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Cookie Cutter Benefits Decision Support Just Can’t Cut It

Dana Borrero

We’re excited to announce our new partnership with ​​ADP®, a leading global technology company providing human capital management (HCM) solutions.

Launching this summer, [Nayya](http://nayya.com/) will be integrated into ADP Workforce Now to offer employee decision support capabilities. This seamless integration will enable ADP customers to empower their employees to make smarter benefits decisions and have more control over their health and financial needs.  

“With Americans looking to get the most value they can from their employee benefits, our technology empowers employees with the personalized guidance needed to make more informed decisions about their health and financial wellness,” said Akash Magoon, co-founder and CTO, Nayya. “We’re pleased to be the technology backing the real-time, smart benefits selection process for ADP Workforce Now.”

To learn more about our new partnership, [read the full press release here.](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/employees-can-harness-data-to-make-smarter-more-informed-benefit-and-financial-decisions-using-adp-workforce-now-301516470.html)

We’re excited to announce our new partnership with ​​ADP®.

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Nayya and ADP Join Forces to Help Employees Make Better Benefits Decisions

## “We have a great culture” – every company, ever.
We see it everywhere. On job descriptions, LinkedIn, Instagram, and even TikTok, businesses are boasting about their company culture, and how it differs from the rest. But as many of us know, having a good company culture is easier said than done, and it takes a lot more than declaring “we have a great culture” for it to actually stick.

So, how do you take culture from a list of values pinned to the wall, and turn it into a living, breathing entity that employees can actually feel, whether they’re in the office, working remotely, or some hybrid of the two?

### Introducing: A Culture Team
Culture teams have been gaining popularity over the past few years, and for good reason. For a period of time, the pandemic shifted almost all workplaces to either hybrid or remote work environments. Meaning, businesses that once relied on their office space and office perks to curate culture needed to rethink their approach in order to pull that culture through to a virtual-first environment.

To take on this challenge, many organizations began appointing individuals to a Culture Team. This team usually consists of unique individuals across the organization that come together to think of new and creative ways to build a strong culture within the (in person/remote/hybrid) workplace.

To better understand what makes a great Culture Team, we sent over a few questions to the Culture Team at Nayya. Two members of the Nayya Culture Team, Lisa Carpenter, Sr. Software Engineer and Brad Londin, Sr. Strategic Partner Manager were kind enough to take the time to share their story with us. Here’s what they had to say:

#### Q: How would you describe the Nayya Culture Team?
A: We are currently a group of nine Nayyans across several business functions who share a common goal: promoting a healthy work environment that fosters the advancement of our people and achievement of our team’s goals. 

Members of the Culture Team engage with one another in a monthly meeting, on a project breakout basis, and regularly via our private slack channel. We endeavor to collect and share feedback from our teams and deliver intentional programming in support of our common goal.

#### Q: What has the Culture Team accomplished?
A: The Culture Team was created in October 2021, and during the last six months we have made progress in three areas: events and programming, company traditions, and celebrating and empowering individual Nayyans. We’ve taken a deliberate approach, focusing on our remote workforce that’s physically separated from our lively office, emphasizing opportunities to interact in ways that create a sense of belonging, and ultimately our sense of place at Nayya.

Many Nayyans have come to enjoy our virtual company-wide lunches that offer themed breakout rooms, where unexpected discussions have ensued about the haunted places near one’s home and how much some love watching curling in the Olympics. Trivia Night is widely regarded to be a favored event, and while it can be hard to squeeze out time during the day, the interactions supported by Culture Team members are having an impact.

We’ve also been working hard to build on the many Nayyan traditions, some of which were started on day one, and others that have grown organically, or even those yet to be dreamed up. Forums that bring the entire company together include meetings such as All Hands, War Room, the Product Enablement Series, Community Day, office lunches and happy hours, and new hire spotlights and birthday celebrations. And then there’s hearing the gong ringing in a deal, or the next best thing, seeing the virtual gong being rung in Slack.

#### Q: Can you tell us more about the history behind ringing the gong?
A: “The gong, in sales culture, symbolizes a “high-five” to celebrate the closing of a deal. We’ve used it as a way to celebrate a big win and share the excitement across the company,” explains Katie Davis. For those who don’t know, Katie Davis is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to sales. The gong has been rung on her behalf at least 30 times to celebrate deals closed in the last year alone!

Victoria Treyger (a lead Series A investor and board member) presented Nayya with the gong upon closing the first deal, which happened to be with Guardian. Aman Magoon, Head of Product, had the honor of ringing the gong for the very first time. “It felt like the beginning of a rich tradition of sales excellence.”  

The gong has become such a part of the sales culture at Nayya, that Nayya’s very own Brad Londin even wrote a short poem about it:

>Never tire of that reverberation,
Upon deals closed, Nayya’s exclamation,
Another over the line, we celebrate!
Upon deals closed, Nayya’s exclamation,
Another over the line, we celebrate!
From the engine to the caboose,
On the gong the mallet is turned loose,
It’s moxie, with gratitude and ferocity, not fate.
~ Brad Londin

#### Q: What else is in store for the Culture Team this year?
A: The Culture Team has taken a very intentional approach to ensuring individuals are celebrated and empowered, as we recognize how accumulation of little things can amount to a big difference. Most recently, Nayya has created our version of the TED talk, an opportunity for any Nayyan to share their perspectives on something industry related, or present on a skill or hobby that they wish to share with colleagues. A maxim of the Culture Team is that our uniqueness as individuals adds to the greater strength of the whole. We also know that every Nayyan can have a profound impact on our ways of working, that learning from failures is even more important than toasting victories, and that our culture lives with each and every employee regardless of their title or tenure.

