Corporate Benefits Manager

The Corporate Benefits Manager (CBM) leads Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative and its affiliate, the Spreckels Sugar Company, Inc., in the design, implementation, and evaluation of the Company’s Total Rewards Program, which includes but is not limited to insurance policies, retirement plans, wellness programs, and absence and leave policies.  The CBM oversees the selection, enrollment, renewal, and delivery of benefit-related programs to the Company’s employees, promoting the organization as an Employer of Choice.  The CBM is a key strategic and analytical role within the Company, and is primarily responsible for researching and implementing strategic benefits initiatives.  The CBM’s major responsibilities include (1) benefit administration and oversight, (2) regulatory compliance and reporting, and (3) strategic communication. 

Essential Functions:

Benefit Administration and Oversight

• Providers leadership and supervision for the benefits administration including: 
• Benefit plan design, modification, implementation, and evaluation.  Current plans include health, pharmaceutical, dental, life and disability insurance; vision discount plan; flexible spending accounts; and retirement benefits such as Traditional and Roth 401k and defined-benefit contribution plan.
• Worker’s compensation plan design, implementation, and evaluation.  This includes managing the reviewing and processing of claims, participating in settlement negotiations, recommending loss control strategies, ensuring program conformance to applicable laws and regulations, preparing required reports, and monitoring and evaluating the program activities.
• Leave of absence design and implementation, ensuring the administration of Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) provisions and ensuring the Company remains compliant with the COBRA legislation.
• Wellness plan design and implementation, including the Employee Assistance Program.    

• Evaluates current and future benefit and wellness programs by:
• Managing internal and external relationships and partnerships with current and future benefits vendors, insurance brokers, and investment managers.  This includes a minimum monthly call to review current status on programs and addressing any challenges and requesting educational materials for employees and the business.
  • Ensures plan documents and summary plan descriptions are up-to-date and practices are in compliance.
• Partnering with the team to conduct request for proposals (RFP) with current and future vendors, ensuring a strategic and competitive approach for benefit and wellness program evaluation and administration.
• Investigating ad hoc benefit offerings or enhancements to benefit provisions based on market trends, benchmarking information, independent or consulted analysis, and employee feedback through mediums such as online surveys and face-to-face discussions.
• Engaging in benefit and wellness plan cost analysis, including
  • Evaluating the return on investment or (quantitative/qualitative benefit) for current and future plans.
  • Communicating and evaluating benefit-related key performance indicators.

Regulatory Compliance and Reporting

• Ensures plans are administered in accordance with federal and state regulations and plan provisions are followed.  Specifically, this position ensures all reporting requirements and times are met and in compliance with the:
• Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA);
• Internal Revenue Service, including the Affordable Care Act Reporting;
• Department of Labor, including the annual IRS Form 5500;
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, including EEO-1 Reporting.
• Department of Transportation and Commercial Driver’s Licensing Reporting.

• Partners with the HRIS Analyst to compile relevant and required annual statistics and reporting, including non-discrimination testing.
• Leads open enrollment and benefit census reporting annually. 
• Assists the Safety Department in the timely reporting for work-related injuries and illnesses, including supporting the OSHA-300 log.
• Collaborates with the Accounting Department to support annual audits.

Strategic Communication

• Serves as an ambassador for all benefit and wellness programs, which includes:
• Building and driving communication efforts that proactively engage employees in key benefits programs including:  healthcare, retirement, and wellness.
• Creating and implementing multi-channel communication strategies, including conducting research and analysis, strategy and media planning, drafting, reviewing, branding, and delivering communication materials.
• Writing, editing, proofreading print and online communication materials, including key messaging, newsletters, websites, video scripts, and multi-media presentations, ensuring the Total Rewards messaging is clear and concise.
• Participating in benefits utilization studies, analyzing the data, and communicating results to appropriate partners.

Core Competencies and Skill Requirements:

• Broad understanding of general human resource practices
• Knowledge of principles and procedures for benefits and personnel information systems.
• Ability to interpret, apply, and explain federal, state, and local laws, codes, regulations, and proceedings to ensure compliance for benefits programs.
• Ability to evaluate information to determine compliance using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether policies, procedures and programs comply with laws, regulations and standards.
• Ability to keep up-to-date with and apply changes to regulations and standards at the Company.

• Demonstrated critical thinking skills
• Ability to use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Ability to read and understand information and ideas presented through written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
• Ability to quantify costs associated to benefits, which includes estimating costs, resources, and materials needed to provide a competitive, comprehensive benefits plan.
• Excellent customer service skills
• Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services by translating and explaining what information means and how it can be used.
• Ability to provide guidance to groups and individuals on benefit-related topics.
• Strong Microsoft Office skills
• Ability to sort and manipulate data, create formulas, and construct spreadsheets to track employee information.
• Ability to construct PowerPoint presentations, newsletters, and other documents to support on-going employee education.
• Strong conflict management and resolution skills
• Ability to maintain a high level of interpersonal skills to handle sensitive and confidential situations.
• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw conclusions.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Ability to develop constructive and cooperative working relationships with internal and external audiences and maintain these relationships over time to advance the overall public image of the Company.
• Ability to have a high attention to detail.
• Ability to communicate with employees, prospective employees, partners and others to answer questions and distribute information .
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  Required Education and Experience:

  • Bachelor’s degree
  • Minimum five to seven years of experience working with benefits plans including insurance, 401k, and pension
  • Society of Human Resources Management Certified Professional preferred

  Other:

  • Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job.  Duties, responsibilities and activities may change any time with or without notice.

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Questions?  Contact Amy Renneke at amy.renneke@smbsc.com