Benefits Analyst (Project Management)

Wintrust provides community and commercial banking, specialty finance and wealth management services through its 16 bank charters and nine non-bank businesses. Wintrust delivers the sophisticated solutions of a large bank while staying true to the relationship-focused, personalized service of our community banking roots. We serve clients in all 50 states with more than 200 branch banking locations in Illinois, southwestern Florida, northwestern Indiana, west Michigan and southern Wisconsin and commercial banking offices in Chicago, Denver, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, Mich., and in key branch banking locations throughout Illinois. Our people are the heart of our business and we are proud to rank consistently as a top place to work. Wintrust is a $66 billion financial institution based in Rosemont, Illinois, and listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “WTFC.”

Why join us?

• An award-winning culture! We are rated a Top Workplace by the Chicago Tribune (past 10 years) and Employee Recommended award by the Globe & Mail (past 6 years)
• Competitive pay and discretionary or incentive bonus eligible
• Comprehensive benefit package including medical, dental, vision, life, a 401k plan with a generous company match and tuition reimbursement to name a few
• Family-friendly work hours
• With 175+ community bank locations, we offer opportunities to grow and develop in your career
• Promote from within culture

Why join this team?

• We have a culture that encourages an entrepreneurial spirit
• We offer multiple opportunities for development and upward mobility

Job Description Summary

The Senior Benefits Analyst reports to the Benefits Manager and supports the development, maintenance, and administration of the organization's benefit programs and policies. The Senior Benefits Analyst will help implement benefit programs, drive the annual open enrollment process, manage vendor relationships, perform benefit-related analyses, and propose improvements and serve as a second level of escalation one employee benefit issues as they arise.  The Senior Benefits Analyst will also serve in an informal leadership capacity within the Wintrust benefits team and be responsible for training and mentoring benefit team members.

What You'll Do

• Responsible for the day-to-day administration of benefit plans such as health, retirement, flexible spending and health savings accounts, life insurance and disability in accordance with plan documents.
• Serve as a benefits subject matter expert, providing training and support to the HR Service Center team and broader HR community.
• Resolve escalated benefit issues using a high level of critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Assist in resolution of complex, non-routine benefits issues.
• Responsible for maintenance of quality benefits data through completion of ongoing monitoring, auditing, and reconciliations.
• Audit benefit enrollments against payroll and vendor systems for accuracy, making note of any trends and identifying opportunities for process improvements.
• Ensure the accurate management and reporting of benefit deductions, 401k contributions, and other payroll-related transactions.
• Drive the planning and roll out of open enrollment including implementation of new benefit carriers and plan changes, employee communication, testing efforts and data validation.
• Partner with the HRIS team to ensure benefit enrollment system accurately reflects plan design and requirements and produce reporting that allows for ongoing maintenance of benefit enrollment data.
• Responsible for sending weekly enrollment files to vendors, responding to discrepancy reports and troubleshooting data as applicable.
• Analyze current benefit administration processes and suggest improvements to enhance the overall employee and administrative experience.
• Responsible for training and mentoring benefit team members on processes and policy.
• Collaborate with the Benefits Manager to analyze current benefit offerings against trends, benchmark and employee feedback to suggest potential plan design considerations.
• Provide support for critical areas of compliance such as ACA, furnishing of annual notices and disclosures and other mandatory reporting requirements.
• Document and maintain administrative procedures for assigned benefits processes.
• Contribute to other Benefits or HR-related initiatives as-needed.
• Successfully complete time sensitive projects, such as ACA 1095 creation, with minimal guidance
   

Required Skills/Abilities

• Strong analytical, critical thinking and problem solving skills
• Able to prioritize and use sound judgment and decision-making
• Maintain confidentiality, integrity and professionalism
• Effective written and verbal communication skills; communicate complicated details in a straightforward, concise manner
• Must be detail-oriented, able to multi-task and meet critical deadlines
• Proficient in MS Office; particularly Excel (pivot tables, lookups, basic formulas)

Education and Experience

• 2+ years of Benefits Administration experience including the processes, reporting, communication and support related to benefit plans (health, group life, disability, 401(k), Flex Spending and Health Savings Accounts)
• 2+years of hands-on HRIS And benefit enrollment system experience, Workday preferred

Benefits

Medical Insurance • Dental • Vision • Life insurance • Accidental death and dismemberment • Short-term and long term Disability Insurance • Parental Leave • Employee Assistance Program (EAP) • Traditional and Roth 401(k) with company match • Flexible Spending Account (FSA) • Employee Stock Purchase Plan at 5% discount • Critical Illness Insurance • Accident Insurance • Transportation and Commuting Benefits • Banking Benefits • Pet Insurance

Compensation

The estimated salary range for this role is $71,000 - $92,000, along with eligibility to earn an annual bonus. Actual salaries may vary based on several factors, such as a candidate's qualifications, skills and experience.

From our first day in business, Wintrust has been proud to serve a variety of unique communities and people from all walks of life.  To build a company that reflects the communities we serve, we believe that fostering a unique and inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and empowered to succeed will support our ongoing success.  Wintrust Financial Corporation, including community banking and financial services subsidiaries, is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, and other legally protected categories.