Benefits Manager

Job Description

At K&L Gates, we are looking for smart, imaginative and hard-working people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and ideas to join us.  Perhaps our search for talented visionaries and your search for important and impactful work lead to the same place.

Position Summary

The Benefits Manager is a subject-matter expert and program owner within the strategic Benefits team, reporting to the Senior Manager, Benefits. The role manages assigned U.S. health, welfare and retirement programs and translates benefits strategy into effective implementation, administration, controls and service delivery. The Manager provides technical leadership, with particular responsibility for retirement-program expertise and continuity; leads significant annual cycles and cross-functional projects; serves as the primary Benefits business partner to HRIS for assigned programs; and manages assigned vendor relationships and complex escalations. The Manager owns the effective execution of assigned programs, resolves routine matters independently, develops analyses and recommendations, and escalates material plan-design, financial, legal, compliance, employee-impact or precedent-setting matters.

Reports directly to the Senior Manager, Benefits. Partners as a technical subject-matter expert with Benefits resources within HR Operations. Collaborates regularly with HRIS, HR Operations, Payroll, Finance and Accounts Payable, HR Business Partners, internal leadership, external brokers, consultants, vendors, administrators and other business partners.
 

Essential duties

• Manage assigned U.S. health and welfare programs from annual planning through implementation and ongoing administration, ensuring alignment with plan terms, approved direction and required deadlines. 

• Support assigned international benefits activities and serve as backup to the Senior Manager for routine non-U.S. benefits matters, including renewal coordination, broker and vendor follow-up, census and data requirements, implementation activities and issue resolution. Develop sufficient familiarity with key international programs, processes and contacts to provide continuity and coverage when needed. 

• Lead annual U.S. Open Enrollment implementation, including the master project plan, vendor and broker readiness, HRIS coordination, testing, COBRA Open Enrollment, rate validation, issue resolution and post-enrollment reconciliation. 

• Coordinate benefits content and the development and review of employee-facing materials in partnership with the Communications team. 

• Resolve routine and complex program matters within established authority; identify material risks and develop clear recommendations for escalation. 

• Provide technical oversight and continuity across U.S. defined contribution, pension and other retirement arrangements; manage retirement vendor and administrator relationships and provide technical guidance and escalation support for complex participant and administrative matters. 

• Provide oversight and technical review of annual funding, contribution and deduction processes, regulatory filings, required notices, compliance testing and issue resolution, partnering with Finance, Payroll, Partner Compensation and external advisers on higher-risk or complex matters. 

• Oversee the annual retirement plan audit. 

• Provide technical oversight and escalation support for partner, executive, supplemental, nonqualified or unfunded retirement arrangements, as applicable, including higher-risk administrative and analytical activities. 

• Maintain documented retirement procedures, controls, responsibilities and backup coverage; promote cross-training and continuity for critical processes; and identify material financial, fiduciary, compliance or governance risks. 

• Serve as a senior escalation resource for complex employee benefit matters, investigating issues with carriers, administrators, HR Business Partners and other stakeholders, coordinating resolution and supporting clear employee communication. 

• Manage day-to-day performance of assigned vendors and brokers, including service delivery, implementation commitments, contractual and financial deliverables, billing issues and participant escalations. 

• Evaluate vendor and program performance, drive recurring service and administrative issues to resolution, and recommend corrective or strategic actions to improve employee experience, accuracy and operational effectiveness. 

• Serve as the primary Benefits business partner to HRIS for assigned programs, documenting business and eligibility requirements, system configuration needs, vendor integrations, file feeds, technical dependencies and controls. 

• Lead the Benefits workstream for testing with HRIS and vendors; define business scenarios and acceptance criteria, validate results, track defects and confirm resolution before implementation. 

• Lead assigned benefits projects and implementations, maintaining project plans, milestones, risks, dependencies and decision logs through implementation readiness and stabilization. 

• Coordinate file-error resolution, data-quality corrections and reconciliations and identify automation and process-improvement opportunities. 

• Establish and communicate technical requirements for assigned programs and partner with HR Operations on documented procedures, quality standards, training, controls and backup coverage. 

• Provide benefits subject-matter expertise, distinguish routine administration from matters requiring benefits interpretation, and manage complex escalations that cannot be addressed through documented procedures. 

• Own the annual U.S. benefits compliance and government-filing calendar and coordinate timely completion of required health, welfare and retirement filings, reporting and attestations, including ACA reporting, Forms 5500 and 8955-SSA, PBGC filings, RxDC reporting, PCORI filings and fees, Medicare reporting, state and local requirements and other applicable submissions. 

