/consultant and employer.  Once a coverage decision is
decided, coverage terms will be logged into a single data
repository.  Coverage history and specifics, claims history, proposal
responses, etc. will all be maintained centrally.  Once coverage decisions
are made, employees will have access to different presentations of the
offerings through their interface (likely some sort of self-service mechanism 
via the web).  Ideally, this will all be linked back into a pyroll or HRIS
system, or even better be a component of one. 

While this sounds a little far fetched, there are working models of this
type of mechanism today.  And all of the sub-components are available in
the marketplace.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 10:47:56 -0500
From: Chuck Allen 
Reply-To: benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu
To: benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu
Subject: RE: Information Technologies & Benefits

XML ought to be on your list of technologies that will have a significant
impact on employee benefit plans.  I think you will find that with few
exceptions, HRMS vendors, payroll and benefit software and service firms,
benefit administrators, 401(k) plan providers, mutual funds, and insurance
companies have built or are planning to build interface facilities within
their software or services to support XML data interchange.

XML, which stands for eXtensible Markup Language, is a specification
issued by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3) for developing flexible and
richly descriptive markup languages.  Perhaps the best known mark-up
language is HTML, the language of the World Wide Web. Key characteristics
XML of are listed below:

* The most signficant interest in XML is in data interexchange and
transactions (rather than the creation of Web pages, the purpose of HTML);
* XML allows for the creation of custom, descriptive tagging that is both
human and computer intelligible -- for instance, information relating to a
plan participant's date of hire might be marked with descriptive tags, such as:
    
* XML provides simple, standard interfaces for accessing data marked up
with conforming XML tagging. Programming with those standard interfaces
typically would be within the ability of your average web application
developer and would not require the same level of highly specialized
knowledge that Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) solutions require.
* XML includes a self-validating mechanisms -- For example, one could set
a constraint that every plan participant record must contain a value for
dataOfHire and that constraint could be enforced in the creation and
transmission of the data without having to write special error-checking
routines.
* Browser-independent user interfaces can be easily created using
server-side XSL (eXtensible Stylesheet Language) transformations of
XML-tagged data.

I am the Director for the HR-XML Consortium. The goal of the Consortium is
to make XML that much more powerful by establishing standardized tagging
vocabularies for compensation and benefits data as well as standardized
protocols for handlingcommon inter-company benefits transactions. 
Industry-standard XML vocabularies provide the means for a company to
transact with many other companies without having to establish, engineer, 
and implement many separate interchange mechanisms.

To learn more about the HR-XML Consortium, visit http://www.hr-xml.org
A list of Consortium members appears at the end of this message.

Best Regards,

Chuck Allen
Director, HR-XML Consortium, Inc.
1-919-247-6881

                          HR-XML MEMBERS
                        * = Charter Member
Aetna*,
Applied Theory*,
Authoria*,Applied Theory*,
Authoria*,
Best Software,
CareerBuilder, Inc.,
CareerPath.com,
CDI Corp/MRI*,
Concur Technologies,
Covanta, Inc.,
Crestone International*,
Deploy*,
Digital Discoveries, Inc.*,
E-Cruiter.com Inc.*,
Employease*,
Eployment,
Evolve,
HeadHunter.net*,
Hewitt Associates*,
Hire.com*,
IBM*,IBM*,
Interactive Search, Inc.*,
Icarian*,
International Association for Human Resource Information Management
(IHRIM),
Interactive Search,
Interim Services, Inc.*,
J.D. Edwards*,
JobDirect.com,
jobs.com*,
Korn/Ferry*,
kforce.com*,
Lawson Software*,
Liquid Software,
Main Sequence Technologies,
Manpower, Inc.*,
modis, Inc.*,
Monster.com,
MDTSC,
Opus360, Oracle*,
PeopleClick.com,
PeopleSoft*,
Personic*,
ProBusiness Services, Inc.,
Raymond Karsan Associates,
recruitsoft.com,
Resumix*,
Robert Half International Inc.*,
SAP*,
Simpata, Inc.,
SkillsVillage.com*,
SmartChannels.net,
Techies.com*,
Towers Perrin,
Ultimate Software*,
Vivant! Corporation,
Volt Services Group*,
Watson Wyatt Worldwide*,
Webhire, Inc.*, and
WorkLife Solutions, Inc.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 17:09:03 +0100
From: "Schwartz, Lois" 
Reply-To: benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu
To: "'benefits-l@frank.mtsu.edu'" 
Subject: RE: Information Technologies & Benefits

Thank you for your EXCELLENT information about XML and XML standards.  You
are correct in the importance of Standardized Interfaces between
organizations, providers, etc.  I work for one of the charter member
organizations of the HR-XML Consortium.  I am a benefits requirements
consultant and must keep up with all new advances in technology as well as
legislative and market needs for our product. Welfare Benefits
Administrators should also be aware of the new EDI formats available for
HIPAA standardized format compliance.  There are MANY formats defined for
the health care industry, but one is of particular importance to
organizations.  ANSI X12N 834 which sends enrollment and participation
information to vendors.  This means that no matter how many provider
organizations you contract with (for welfare benefits), only ONE data feed
format will be required.

