Senior Benefits Specialist

We are seeking a Senior Benefits Specialist to own the day-to-day design, administration, and execution of our benefits programs — health insurance, retirement plans, and wellness initiatives. This is an individual-contributor role for a deep subject-matter expert who delivers results through hands-on expertise and cross-functional execution, resolving complex plan administration issues and managing vendor and broker relationships.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Administer benefits plans end to end — health insurance, retirement programs, and wellness initiatives — including enrollment, eligibility, plan changes, and day-to-day troubleshooting, resolving complex or escalated issues that require in-depth evaluation of competing factors (cost, compliance, employee impact).
• Execute benefits initiatives in partnership with HR, Finance, and Legal, ensuring programs run compliantly (ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA) and cost-effectively day to day.
• Write and maintain the policies and procedures that govern benefits administration; determine the right course of action for new or ambiguous cases where existing procedure doesn't fully cover the situation.
• Produce and manage employee-facing benefits communications (open enrollment materials, plan change notices, FAQs) so employees have clear, accurate, timely information.
• Manage vendor and broker relationships on an ongoing basis, coordinating RFPs, negotiating contract terms, and tracking service-level performance to keep delivery on track.
• Track program performance against operational metrics (cost, utilization, service levels, employee satisfaction) and run improvement initiatives to fix identified gaps.
• Build and maintain reporting/measurement tools that track benefits program impact and employee satisfaction over time.
• Serve as a go-to resource for other benefits and HR staff on complex administration questions, sharing practical know-how and troubleshooting approaches.
• Coordinate with contacts outside the immediate function (legal, finance, external brokers and consultants) as needed to resolve complex administration issues.

SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor's degree plus approximately 8+ years of relevant benefits/total rewards experience, or a
• Deep, advanced knowledge of benefits plan design, administration, and compliance (health & welfare, retirement, wellness).
• Demonstrated experience managing vendor/broker relationships and negotiating service contracts.
• Strong analytical skills, with experience building frameworks to measure program impact and satisfaction.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills; proven ability to adapt style and advise senior stakeholders and partners outside one's immediate area of expertise on complex matters.
• Working knowledge of relevant employment and benefits law (ERISA, ACA, HIPAA, COBRA, etc.); experience partnering with Legal and Finance on compliance matters.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen
• Hearing and speech to communicate clearly with employees, vendors, and internal teams