We’re fortunate to have doubled our employee roster over the last six months, and with this growth comes a renewed focus of the Culture Team, enabling every Nayyan to contribute to our customs and impact our rituals.

### Key takeaways
So there you have it, some tips, tricks, and practices from Nayya’s very own Culture team. If you’re looking to develop or strengthen your own culture team, here are some key takeaways I pulled from our conversation:

1. Meet regularly, and **bring feedback** from teams across the organization to ensure everyone is being heard
2. If you, like us, are a hybrid workplace, **focus on bridging the gap** between those working from home and those in the office to create a sense of community and belonging across the board
3.** Celebrate the small wins** just as much as the big wins
4. Create dialogue that’s not directly focused around work to **help employees find common interests** and hobbies
5. **Foster creativity **and celebrate unique talents (like Brad’s poetry!)
6. Stay nimble, grow with the company, and k**eep your company values at the forefront** of everything you do

Tips, tricks, and best practices for fostering culture from Nayya’s very own Culture team.

Life at Nayya

What’s a Culture Team and Why Do You Need One?

## Insurance carrier planning for next year? Read on!

With most organizations having wrapped up open enrollment for 2022, it’s time for insurance carriers to reflect and strategize for 2023. We referenced past findings from Eastbridge to determine 2 barriers to participation that are influencing carriers to look at new tech to drive participation 2023.

### Barrier 1: Driving up voluntary benefits participation

Eastbridge found that driving up participation in voluntary benefits leads to higher sales, and that voluntary product participation increases when employees enroll in voluntary products at the same time as medical, dental, and other core benefits.

Insurance carriers who experienced an increase in voluntary benefits participation noted that those rates typically improved when enrolled in at the same time and using the same process as other core benefits. They noted the following reasons as to why:

- “Core benefits” are often thought of as mandatory. When the enrollment process for voluntary benefits is similar, it makes these feel required as well.
- Similar processes and same-time enrollment provides employee with better access and engagement.
- It increased opportunities for educating employees around their own benefit needs.

Carriers are looking at tech for 2023 that can incorporate the enrollment of voluntary benefits solutions into the same workflow as other core benefits. If your goal is to drive up participation in voluntary benefits plans, technology that can present them alongside core benefits and educate employees on which plans are best for their needs is definitely something you should look at.

### Barrier 2. Benefits education and communication

The majority of carriers indicated that employer-level commitment to the proposed education, communication, and enrollment strategy is the most limiting factor to participation rate improvements

The study found that the biggest thing holding 79% of carriers back from increasing overall participation rates is employer benefits education and strategy. Meaning, if employers improved their overall education and communication around benefits, the majority of carriers could improve participation during open enrollment. This is leading carriers to bring in new technology that can improve overall education and communication surrounding benefits.

### What new tech can help carriers overcome these barriers?

The findings in this report highlight the varying ways carriers can strategize about 2023 open enrollment.  But the million dollar question remains: how can you confidently approach open enrollment season with certainty that your participation rates will increase? Based on these findings, carriers need a tool that can drive up participation in voluntary benefits specifically, and a tool that can empower employers to better educate their employees during open enrollment.

Nayya provides step by step decision support and AI driven benefits recommendations to provide employees with a suggested benefits bundle that best fits their financial and medical needs. Employees get the education they need and visibility into the voluntary benefit options they may have been missing out on before. This solves for 2 major enrollment-driving challenges:

1. **Voluntary benefits:** Nayya’s recommendations clearly identify which voluntary benefits are available to employees. As we learned in the Eastbridge study, a focus on voluntary benefits leads to higher sales. We also learned that voluntary benefits are most often enrolled in when they are presented alongside other “core benefits.” Nayya’s personalized benefit recommendations are displayed as a menu of benefits that best fit an employee’s needs, presenting those voluntary benefits right alongside medical, dental, and other core benefits. This improves the chances of employees enrolling in these voluntary programs.
2. **Employee education:** 79% of carriers believe that participation would increase if employees were properly educated on their plan options. By leveraging a tool like Nayya, employees will be educated throughout their open enrollment journey and provided with a menu of benefits options best suited to their needs. This gives employees peace of mind and confidence when choosing their benefits.

When the process is transparent and less complex, employees feel more confident in their choices leading to better financial and health outcomes. Offering a platform like Nayya can empower insurance carriers to overcome the barriers leading to stagnant participation rates, a lack of enthusiasm around voluntary benefits, and a shortage of benefits-education from employers.

It’s time for insurance carriers to reflect and strategize for 2023

Cookie Cutter Benefits Decision Support Just Can’t Cut It

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Nayya and ADP Join Forces to Help Employees Make Better Benefits Decisions

What’s a Culture Team and Why Do You Need One?

2 Reasons Insurance Carriers Need New Tech to Drive Participation in 2023

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