Welcome to the International Employee Benefits Association (IEBA) US Branch

In 2023, a group of global benefits professionals met to re-launch IEBA in the United States and North America.

Our vision is to help educate, connect and build together a global benefits and total rewards community for US employers.

On this page, we will share our meeting announcements and recaps.

Special thanks to our steering committee for getting the IEBA-US Branch up and running
Mike Appaneal, CEBS with Lockton (LinkedIn)
John-Paul Augeri with Milliman (LinkedIn)
Christopher Benson, PHR with Eli Lilly (LinkedIn)
Laura Gallerane, CEP with Progress Software (LinkedIn)
Mark Horbag,  with Lockton (LinkedIn)
Karen Shine with Slalom (LinkedIn)
Mike Smith with Lockton ​(LinkedIn)

Join the International Employee Benefits Association (IEBA)

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Summer 2024 Dinner - Workforce & Benefits in the Age of AI

It was another great IEBA dinner at L’Osteria in Boston's North End. A big thank you to Karen Shine and Ryan McCreedy of slalom for an informative session on AI implications for society, work, HR and benefits as well as Emelie DeBaie with Benepass for sponsoring our event.

We gained new perspectives and insights on AI including

• Background and difference between Traditional and Generative AI
• Understanding how AI will impact the nature and tasks of jobs and work
• The need to develop adaptive people and organizations

 
Fun Fact #1, most AI can’t accurately tell us how many “r’s” are in the word “strawberry”.
Fun Fact #2, in Boston, there are no “r’s” in the words car, bar, far, star and many more.
 
For those who were unable to attend, you were missed. Ryan shared his presentation  (click the image below) and is open to follow on conversations.
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Thank you also to Mark Horbag for his remarks about IEBA

• Employers who are part of the American Benefits Council have IEBA included as part of their membership.
• He studied for and passed the IEBA certification and encourages others to pursue this well-regarded certificate.
• Our next IEBA event will be virtual on October 1st and focused on well-being, nutrition, and risk management. More details to follow soon.

 Enjoy the rest of the summer and we’ll see you in the fall, Mike

Spring 2024 Dinner and Webcast - Global Communication

Our inaugural IEBA US Branch dinner was held at BECCO in New York on March 12th from 5-9PM.
 
We focused on Global Communications & Employee Engagement. It was nice to see clients, old friends and meet new colleagues. We had an interesting discussion and there was ample time for networking, socializing and dining.
 
A big thanks to Adam Mason (LinkedIn) and Benefex for sponsoring and moderating this event.

May Webcast with Benefex, National Grid and White & Case

Global benefits communication continues to face challenges for multinational employers.

During our May session, Adam Mason from Benefex along with Jill Mongelluzzo with National Grid and Karen Sicignano with White & Case discussed how to:

• Enhance the employee experience
• Communicate throughout the year
• Throughout the employee lifecycle
• Leverage technology to scale

Following our panel discussion, we broke out to discuss the issues in smaller groups.

Click the image below to download Adam Mason's presentation
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Recap of our discussion

Adam masterfully led us through this discussion and brought forward these key takeaways...

• Branding Approaches of Your Employee Benefits Program

​Across today’s uncertain global markets, branding your employee benefits program effectively can significantly enhance engagement and appreciation among employees. Here's a look at how two leaders, Jill Mongelluzzo with National Grid and Karen Sicignano with White & Case are navigating this complex task.

• Global Consistency and Corporate Brand Alignment

Jill emphasizes that brand guidelines form the cornerstone of their communications. While not every vendor can support extensive branding across all countries, the focus remains on alignment rather than uniform replication. A recurring theme, "Live Brighter," originated from their US operations and is often adopted globally.
Karen also uses brand guidelines as a baseline, striving for consistency by adopting templates from more established markets. Historically, communications have been very direct with clear calls to action, and there's a shift towards integrating softer aspects of benefits, aligning more closely with corporate values.

• Global Versus Regional Communications

Jill highlights a dual approach: external agencies handle communications in larger markets, while the People and Culture team manages this in smaller markets. This approach, although sometimes less involved, offers greater flexibility in messaging, tailored to the specific needs of benefits teams.
Karen adopts a regionalized communication strategy, acknowledging the variation in benefits across markets. While some wellbeing activities maintain global consistency, the primary goal is to ensure messaging is both globally consistent and locally relevant. This approach even varies within countries, reflecting local development nuances.

• Flexing Communications Across Markets

Jill underscores the importance of explaining the "why" behind benefits and their value to employees. Local representation plays a crucial role, with senior leaders in key markets like the US delivering core messages. Understanding the audience's expectations is vital, as evidenced by differing tones in the UK and US, or the direct approach in the Netherlands versus the educational focus in India.
Karen focuses on the outcomes of benefits, ensuring that the communication framework is built around access to key services like medical care, tailored to each market's specific offerings.

• Leveraging Technology for Global Communication

Jill notes the absence of a dedicated benefits technology platform. They rely on vendor platforms for messaging but avoid direct vendor-to-employee communication to prevent messages from being perceived as spam.
Karen mentions that benefits platforms are not present in all markets. Where they do exist, they are adapted to align with local benefits, accommodating variations like the lack of formal enrollment windows in Australia.
 
In conclusion, both Jill and Karen aim for global consistency in their employee benefits program branding, and they recognize the necessity of regional customization. Their approaches highlight the importance of alignment with corporate values, understanding diverse market needs, and strategically using technology to enhance communication effectiveness.