For further information about the new HIPAA mandated (standard formats in
the health care industry) visit the website:  www.wpc-edi.com

Although there are no current 'file standards' for Defined Benefits,
Defined Contribution administration between organizations and providers, 
there are efforts in place to begin.   One of these efforts is The Society
of Professional Administrators and Recordkeepers (SPARK) who is working on
determining standard formats for financial, demographic and compliance
testing data for Defined Contribution, Defined Benefit and Non-Qualified
pension plans."
Visit website: www.connix.com/~rjzegare for some details.

Hope this adds some additional and helpful information.

Lois Schwartz
Solution Archetict, Employee Benefits
SAP America
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 11:30:53 -0500
From: listproc@frank.mtsu.edu
To: Ed.Kent@UCAR.com
Cc: rlhannah@frank.mtsu.edu
Subject: Error Condition Re: RE: Information Technologies & Benefits

UCAR is in the process of a major study with Deloitte to evaluate how it
delivers not just HR services but a number of other internal
functions.  Results won't be available until late in the year.  We
envision that we will use a combination of intranet and internet to
service employee benefits.  All admin and policy manuals as well as SPDs
will no doubt be on the intranet.  We will also probably feed the internet
sights for our savings plan and medical/dental claims payer to our
intranet sight.  Perhaps even pension calculations and forecasting.

Hope that helps.  No word on what we will do with our other 8 countries.

Ed Kent

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 9:45:51 -0500
From: Robert B. Jones 
Reply-To: ISCEBSLink@ifebp.org
To: ISCEBSLink@ifebp.org
Subject: Re: Information Technologies & Benefits

Richard---in the Continuing Ed materials for this year (2000), there is an
article that covers the subject you raise at page 1.25--------BOB

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leigh Barer
Public Relations Manager
employeesavings.com
Ph: 425.456.3930
leigh@employeesavings.comBusiness 

Description:
Developed in 1997, employeesavings.com is the leading provider of
work/life solutions used by Fortune 1000 employers to attract and retain
employees.  The company's product categories include Employer Sponsored
Value Plans (ESVPs) and its suite of Web-based HR administrative
tools.  employeesavings.com's cornerstone product, ESVPs, is a free,
customized employee discount program helping employers attract and retain
talented individuals through employee savings on premium brand name
products and services.  employeesavings.com negotiates exclusive offers on
groceries, apparel, electronics, sports equipment, cars, entertainment,
travel, financial and insurance services, and more -- all at no cost to
employers.

Hundreds of discreet savings and special offers are aggregated into a
single plan, administered by employeesavings.com under the ESVP umbrella.
Corporate employees may access ESVP savings 24 hours a day, seven days a
week through an employer-branded extranet Web site, a printed catalog or
an employeesavings.com value card accepted at participating retailers.

The suite of Web-based tools includes real-time ESVP reporting, employee
classified ads, calendars and other Web-based tools that streamline
HRclassified ads, calendars and other Web-based tools that streamline HR
communication with employees. The privately held company is backed by
venture capital industry leader Benchmark Capital and based in Bellevue,
Wash. employeesavings.com may be found on the Internet at
www.employeesavings.com.

The need for work/life initiatives: 
**The tightest employment market in three decades is causing companies to
rethink how they attract and retain employees. As the lines between work
and home life continue to blur, employees are seeking employers who
respect the work/life balance and provide flexibility.

About employeesavings.com:
The company's product categories include Employer Sponsored Value Plans
(ESVPs) and its suite of Web-based HR administrative tools.  
**ESVPs are a free, customized employee discount program helping employers
attract and retain talented individuals through employee savings on
premium brand name products and services. 
**employeesavings.com negotiates exclusive offers on groceries, apparel,
electronics, sports equipment, cars, entertainment, travel, financial and
insurance services, and more -- all at no cost to employers.
**Hundreds of discreet savings and special offers are aggregated into a
single plan, administered by employeesavings.com under the ESVP umbrella.
Corporate employees may access ESVP savings 24 hours a day, seven days a
week through an employer-branded extranet Web site, a printed catalog or
an employeesavings.com value card accepted at participating retailers.
**The suite of Web-based tools includes real-time ESVP reporting, employee
classified ads, calendars and other Web-based tools that streamline HR
communication with employees.

INDUSTRY STATISTICS:

**Employee retention**
According to the America @ Work, 1999 study by Aon Consulting:  Employee
retention is key to organizational success.  The employee replacement cost
is at more than $10,000 per employee and Benefits and Compensation is
among the five most powerful categories driving the workforce commitment.

The number one and two key reasons why work/life benefits pay off for
employers are attracting and holding on to talented people and increasing
productivity, respectively, according to A 1998 Special Report on Best
Practices in Work-Life by the Work & Family Connection, Inc.,
reports.  Employees can better manage their life responsibilities, and as
a result, can be more focused and productive at work, reports a study of
Work/Life Benefits Provided by Major U.S. Employers in 1998 from
management consulting firm Hewitt Associates.

