Chicago Live 2027: Half-Day Benefits Conference

As healthcare costs continue to climb, employers are facing increasingly difficult decisions about which benefits to expand or scale back. Demand continues to grow for high-cost offerings such as GLP-1 medications, fertility benefits, caregiving support, and mental health services, while organizations are under pressure to manage budgets and demonstrate a ROI. How can leaders decide where to invest across pay and benefits when every dollar has to work harder? What strategies are helping control costs without diminishing the employee experience? How can leaders evaluate the long-term value of emerging benefits while ensuring equitable access?

Employee well-being is no longer viewed as a standalone initiative. Increasingly, organizations are integrating well-being into leadership development, workplace culture, job design, and business strategy, recognizing that burnout, workload, flexibility, and manager support all influence employee health. How are employers moving beyond wellness programs to create healthier ways of working? Which organizational changes have the greatest impact on well-being and performance? How can leaders measure success beyond participation rates? What does a truly integrated well-being strategy look like?

Benefits often get the most attention during open enrollment, but workers’ needs don’t follow an annual calendar. Employers are looking at how to make benefits more visible and useful throughout the year, from onboarding and major life events to moments when workers need support. How are organizations changing the way they communicate benefits? What role can technology play in helping workers find and use the right resources at the right time? How can HR make benefits feel like an ongoing part of the worker experience rather than a once-a-year decision?