• Lead the annual Forms 1094-C and 1095-C process, including employee and eligibility data, vendor and HRIS deliverables, validation, corrections, filing and distribution requirements. 

• Coordinate end-to-end filing processes with internal stakeholders and external partners, validate required data and submissions, track approvals and filing confirmations and maintain supporting documentation. 

• Maintain required notices, plan-document updates, compliance testing and operational controls; identify control gaps and escalate significant legal, fiduciary, financial, compliance or governance risks. 

Experience and skills required

• Progressive employee benefits experience, including substantive U.S. health and welfare program management and demonstrated defined contribution, pension or other retirement-plan administration expertise.

• Experience leading benefits implementations, annual enrollment or comparable complex annual cycles and managing vendors, brokers and cross-functional projects through completion.

• Experience partnering with HRIS on eligibility requirements, systems, integrations, vendor files, testing and issue resolution.

• Experience owning or coordinating benefits compliance calendars and required filings, including ACA reporting, Form 5500 or comparable regulatory submissions.

• Experience with retirement audits, funding, regulatory filings, participant escalations or governance support.

• Strong financial, analytical, project-management and communication skills, with the judgment to distinguish routine matters from issues requiring policy, legal, financial or leadership review.

• Ability to provide technical guidance and influence cross-functional partners without direct reporting authority while managing multiple priorities and recurring deadlines.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools, including Excel, and comfort working across HRIS, benefits administration, vendor, reporting and collaboration platforms.

• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive employee, partner, plan and business information with discretion.

• Approximately 7–10 years of progressive benefits experience, including ownership of significant programs or projects.

• Experience with both defined contribution and pension plans and with partner, executive, supplemental, nonqualified or unfunded retirement arrangements.

• Experience coordinating with Finance, Payroll, auditors, recordkeepers, investment advisers and Partner Compensation.

• Experience leading vendor file-feed, system integration, automation or data-exchange projects.

• Experience in a law firm, professional-services firm or similarly complex organization.

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

• Relevant benefits or project credentials, such as CEBS, CBP, PHR/SPHR, SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP or PMP.
   

Compensation Salary $111,827 - $ 173,332 / year

The compensation salary for this position will be determined during the interview process and will vary based on multiple factors, including but not limited to prior experience, relevant expertise, current business needs, and market factors.

ABOUT THE FIRM

K&L Gates is a fully integrated global law firm with lawyers located in more than 40 offices. We have experienced dramatic growth in the past decade and now rank among the largest U.S. based law firms in the world.  We take pride in constantly striving for innovation, imagination and an entrepreneurial spirit. We come up with big ideas and then roll up our sleeves to get the job done, guiding our clients through their most complex issues in a variety of industry sectors and across multiple regions of the world. 

The industry recognition the firm has garnered emanates from the foundation of a global community aligned on behalf of our clients. The people at K&L Gates are committed to working together to create a legacy for each other, the firm, our clients, and the communities in which we serve. We thrive in an inclusive and socially conscious environment that embraces diversity and takes a holistic approach to the career evolution of all our professionals.

For more information or to view other job opportunities, please click here to go back to our careers page.

Notice: We participate in E-Verify in certain Firm locations for purposes of verifying employment eligibility.

Please be advised that this position requires successful completion of a background check.  In accordance with the Washington State Fair Chance Act, Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance, San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, the California Fair Chance Act, and applicable law qualified California and Washington State applicants with criminal history records will be considered. A criminal history will not categorically exclude a candidate from employment, and the Firm will consider relevant factors before making employment decisions based on criminal history information.

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

BENEFITS

K&L Gates offers our personnel a comprehensive suite of benefits to help meet your needs now and in the future. Depending on your eligibility, options for full-time personnel include:

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

The Firm is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of the Firm that employment decisions shall be based on merit, qualifications and competence. Employment practices will not be influenced or affected by virtue of a person’s race (including traits associated with race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles such as afros, braids, locks, and twists), religion, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, gender, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, familial status, domestic violence victim status, military and veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. This policy governs all aspects of employment including, without limitation, recruiting, hiring, compensation, benefits, promotion, assignment, and dismissal. In addition, it is the Firm’s policy to provide an environment that is free of prohibited harassment of any kind including, without limitation, that which is based on sex, race, age, disability, ethnic background, or any other category protected by law (including the categories listed above). The Firm complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please contact askHR@klgates.com.