Benefits Specialist

Are you the kind of person that is always thinking, sketching, seeking, and adjusting? Who needs to understand how things work and then figure out how they can work better? Are you a passionate, tenacious, solver who loves to work with others who share your drive? Are you positive, constructive, and ingenious?

Are you always solving?

Then we’d like to meet you and bet you’d like to meet us.

Ashland has an exciting opportunity for a Benefits Specialist to join our amazing team. This is a very visible, significant role within the Company and the Human Resources function. This position will report to US Benefits Manager. This is a remote role.

The responsibilities of the position include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Administers/Coordinates absence programs including STD/LTD, statutory plans and FMLA with absence vendor, payroll and benefits, and eligibility/enrollment vendor. Facilitates leave communication between employee, manager and vendor.
• Answers complex retiree health, welfare and savings plan questions with employees and providers
• Assists with Annual Enrollment including retirees and COBRA – reviews rates, communication materials, answers escalated questions, etc.  
• Prepares, generates and analyzes reports relating to benefits, leaves of absence and other ad hoc reports as needed
• Processes active and retiree life Insurance claims (including executive life) in coordination with carriers and the eligibility/enrollment vendor 
• Tracks retiree medical and life insurance eligibility for select union populations and coordinates with Benefits eligibility/enrollment vendor 
• Assists with review of SPDs and benefit communication materials
• Participates in various DB and DC audits
• Performs weekly Savings Plan and HSA funding, as well as quarterly HSA match calculations.
• Processes various benefit invoices including complex self-billed invoices
• Assists with miscellaneous benefit projects and audits as needed
• Process Mexico medical reimbursements
• Answers assigned HRconnect cases

In order to be qualified for this role, you must possess the following:

• Bachelor’s degree in human resources, organizational development, business, finance or related experience is required
• 5 years of experience working with U.S. Benefits including absence administration.  Experience administering retiree benefits would be a plus
• Requires knowledge of ERISA, HIPAA, ACA, COBRA, FMLA, DOL and IRS regulations and state laws
• Strong knowledge in U.S. Benefits
• Strong customer facing experience
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate at various levels of the organization to a wide variety of audiences
• Broad knowledge of Human Resources principles and practices
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Good problem-solving skills, with understanding of how absence impacts all facets of benefits.
• Results orientation: consistently delivers on commitments, takes initiative, has a bias toward action and has a sense of urgency 
• Must have strong Word, PowerPoint and Excel skills, including pivot tables, view look up
• Comfortable developing and using approved AI solutions such as Microsoft Copilot to streamline and simplify work

The HR Specialist, Benefits is a critical role in the effective and successful administration of Ashland’s Benefits (active and retirees). The role serves as a trusted guide and advocate for employees navigating complex benefits and leave of absence programs by providing personalized support and clear communication. Specifically, this role will focus on administering leave of absence for union locations, completing weekly 401k and HSA funding, administering/coordinating retiree medical, life insurance and pension programs and answering complex employee and retiree questions.

In addition, the position will assist the US Benefits Manager and Sr. Manager Global Benefits with annual open enrollment, review of plan documents, communications and other special projects.

This is a good position for someone who seeks a broad range of benefits administration responsibilities while working alongside a collaborative benefits team.