Benefits Specialist

North Park University; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Prescription Plan

Flexible Spending Account

Commuter Benefit

Life Insurance

Disability Insurance

Retirement Plan

Tuition Remission

Helwig Recreation Center

Job summary

North Park University in Chicago seeks a Benefits Specialist to administer employee benefit programs, retirement plan processes, and leave administration. You will coordinate enrollments, educate employees, and ensure compliance with plan terms and legal requirements.

The role supports open enrollment, vendor relations, and accurate recordkeeping, while maintaining confidential employee information in HR systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in HR, business administration, benefits administration, or a related field.
• At least two years of experience in benefits, retirement, leave administration, payroll, HR, or related field.
• Experience in higher education or a complex employer environment.
• Experience administering retirement plans, ACA reporting, vendor billing, and open enrollment.
• Working knowledge of FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA privacy, and benefits compliance.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint.
• Eligible to work in the United States.
• Ellucian Colleague knowledge is required.

Responsibilities

• Administer benefits enrollment, education, vendor coordination, and leave processes.
• Coordinate retirement plan enrollment, communications, and billing with recordkeepers and payroll.
• Administer leave requests and maintain confidential files.
• Prepare Forms 1095-C and plan disclosures; support plan audits.
• Maintain accurate benefits content in HR pages, guides, and enrollment materials.
• Collaborate with payroll and vendors to reconcile deductions and invoices.

Skills

Benefits administration

Enrollment support

Vendor coordination

Payroll coordination

MS Office suite

Ellucian Colleague

Compliance knowledge

Documentation & recordkeeping

Education

Bachelor's degree in human resources or related field

Tools

Ellucian Colleague

Job description

About North Park

Founded in 1891, North Park University is a Christian university affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church. Located in Chicago, North Park serves students from across the country and around the world through education in the liberal arts, professional studies, and theology.

Mission

The mission of North Park University is to prepare students for lives of significance and service through education in the liberal arts, professional studies, and theology.

Vision

Building on our core institutional identity of being Christian, city-centered, and intercultural, our vision is to create a university of uncommon character and enduring excellence, where faith, learning, and service meet.

Position Summary

The Benefits Specialist administers the University's employee benefit, retirement, and leave programs. The position manages benefit enrollments, employee education, vendor and payroll coordination, billing reconciliations, required notices and reporting, plan audits, and benefits records. The Benefits Specialist serves as a primary resource for employees with benefit and leave questions and ensures that transactions are timely, accurate, confidential, and consistent with plan terms and applicable requirements.

Duties and Responsibilities

Benefits Enrollment and Employee Support

• Administer medical, dental, vision, life, disability, flexible spending, dependent care, health savings, parking, transit, and other assigned employee benefit programs.
• Guide new employees through benefit enrollment, respond to questions, monitor enrollment completion, and process elections accurately in the benefits enrollment platform and Ellucian Colleague.
• Process qualifying life event changes, coverage terminations, dependent eligibility changes, beneficiary updates, and other approved benefit transactions.
• Plan and administer annual open enrollment, including system configuration support, employee communications, meetings, benefit guides, deadlines, and completion tracking.
• Monitor and respond to the benefits inbox and provide clear, timely, and confidential assistance to employees, retirees, and eligible dependents.
• Maintain accurate benefits content on HR web pages, enrollment materials, guides, forms, and employee resources.

Retirement and Vendor Administration

• Administer the University's retirement plan processes, including enrollment support, contribution changes, participant communications, required disclosures, and coordination with recordkeepers and payroll.
• Administer the Retiree Benefits Program and maintain accurate retiree eligibility, enrollment, billing, and communication records.
• Serve as a day-to-day liaison with benefit carriers, retirement providers, administrators, brokers, and other vendors to resolve enrollment, eligibility, claims, billing, and data issues.
• Reconcile monthly benefit invoices and enrollment records, research discrepancies, secure corrections, and prepare approved invoices for payment.
• Coordinate with Payroll to validate deductions and funding for insurance, retirement, flexible spending, dependent care, parking, transit, and health savings arrangements.

Leave Administration

• Administer employee leave requests in consultation with the Senior Director, including eligibility review, employee notices, forms, documentation, tracking, and return-to-work coordination.
• Coordinate Family and Medical Leave Act, short-term disability, long-term disability, pregnancy-related leave, and other applicable leave processes under University policies and governing requirements.
• Maintain confidential leave files and provide timely information to employees, supervisors, payroll, insurers, and other authorized parties.
• Notify the Title IX Coordinator of confidential pregnancy-related leave matters when required.

Compliance Audits and Records

• Prepare and process Forms 1095-C and other required benefit-related government documentation and employee notices.
• Serve as the HR lead for benefit plan audits by researching requests, reconciling system discrepancies, producing documents, and tracking completion.
• Prepare and distribute required retirement plan disclosures and other assigned plan notices.
• Maintain accurate and confidential benefit and leave records in enrollment platforms, Ellucian Colleague, and designated document systems.
• Review benefit processes and records for compliance with plan documents, University policies, and applicable federal, state, and local requirements; promptly elevate concerns to the Senior Director.
• Monitor regulatory and plan changes relevant to assigned benefits and leave programs and update procedures, communications, and forms as directed.
• Support benefit renewals, implementation activities, data requests, testing, and other benefits projects assigned by the Senior Director.

Salary range: $55,000 - $65,000

Required

• Personal commitment to and ability to articulate support for North Park University's mission, identity, and Christian faith commitment.
• Bachelor's degree in human resources, business administration, benefits administration, or a related field.
• At least two years of experience in benefits, retirement, leave administration, payroll, human resources, or a closely related field.
• Experience administering benefits in higher education or another complex employer environment.
• Experience administering retirement plans, ACA reporting, vendor billing, and open enrollment administration.
• Working knowledge of benefit enrollment systems and HR information systems; working knowledge of Ellucian Colleague is required.
• Working knowledge of benefit and leave requirements, including the Family and Medical Leave Act, COBRA, HIPAA privacy requirements, and applicable benefits compliance practices.
• Strong reconciliation and documentation skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and related productivity tools.
• Eligible to work in the United States.

Preferred

• Experience with benefits audits.
• Experience providing customer service in an employee-facing or customer-facing role.
• CEBS, SHRM-CP, PHR, or another relevant benefits or HR certification.

• Salary range: $55,000 to $65,000
• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Prescription Plan
• Flexible Spending Account
• Commuter Benefit
• Life Insurance
• Disability Insurance
• Retirement Plan
• Tuition Remission
• Helwig Recreation Center