**Productivity**
Providing employees with the means to efficiently take care of personal
errands during the work day, may enhance productivity. In fact, "...by
condoning online shopping, employers can actually squeeze greater
productivity out of employees...," according to the December 1999 Jupiter
study, titled Home Versus Work Usage.

More about ESVPs (Employer Sponsored Value Plans) More about ESVPs
(Employer Sponsored Value Plans)
**ESVPs  consolidate discreet discounts offers into a single plan
negotiated and administered by employeesavings.com on behalf of its 
corporate clients-- all at no cost to employers.
**Vendors pay to reach the millions of corporate consumers and their
families we reach through the program.
**In a tight labor market, ESVPs are a powerful tool to attract, retain
and reward corporate employees, while reducing HR administrative overhead.
**ESVPs can save corporate employees thousands of dollars a year on a wide
range of high quality brand-name products and services, including
groceries, sports equipment, cars, financial and insurance services, and more.
**ESVP savings are delivered in three ways -- employer-branded corporate portal,
printed catalog and point-of-purchase discount cards. Hundreds of discreet
offers are aggregated into a single, customized corporate portal, creating
one-stop benefits administration. 

INDUSTRY STATISTICS SUPPORTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF WEB-BASED WORK/LIFE
SOLUTIONS

American employers are experiencing the tightest labor market in three
decades, resulting in a severe employee recruitment and retention
challenge.  According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the United States 
jobless rate dropped to 4.1 percent in January 2000, representing the
lowest unemployment rate since 1970.

The increased competition among employers to attract and retain talented
employees has led to the development of new trends in work/life employee
benefits.

"During the last five years, there has been continued growth in the
number of employers offering programs and policies that help employees
better juggle their responsibilities at work and outside of
work," according to a recent study by management consulting firm Hewitt 
Associates LLC.  "By offering work/life initiatives, employees can better 
manage their life responsibilities, and as a result, can be more focused 
and productive at work," reports Hewitt.

In a nationwide survey of chief financial officers by RHI Management, 63
percent said the number of companies instituting work/life benefits has
increased in the past five years.

A 1999 online survey of college educated, employed adults by Fast
Company-Roper Starch Worldwide reports the following:

Eighty-nine percent placed the responsibility of enabling people to
balance their work and personal lives on their employer.

Eighty-three percent believe using the Internet and other technology
is important in achieving balance in their personal lives.

College graduates are looking for work/life balance according to
JobTrak.com's Career Values Poll:  Students and alumni value balancing
work and personal lives over money, location and advancement potential. 

A 1998 survey conducted by Working Mother magazine and the Work & Family
Connection, Inc., reports the following:

Seventy percent of surveyed employees at Fel-Pro, an automotive supply
manufacturer, reported they remained with the company because of its
work/life benefits.

Sixty percent of workers surveyed from another large employer reported
that the ability to balance work with personal and family responsibilities
was "of great importance" in their decision to stay with the company.

Scott Paper Co. says work-life programs and other efforts to support
employees increased productivity by 35 percent.

Providing work/life benefits increase employee loyalty and loyalty impacts
employee commitment: Employee recruitment is expensive and increasing
employee retention reduces the cost of recruitment.

The 1999 Aon Consulting America @ Work study found the employee
replacement cost to be at more than $10,000 per employee.  Employees with
weak commitment to their employers are less productive than those who are
more strongly committed.

Less committed employees produce lower sales, reports Bashaw and
Grant in 1994.

Employee attitudes directly affect customer satisfaction and revenue.  At
Sears, every 5 percent improvement in employee attitudes creates a 1.3
percent improvement in customer satisfaction and a .5 percent increase in
store sales, according to a 1998 study by Rucci, Kirn and Quinn.

There are seven key reasons why work/life benefits pay off for employers,
according to A Special Report on Best Practices in Work Life by the Work &
Family Connection, Inc. in 1998: 
1) Keeping talented people
2) Increasing productivity
3) Enhancing commitment
4) Raising employee morale
5) Cutting health care costs (healthy, less stressed employees reduce
costs)
6) Appealing to Wall Street and consumers as responsible corporate
citizens
7) Safeguarding the future wellbeing of society.

Organizations must bd work/life benefits into their employee recruitment
and retention strategies, in order to remain competitive in the new labor
market.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Gregory Judd 
Reply-To: ISCEBSLink@ifebp.org
To: ISCEBSLink@ifebp.org
Subject: Re: Information Technologies & Benefits

A mention of the emergence of application service providers (ASPs) devoted
to the benefits business would make sense; seems there's a new one
launching now every couple of weeks. While the number of them is a bit
odd, the business model they're predicated on isn't. Makes a nice segue to
issues of privacy, trust, etc., too.

Further afield, the distinct trend toward mobile internet access & its
potential impact on benefit communications delivery would lend a
'futuristic' note to your remarks.

Gregory Judd CEBS CLU ChFC
------------------------------------------------------------------------