How Grayce’s caregiving navigation service drives effective utilization of HR benefits

In this article, you’ll learn about the following:

• Underutilization of valuable employee benefits remains a significant challenge, driven by a lack of awareness, complexity, and information overload
• Grayce employs the concept of anchor habits to catalyze positive behavior change, effectively transforming how employees engage with their benefits and ultimately leading to increased utilization.
• Grayce’s personalized approach, driven by in-depth member assessments, risk evaluations, goal setting, and care plan development, not only addresses caregiver needs but also leads to a 58% increase in utilization of otherwise overlooked existing benefits.

Underutilization of HR benefits remains an ongoing challenge

In today’s fast-paced world, the underutilization of valuable (and often costly) employee benefits poses a thorny challenge to HR leaders. Given the vast sums organizations have invested in benefits packages to attract and retain top talent, the failure to maximize their value is a significant pain point. 

Contributing factors include a lack of awareness of available benefits, perceived complexity in accessing benefits, and information overload among employees who are already juggling a full plate at home, and at work. Perhaps most significantly, organizations struggle to keep relevant benefits top of mind when they’re needed most.

The proliferation of siloed point solutions in recent years has only exacerbated the problem. Typically employees are presented with a slew of disjointed resources once or twice a year, often when re-enrolling their insurance benefits. As a result, it’s not surprising when employees  promptly forget about them the moment open enrollment is over. 

Employees fail to grasp the scope of support they actually have, and organizations lose out on promised savings from efficient utilization of the various point solutions they’ve purchased. It’s an unsustainable situation, and one that’s left many an HR manager feeling burned. 

The power of anchor habits 

At Grayce, we understand the challenges HR leaders are facing—and we know that building new habits takes time and consistency. The concept of anchor habits is rooted in the idea that certain habits act as catalysts for change by influencing other habits and behaviors. 

By identifying and focusing on cementing anchor habits, individuals can create a foundation for positive transformation in their lives. We’ve worked hard to make Grayce an anchor benefit that can do the same things for the rest of our partner organizations’ benefits portfolios.

Because caring for other family members is such an intensive, often daily activity, employee caregivers tend to make full use of the unique support Grayce provides. Our professional care navigators are then able to recommend other employer-sponsored benefits, which leads to increased visibility and utilization.

How Grayce functions as an anchor benefit

3 in 4 employees report carrying the burden of caring for another family member or loved one. It’s that universal need, along with the highly personalized nature of the support that Grayce provides, that make it the ideal anchor benefit. We start with an in-depth understanding of each members’ family and needs before working together to set goals and a plan of action. 

Two key components: 

1. Member assessment: Our onboarding process involves comprehensive member assessments, during which our Care Partners delve into each member’s unique situation, behaviors, and motivations. This ensures that our interventions are tailored to individual needs, removing the one-size-fits-all approach that often contributes to underutilization.
2. Risk assessment: Identifying barriers to success, both current and potential, is crucial. Grayce’s risk assessment evaluates the challenges employees face with caregiving for their loved ones

Expanding to encompass other caregiver-related benefits

The third component of Grayce’s strategy—personalized interventions—is key to driving appropriate utilization of other relevant solutions in an employer’s portfolio. Once we have a complete understanding of our member’s unique situation, our Care Partners are able to create a unique set of goals, along with a strategic plan of action on how to get there. This approach ensures resolution of near-term issues while also proactively identifying issues before they arise.

At every step, Grayce is able to direct employees to other existing benefits, which may encompass mental health, financial wellness, legal support, backup care, specialty care, meal planning, estate planning, and home care.

Grayce in the real world

Employee case example

When her husband was recently diagnosed with cancer, Monica began using Grayce, which her company offers as a sponsored benefit. Within days, a Care Partner at Grayce worked with Monica to identify a comprehensive care plan and several goals related to her husband’s care as well as Monica’s need to balance caregiving with her own health and other responsibilities.

As part of Monica’s care plan, Grayce provided Monica with access to its proprietary resources and tools, such as concierge coordination, actionable educational content, and caregiver community. In addition, Grayce was able to identify and set up these other benefits and services available through her employer:

• Employer-sponsored Center of Excellence for oncology for a second opinion
• Mental health services for Monica and her husband
• Disability compensation
• In-home meal delivery
• Disability compensation
• Customization and delivery of a hospital bed to the home
• In-home palliative care assessment for pain management
• Virtual diabetes management program for Monica
• Pet insurance for the care of their dog while Monica’s husband was recovering in hospital from surgery

Corporate case example

Before working with Grayce, technology company DocuSign offered backup care services that weren’t being utilized at all by employees. 

With the introduction of Grayce, appropriate utilization of backup care grew by 23x and its mental health solution’s utilization doubled. It’s a great showcase of the role Grayce plays as an anchor benefit within your existing portfolio. [Read the full case study here]

Grayce’s approach leads to a 58% increase in appropriate benefit utilization 

The challenge of underutilized HR benefits demands integrative solutions. With its pioneering approach—particularly in developing a comprehensive care plan and supporting members in care plan execution—Grayce is one such solution. Our Care Partners are trained on the full scope of each employer’s benefits. In fact 58% of members report making use of another existing benefit they didn’t know they had.  

Giving employees a benefit like Grayce isn’t just a strategic way to improve their focus and presence at work. Caregiver support empowers employees to maximize their well-being, and that of their families, while simultaneously unlocking the value of existing benefits.