This audio conference was recorded on Tuesday - July 7, 2009

Credits:

This program has been approved for 1.5 recertification credit hours toward PHR and SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI homepage at www.hrci.org. The use of this seal is not an endorsement by HRCI of the quality of the program. It means that this program has met HRCI’s criteria to be pre-approved for recertification.

Description:

In today’s troubled economy, many employers have focused their attention on managing (and reducing) the cost of their employee benefits. But it’s important to remember that legal compliance is critical, too. The last thing you need right now is an expensive audit or lawsuit.

Employee benefits fall under a confusing web of federal and state regulations. And these rules apply not only to your group health insurance plans and tax-qualified retirement plans but also to your life and disability plans, cafeteria plans, flexible spending accounts, non-qualified retirement plans, and many other fringe benefits.

Busy HR professionals don’t always pay enough attention to the legal do's and don’ts of their employee benefits until problems surface-and by that point it can be too late.

Bullet-proof your benefits by ordering this practical audio conference recording, as our expert speaker walks through step-by-step instructions for conducting your own internal compliance reviews for employee benefit programs.

Speaker(s):

Mark Combs, REBC, RHU, CLU, CFA, CFP, ChFC, is vice president and a partner in Horne/Guest, a nationwide, multi-million-dollar employee benefit advisory practice based in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. His firm is one of the largest employee benefit advisory firms in the southeastern United States, counseling many successful employers and corporations around the country. He writes and speaks extensively on employee benefits trends and strategies, with an emphasis on helping employers get the maximum possible value from their benefits programs and automating benefits processes to make life easier for them. He earned his bachelor’s degrees from Wofford College.

You and your colleagues will learn:

• How to set up and carry out a successful benefit plan audit in your workplace
• The most common reasons that employee benefit plans go off the legal rails - and how you can fix these issues before they create headaches
• Which employee benefits fall under state and federal regulations
• How to read your plan documents (including SPDs and SMMs) to confirm that they’re consistent and updated, and to eliminate any potential “red flags”
• What you should do this year to review notices for content and distribution procedures, service provider contracts, Form 5500 filings, and other essential benefit tasks to make sure you’re on track
• The latest changes in areas (such as COBRA compliance) that may sneak up on you
• How to set up automatic compliance tools and a rolling review schedule to check your benefits throughout the year