Banks Take Good Care of Their Most Important Assets—with Help from California Bankers Association
One of California’s largest banking trade associations with over 300 members, the California Bankers Association provides resources for members to stay ahead of new trends and on top of critical industry issues.
Situation
Trustworthy, stable, dependable. Banks have a reputation for taking good care of their customers. But how do banks take good care of their employees? In a word: Teamwork. In California, this teamwork happens by way of the California Bankers Association, one of the largest trade associations in the country.
By providing resources to help more than 300 members stay ahead of new trends and on top of critical industry issues, CBA helps banks save money and leverage best practices.
Among CBA’s member services was a turn-key health and wellness benefits program.
Called Banker Benefits, this program helped banks keep costs down while also taking care of their most important asset: employees. Nearly 100 member banks relied on the Banker Benefits program to help provide their employees’ benefits.
Challenge
In 2006, CBA decided to make big changes to the program. The new Banker Benefits program would include new health plan carriers, a new benefits administrator, and health savings accounts (HSAs).
Clear, frequent, and early communications were needed to prevent mass confusion.
Because most members had fewer than 100 employees each, the new materials needed to be simple. They needed to let HR managers easily and thoroughly communicate changes—while also letting HR managers customize the materials to fit their needs.
Solution
Benz Communications created a communications plan based on one key insight: This was an opportunity to create something sustainable and long-lasting. Something member banks could use for years to come.
Of course, the first step was communicating with bank leaders and prospective members.
A weekly email campaign kept leaders up to date, while online meetings provided more information and gave members a chance to ask questions.
Meanwhile, Benz also developed a robust, online HR Toolkit.
With the toolkit, banks didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. They simply visited a website, downloaded the right materials, quickly customized the details, and distributed to employees.
Banks also received a standard print Benefits Guide, enrollment poster, and flyer to help them promote the changes and the new plans.
Since the accounts required additional set-up once banks were enrolled, Benz Communication also developed a full post-enrollment campaign. The campaign fully supported the transition to high-deductible health plans
Results
Banks and their employees felt secure and informed from start to finish. All banks smoothly transitioned to the new plan carriers and benefits administrator.
The new High-Deductible Health Plan with Health Savings Account was adopted by many employees.
Members raved about how easy it was to use their communication materials.
The online HR toolkit lives on today, providing cost-effective resources for employee communication that can be used and reused for years.