Benefits Manager

AppFolio•San Diego, CA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Benefits Manager is the trusted expert behind one of the most personal aspects of life at AppFolio: the health, financial, and well-being programs that show up for our employees and their families. In this role, you will lead the strategy, design, and continuous improvement of our full suite of benefits programs, ensuring they are competitive, compliant, and genuinely valued by the people they serve.

Requirements

7+ years of progressive experience in benefits management, including ownership of plan strategy, compliance governance, and Open Enrollment leadership.
Deep knowledge of US benefits compliance: ERISA, HIPAA, ACA, COBRA, Section 125, and state-specific requirements.
Demonstrated track record managing broker and vendor relationships at scale, including RFP and renewal processes.
Proven project management experience leading Open Enrollment or comparable large-scale annual programs.
Strong analytical orientation; comfortable working with benefits data, utilization metrics, and cost analyses.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills across audiences.
Comfort operating in an oversight/governance model, partnering with a Specialist who owns execution.

Nice To Haves

Experience in a high-growth public SaaS or tech environment strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead benefits strategy and roadmap: Own the multi-year benefits strategy across health, welfare, retirement, well-being, and LOA programs - grounded in market benchmarks, peer SaaS data, employee feedback, and cost discipline. Bring forward data-driven recommendations on plan design and market positioning, partnering with the Head of Total Rewards on key decisions.
Serve as SME and final decision authority: Be the technical authority on all benefit programs. Resolve complex escalations, own policy exception decisions, and drive committee relationships, including 401(k) and wellness committees, with final accountability for all program decisions resting with this role. Partner with People Leadership and Legal on complex edge cases, including acquisitions and significant scaling events.
Own broker, vendor, and contract accountability: Hold broker and vendor partners to high service standards, competitive renewals, and strong plan performance. Lead RFPs and evaluations as needed, owning strategic relationships and contract accountability while the Benefits Specialist manages day-to-day coordination.
Drive data-informed program decisions and financial stewardship: Analyze utilization, cost trends, and program effectiveness to sharpen the employee experience and optimize AppFolio's investment. Partner with Finance on forecasting and budget accountability, and maintain documentation and operational governance that supports audit-readiness and scale.
Lead Open Enrollment and employee education strategy: Own end-to-end OE strategy, planning, and cross-functional stakeholder management. Set the communication strategy that empowers employees and equips managers - partnering with HRBPs and Comms on content and channels, while the Benefits Specialist handles execution and HRIS operations.
Own compliance governance and regulatory accountability: Maintain the compliance framework across ERISA, HIPAA, ACA, COBRA, Section 125, and applicable state regulations. Own audit-readiness posture and Legal partnership; final accountability for all regulatory obligations sits with this role.