Senior Benefits Professional

Essex Property Trust · Orange · $94,000–$117,000 (stated in the posting)

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The Senior Benefits Professional plays a key role in the administration, analysis, compliance, and continuous improvement of the company's employee benefits programs. This position is responsible for supporting the design, implementation, communication, and administration of health and welfare, retirement, wellness, and voluntary benefit programs.

The Senior Benefits Professional serves as a subject matter expert and strategic partner to Human Resources, Payroll, Finance, external vendors, and employees. This role leverages data and analytics to evaluate program effectiveness, ensure regulatory compliance, improve operational efficiency, and enhance the employee experience while supporting the organization's Total Rewards strategy.

WHAT YOU WILL DO:

• Administers health and welfare benefit plans per plan documents and federal/state laws, interpreting benefit programs and procedures across all plans.
• Supports the administration of retirement plans, deferred compensation, wellness programs, and other perks.
• Ensures precise and timely processing of benefits enrollment, changes, and terminations, collaborating with external vendors as necessary.
• Oversee benefits, reconciliation, administration, and leave of absence benefits premium matters.
• Respond to associate inquiries regarding benefits, providing exceptional customer service and fostering a positive associate experience.
• Aids in open enrollment, auditing benefit enrollment data, encompassing dependent eligibility, evidence of insurability, compliance, and processing of life, LTD, and other claims.
• Manages the complete vendor file process via Workday, liaising with internal HRIS and external vendors for precise, efficient benefit interfaces.
• Collaborates with the Total Rewards Director to assess existing benefits programs, utilizing benefit trends, benchmarking, and program data analytics to propose plan enhancements.
• Acts as primary contact for plan vendors and third-party administrators to resolve employee inquiries.
• Other duties as assigned.

WHAT THE JOB REQUIRES:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 3-5+ years of progressively responsible benefits administration and analysis experience.
• Strong knowledge of health and welfare and retirement benefit plans.
• Experience administering 401(k) plans and supporting audits and compliance activities.
• Knowledge of ERISA, ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, FMLA, and related regulations.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including: VLOOKUP, pivot tables, etc.
• Experience working with HRIS and benefits administration systems, Workday preferred.
• Knowledge of all pertinent federal and state regulations, filing and compliance requirements, both adopted and pending, affecting employee benefit programs, including federal and state law.
• Work is primarily conducted in an office setting. Requires sitting at a desk or workstation for extended periods. Involves the use of standard office equipment such as computers, phones, and printers.
• This position requires the ability to work Monday through Friday. It includes a hybrid work arrangement with in‑person office requirements a minimum of four days per week (Monday through Thursday) at Essex’s corporate office in Irvine. The hybrid policy is subject to change at Essex’s sole discretion.
• Requires the ability to sit or stand for extended periods. Minimal physical effort in the day-to-day tasks.
• This role does not require any travel; work is primarily conducted at the office.

WHAT YOU WILL BRING TO THE TABLE:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Strong organizational and analytical skills. Ability to provide efficient, timely, reliable, and courteous service to customers. Ability to effectively present information.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and project management skills.
• Ability to understand and carry out general instructions in standard situations. Ability to solve problems in standard situations. Requires basic analytical skills.
• Decisions made with a general understanding of procedures and company policies to achieve set results and deadlines. Errors in judgment may have a short-term impact on co-workers and supervisors.

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Essex provides great communities in which to live, work and invest. We are a purpose-driven company, and we pride ourselves on promoting an internal culture of growth and opportunity by engaging, enabling, and empowering our teams. Working at Essex is not a destination. It is a journey where you can confidently build your career.

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