“Buyer beware.” What a horrible phrase. Plain speaking: you’re about to get harpooned! “I’ve got this bill of goods for you; sign here, press hard.”
But what if you’re not given a warning about a purchase? How do you know you can’t trust someone? Or when to call in someone to look over your shoulder? I guarantee you that the real Mr. Kaiser (my dad) was looking over my shoulder when I agreed to buy my first house. I have to confess I didn’t bring him in during the 1997 Golds Gym fiasco, but that’s the Ouch! I now call experience.
Brad from our team was talking about this recently after seeing a vendor demo for a group Private Exchange (If you’re not familiar with Exchanges, think souped-up Benefits Administration for an ACA world.) The vendor rep leading the demo stated they could complete an implementation and have a 1,000 life employer up and running in 30 days. “Uh, come again?” The absurdity of the statement took me a minute to process. We’ve done hundreds of these and without a magic wand, an implementation should run 60-90 days for a benefits technology-only system and 90-150 days for a more complete benefits administration replacement. Brad had to stop the guy – after all, our client employer had no way of knowing that the sales rep just promised to cure cancer and fix the US tax law by Tuesday.
But that experience has gotten us thinking: If an employer doesn’t know better, they could tell their boss to print their bonus check for being done early and expect a fully functioning system 30 days later at go-live.
The rep went on to tell Brad that the 30 days didn’t included setting up payroll or carrier interfaces. That could take an additional 30-60 days, depending on the complexity and specific carriers the client is using. He further explained they would provide the client reports so the HR staff could manually key payroll data (did I mention this is a 1,000 employee group?). Needless to say, the employer ended the meeting early and this guy destroyed his credibility and chances of winning the business.
After viewing countless private exchange vendor demos, pouring over 500 question RFIs and speaking with dozens of Lockton teams for the last 7 months, I’ve compiled a short list of questions I’ve found helpful:
- Will the suggested implementation timeframe include setting up and testing a payroll interface? If not, when do you expect that to be completed?
- Is the employer expected to map their data feeds to the vendor’s specification?
- Will the suggested implementation timeframe include setting up and testing the employer’s specific carriers? If not, when do you expect that to be completed?
- If a non-standard carrier is used, will that increase timeframes?
- What is the process for transmitting payroll and carrier files if the interface is not set up?
- What are the employer’s responsibilities while the payroll and carrier files are being set up and tested?
- What are the Service Level Agreements and (hopefully) Fees at Risk to set up the interfaces timely and accurately?
A smooth implementation of a new system is crucial to the technology’s success, but smooth takes time. Although quicker might seem more appealing─ as employers are getting ready for the new requirements ACA has placed on them─ quicker usually means the quality or scope is being reduced. (It all goes back to our Service Triangle!) In this vendor’s case, it meant more work for the employer’s HR department. Be wary of vendors that offer below average timeframes and don’t be afraid to ask these questions!
If you have any other questions you’ve found helpful to ensure implementation excellence, share them here by clicking on the comment link above (or let me know directly @HRTechKaiser ) For our team’s recommended Private Exchange or Benefits Administration implementation timelines please send an email to MAT@lockton.com. We’d love to help (unless you’re selling gym memberships 60 days before closing down a club – not that I’m bitter!)
Speaking of ACA-related things: I’m hosting a Tweet Chat with Lockton Benefit Group this Thursday, July 10th at 1:30 PM CST. If you have any questions regarding the Affordable Care Act and what it means for your clients or your company and what technologies are out there to help with compliance, tweet your questions using #LocktonACA.