News & Events
Proves that Competition Can Reduce Employee Benefits Costs
Online Auctions Deliver an Average 15+ Percent Savings - Without Sacrificing Quality
BOSTON (March 20, 2006) - Results from a study conducted by HighRoads, the leading provider of benefits lifecycle management () solutions, demonstrate that employers can use competitive auctions to provide quality health and welfare benefits more affordably. Its first annual price elasticity survey shows that using a transparent bidding environment reduces contract costs by more than 15 percent, on average.
The survey is based on the outcomes of nearly 50 request-for-proposal (RFP) processes by companies with 5,000 employees or more. On average, suppliers revised bids 2-3 times to win a company's business, reducing fees by 7-21 percent for fully insured and self-insured medical, dental, life, disability and other benefits plans.
"CFOs and HR executives often feel powerless to control double-digit healthcare cost increases, especially now as procurement season heats up," said Paul Daoust, chairman and CEO of HighRoads. "Our survey shows that companies don't have to simply accept these increases - they can use the power of the marketplace to protect workers' benefits and meet shareholders' mandates to govern this leading cost concern."
Information and Insight Delivers Cost Control
HighRoads' collaborative solutions provide unprecedented levels of visibility to information across multiple plans, processes and transactions to support informed decision-making and uncover opportunities for streamlined management. This insight enables employers and consultants to provide the highest quality employee health and welfare benefits at substantially lower costs.
Today's benefit RFP processes are incredibly resource-intensive, consuming staff time and relying heavily on paper-based workflows because proposals come in varying formats. With HighRoads' solution, customers can conduct the entire RFP process online, from the creation of a questionnaire to the acceptance of supplier responses. Bids can be easily weighted, scored and compared to support fast, informed decision-making. In addition to compelling suppliers to offer better prices, online RFPs:
- Significantly reduce procurement cycle time while allowing more suppliers to participate
- Streamline proposal information in a consistent format, for apples-to-apples evaluation of supplier bids
- Enable consolidation and reduction in the number of plans, driving administrative costs even lower
- Automatically generate a comprehensive audit trail that complies with governmental regulations, including Sarbanes-Oxley
ABOUT HIGHROADS
HighRoads, Inc. (www.HighRoads.com) is the only company offering a system of record for managing HR program and supplier information to improve the employee experience while dramatically reducing costs for large, complex organizations. HighRoads has automated HR processes for more than 100 Fortune 500 employers along with 700 of their suppliers, consultants and outsourced administrators in 75 countries. Clients include some of the world's largest companies, such as General Dynamics, Honeywell, IBM, Kraft, Staples and Toyota. Founded in 1999, HighRoads is a privately-held company headquartered in Woburn, Mass.
HighRoads Company Contact:
Lori Dustin
(781) 503-4030
ldustin@highroads.com
HighRoads Media Contact:
Michael McDonough
(617) 969-9192
mmcdonough@corporateink.com