Company: AECOM Technology Corporation, Los Angeles, CA
Company Description: AECOM is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to markets including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. With 45,000 global employees, AECOM deliver solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world's built, natural, and social environments. A Fortune 500 company, AECOM serves clients in more than 150 countri
Nomination Category: Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, & Public Relations Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Communications or PR Campaign/Program of the Year - Internal Communications

Nomination Title: AECOM Health Care Reform and Open Enrollment Communications

Tell the story about this nominated campaign since January 1 2013 (up to 525 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

With the introduction of the Affordable Care Act (PPACA), AECOM launched "Your Health Care. Your Choices.," a campaign created to help its U.S. benefits-eligible employees navigate the changing health care industry, and empower them to make good choices regarding their health, AECOM medical plans and personal health care spending.

Goals

•Adjusting to a changing health care marketplace while ensuring AECOM’s program remained competitive.
•Balancing AECOM’s desire to provide affordable “premier” plans. Our research showed that 2014 medical care renewal costs would increase $7.0MM without plan design changes.
•Feedback via AECOM’s employee survey showed “Pay & Benefits” as a key influencer in employees’ “intent to stay.” Changes to medical plan choices and premiums could have critically impacted employee satisfaction.

Audiences

•North American leadership, Human Resources (HR) leads, on-site HR, office managers and peer influencers in over 240 locations.
•Nearly 12,000 benefits-eligible employees.
•Spouses/domestic partners (claims analysis revealed this group represented the largest percentage of health care expense).

To reach these audiences in a meaningful way, our strategy included home mailings, creative use of varied media and the creation of a website containing resources for families to navigate health care reform and make enrollment decisions.

Objectives

1.To illustrate the changing health care industry and emphasize employees’ need to know about the changes to make responsible decisions regarding their health and health care.
2.To educate employees and their spouses/domestic partners about Consumer Driven Health Plans (CDHPs) and drive enrollment migration from the existing high-cost Exclusive Provider Organization (EPO) plan and Preferred Provider Organization (PPOs) plans to AECOM’s new CDHP, the Premier Plus Plan. AECOM’s goal was to enroll 25% of eligible employees into the new plan.
3.To manage 2014 health care costs and lay the groundwork for reduced costs in future years.
4.To manage the pace and timing of change while maintaining employees’ satisfaction with their benefits.

Results significantly exceeded everyone’s expectations:

Objective 1 Results:

•Over 1,100 visits to the website in its first hour "live," demonstrating employees not only read the initial communications, but also took action.
•Roadshow attendance was extremely high — 6,136 employees were at 65 locations where roadshows took place; more than 3,900 attended, reflecting their awareness of industry changes and their desire to learn more.
•Less than 1% of the eligible population defaulted into plan coverage, meaning 99% engaged in the educational effort and made informed selections.

Objective 2 Results:

Plan migrations were significant:
•New Premier Plus Plan enrollment was 41%, far exceeding the 25% goal.
•Wellness enrollments decreased: EPO plan from 64% to 34%, PPO1 from 15% to 10%, PPO2 from 11% to 10%.
•Basic HDHP enrollment (most cost-effective for non-wellness participants) increased from 3% to 15%.
•Non-wellness enrollments decreased: Basic EPO plan from 55% to 42%, PPO1 plan from 20% to 18%.

Objective 3 Results:

•With the successful plan migration, projected 2014 cost savings are $8.1MM. Projected savings over next three years is $25MM.

Objective 4 Results:

•Despite changes, employees’ perception of their benefits remained positive. In AECOM’s annual employee survey (conducted at the end of open enrollment), U.S. ”Pay & Benefits” scores increased by 12 points.

•See “Results” in Work Sample for additional anecdotal campaign success evidence.

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Provide a brief (up to 125 words) biography about the leader(s) of the team that carried out this campaign:

Sara Swee is AECOM’s Director of Internal Communications and served as the project lead for the “Your Health Care. Your Choices.” communications campaign. In her role with the company, she leads strategic and tactical planning for the development and implementation of communication plans supporting the programs and initiatives of the Human Resources Centers of Excellence.

In addition, Sara provides cross-functional leadership in the creation and execution of worldwide employee communications program for AECOM; reinforcing the company’s global culture and creating and sustaining the employee brand and value proposition.

Sara has held senior communications positions for global firms in the pharmaceuticals, HR consulting and food industries. She holds a BA in Journalism and is a long-standing member of the International Association of Business Communicators.