Brian Lindenberg

Employee engagement: Do benefits make a difference?

Mercer recently released its 2011 What’s Working—Inside Employees’ Minds survey on employee engagement. The survey asked more than 2,000 Canadian workers for their views on various aspects of the employment deal, including pay, benefits, careers, leadership, performance and engagement. The survey analyzes differences by workforce demographics and includes a conjoint analysis to determine what employees […]

  • July 28, 2011 September 13, 2019
  • 11:22

Steps to better benefits plan risk management

I was talking to a client recently about the potential implications of a particular biologic drug on their future benefits plan costs. The client listened intently but at the end of the discussion indicated they understood the issue but couldn’t do anything about it. At that moment it struck me­—most employers manage benefits plan risks […]

  • June 13, 2011 September 13, 2019
  • 12:29

Reputational risk: It’s time to pay attention

When we think of risk, we often define it in financial terms as risk by its very nature often comes with financial consequences. From a benefits plan perspective, we frequently focus on how benefits are funded and underwritten—how the risk is shared between plan sponsor, employee and insurer. However, not all risks are explicitly financial—some […]

  • May 6, 2011 September 13, 2019
  • 13:59

The tipping point for benefits costs

In most recent article on BenefitsCanada.com, entitled Benefits cost management: myth or reality, one of the key messages was that despite a lot of discussion over the years there really isn’t a lot of active cost management built into many benefit plans. Based on the feedback I have received to the article, the message seemed […]

  • March 21, 2011 September 13, 2019
  • 13:20

Benefits cost management: Myth or reality?

For as long as I can remember, employee benefits plan sponsors have been talking about benefits cost management. In the face of double-digit cost increases that have persisted over the last decade—fuelled by such factors as increased utilization, government offloading, the introduction of new, more costly medicines, changing demographics, etc.—the cost management imperative on the […]

  • February 2, 2011 September 13, 2019
  • 15:31

De-risking your benefits program

A benefits program is an investment and as with all investments there are inherent risks. Risk that the expected return will not materialize. Risk that what you thought you “bought” will turn out to be different than what you go. Risk that the cost of managing the investment significantly reduces the return. But, like any investment, […]

  • October 27, 2010 September 13, 2019
  • 00:00

Establishing your benefits plan GPS

You go on a trip. You know the final destination, just not necessarily how to get there. You make a few wrong turns. You arrive at your destination, frustrated at the extra time and wasted effort. If you had the time and no pressing need to get to where you wanted, you may have enjoyed […]

  • September 1, 2010 September 13, 2019
  • 00:00

The politics of healthcare

History has taught us that health policy decisions are not only emotional, but very political. Changes to public policy are frequently made in response to the concerns raised by any number of constituents and “special interest groups”, and governments are disinclined to take bold steps to reform the health system, as the measure of ‘bold’ […]

  • June 10, 2010 September 13, 2019
  • 00:00

Voluntary benefits: the new flex?

The key to any successful benefits plan is a program that satisfies the plan objectives while responding to the (increasingly diverse) needs/wants of employees in a cost effective manner. Based on these measures, flexible benefits work. If flex works, will voluntary benefit plans work, too? There are pros and cons on both sides, and plenty […]

  • March 25, 2010 September 13, 2019
  • 00:00

Workplace wellness: a casualty of the times?

There has been no shortage of media coverage on the current economic times and the struggle for economic survival faced by many organizations. Even with some signs of recovery starting to show, it’s hard not to feel uneasy about how all this will ultimately turn out. There’s a new economic landscape forming before us. Where […]

  • August 18, 2009 September 13, 2019
  • 00:00