Twenty-six percent of HR executives point to a complete lack of ongoing benefits education outside open enrollment as the biggest obstacle preventing employees from using their benefits, according to research cited by Robert Deshaies, Chief Benefits Officer at WEX. Another 21% say insufficient guidance during open enrollment itself is the main barrier to utilization.

The numbers frame a people-process decision HR leaders face now: whether to keep benefits communication compressed into a short fall window or spread it across the calendar. "Benefits utilization is a continuous, 365-day strategic priority, not a once-a-year administrative task," Deshaies said in an interview with HR Daily Advisor's Faces of HR series.

What goes wrong when communication stops after enrollment?

When communications are crammed into a brief window, high-value programs frequently get sidelined, Deshaies said. The programs most at risk include:

• financial wellness support,
• student loan repayment assistance,
• lifestyle spending accounts (LSAs), and
• long-term savings vehicles like HSAs and HRAs.

"Distributing these touchpoints across the entire calendar year meets people where they are, when they have the bandwidth to absorb the information," Deshaies said. "It relieves the pressure on that narrow enrollment window and transforms a complex, high-stress scramble into a clear, continuous dialogue that drives real utilization, financial health, and long-term organizational loyalty."

What do employees now expect from benefits?

Prescription drug coverage has become a decisive factor in how employees judge employers. Citing 2025 research from the Employee Benefits Research Institute (EBRI), Deshaies noted that 74% of health plan enrollees rate prescription drug coverage as "very important" when evaluating an employer. Over two-thirds of privately insured adults expect metabolic health coverage — a demand amplified by therapies like GLP-1s — as a standard part of their health plan.

Younger generations push expectations further, seeking flexible benefits such as LSAs, student loan or tuition assistance, housing support and financial wellness tools, he said. Employees now treat benefits as a primary decision point when choosing where to work and where to stay.

Affordarity pressure compounds the challenge. When 40% of enrollees face rising healthcare costs, the downstream strain forces compromises such as cutting daily necessities or draining retirement savings, Deshaies said. His proposed response: pair alternative financial models, like defined-contribution HRAs, with wrap-around clinical care, so employers can cap funding for high-demand therapies while protecting long-term budgets.

How can HR prove benefits value beyond enrollment counts?

WEX's scale gives Deshaies a broad vantage point on where benefits programs underperform. The company powers more than 20% of all HSAs nationwide and serves roughly 60% of the Fortune 1000. From that seat, he sees a persistent industry challenge: millions of employees have access to tax-advantaged tools but fail to maximize them because of friction and fragmented communication.

Complex insurance jargon, confusing contribution rules and vague expense lists create friction, he said. That friction breeds overwhelm, causing employees to default to old habits or abandon their care entirely. By stripping away friction and backing transparent communication with flexible technology and financial models, HR can shift from cost center to talent magnet, Deshaies argued.

He recommended measuring impact through three lenses rather than enrollment headcounts:

• Behavioral shifts and wealth-building. Track whether employees use tax-advantaged accounts as transactional pass-throughs or long-term security tools — metrics include average HSA balance growth, custodial asset growth and the percentage of account holders investing their funds.
• Workforce productivity and talent strategy. Monitor how targeted health solutions correlate with retention in high-demand roles and reductions in health-related absenteeism.
• Operational efficiency alongside financial outcomes.

"True impact is not measured by the number of benefits you offer," Deshaies said. "It is measured by the tangible health, financial resilience, and organizational performance those benefits deliver to your bottom line."

Where is the industry heading?

Deshaies compares the current moment to the retirement revolution, when corporate America moved from legacy pensions to the predictability of the 401(k). The traditional health benefits model built in the 1990s is at a breaking point, he said, as employers refuse to keep absorbing unpredictable renewal spikes and opaque pricing.

Over the next five years, he predicts high-performing organizations will step away from rigid, one-size-fits-all coverage and adopt defined-contribution frameworks — flexible, tech-driven platforms that give employers fixed budget control while employees tailor benefits to their stage of life.