Being a TPA is About More Than Benefits Administration
It seems straightforward: brokers and employers work with you to administer their benefits programs. This allows their internal teams to focus on other tasks such as identifying new employer groups interested in benefits and day-to-day support for employees, respectively.
But benefits administration must be more. True, your partners and clients are relying on you for the timely execution of EOB processing, substantiation, and more, but there needs to be exactly that — more.
Truly effective TPA partners will seek ways to add value to each relationship. This is so important for TPAs that grow through broker relationships. Your ability to add a new organization to your roster, administer its benefits with efficiency and accuracy, and provide recommendations will factor heavily into whether you get future invites to meet with prospective employers alongside your broker.
One of the best ways you can add value to your relationships is through reporting and analytics. Helping brokers and employers understand what benefits are being consumed and by whom is important, as it helps them understand what’s working and what’s not.
This data leads to growth for your business, as you’re helping employers save money on potentially unwanted benefits programs. You’re also helping employers identify new offerings that you can support them with later.
Data Also Leads to Growth Internally
We mean growth in two senses here. First is growth through winning more business as a result of demonstrating value in your existing relationships. You’re able to help them save on underperforming benefits programs and add new products to their benefits package, keeping their organization competitive and attractive to new candidates.
Second is the growth of your team and internal processes. If more brokers and employers are relying on you for administration services and support, you need to understand what’s working and not working internally so you can make adjustments. Are EOBs being processed as efficiently as possible? Where are the bottlenecks in the health data life cycle?
Both of these can only be achieved through the use of an automated, efficient software solution. While manual efforts can still be tracked, they’ll never be as efficient or accurate as those supported through technology that’s integrated with your clients’ benefit administration platforms and your internal systems.
Use Data to Chart Your Course
Remember, data leads to growth, but only when that data provides a direction. And data can only do that when it’s accurate, easily obtainable, and easily actionable. Ensure you’re able to clearly identify your next best action as you support your clients, which in turn helps them do the same. In the end, the data you gather from your work and plan participants’ activities will provide a clear path for you, your clients, and your brokers.
And remember that nothing can be too automated here — both in your daily support for EOB processing and in your reporting for when the employer wants to review the year’s performance. The more you can automate, the more your team can focus on higher priority tasks that produce revenue and generate value for your clients.
As a health data integration platform, TPA Stream works closely with TPAs to streamline their organizations from top to bottom. From our Claims Harvesting for TPAs solution to our Employer Invoicing platform that simplifies multiple financial functions, our platform allows easy integrations that make work easier and more impactful on your bottom line.