The Problem

Loyola University Chicago had a system in place to teach its new hires about their benefits that wasn’t working. Previously, they held in-depth new hire information sessions every two weeks. These were catered events that would last two to three hours.

However, Loyola found this wasn’t an efficient way to engage employees about their benefits. The university was spending thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours on catering, printing, and meeting preparation. On top of that, Loyola’s two-person benefits team had to hold half-hour phone calls and one-on-one meetings with new employees who couldn't make the orientation.

To save money and time, Loyola needed to try a virtual approach to onboarding and open enrollment.

The Plan

The Loyola benefits team turned to Jellyvision to see how ALEX could help. They decided to implement ALEX in January 2018 to create a virtual open enrollment and onboarding experience to relieve the strain on their time-strapped benefits team.

Not only would ALEX save the team from having to hold those lengthy information sessions, it would also make benefits information available to employees 24/7. This would save the team big bucks while simultaneously helping employees feel more engaged and learn about their benefits on their own time.

About Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private university based in Chicago, Illinois, with more than 17,000 students and 1,500 faculty.
Industry:
Higher Education
Employees:
2600 benefit-eligible employees
Plan types:
Preferred PPOs, and adding HDHP with HSA plan in 2019

I really responded to ALEX's lightheartedness. He made it easier to understand my options—he made me laugh even though choosing benefits can be daunting and overwhelming.”

Employee, Loyola University Chicago

The Outcome

With help from ALEX, the team has reclaimed 120-140 hours a year that were previously spent organizing and running benefits sessions every two weeks. In addition, the benefits team saved thousands by eliminating catering and printing costs.

Thanks to ALEX’s engaging, conversational approach and choice bits of humor, Loyola's benefits duo saw a drop in employee confusion, and the number of benefits-related questions they faced dropped by over half. Now, when employees have questions about their benefits, they know they can go to ALEX first, freeing Loyola’s team to focus on other priorities.

With ALEX, Loyola got more of everything—more hours back, more employee engagement, and more savings.

Since there is no longer a need to repeat the same benefit information multiple times to various new hires, we now have an opportunity to focus on other daily tasks and projects, thanks to ALEX.”

T. Love Benefits Specialist, Loyola University Chicago

One of the greatest benefits is that ALEX offers employees the opportunity to learn about their benefits at a time that is most convenient for them.”

Julie Frechette Benefits Specialist, Loyola University Chicago