Manager, U.S. Health Care Benefits Administration

Ford • Dearborn, MI

13d • $115,500 - $218,100 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Manager, U.S. Health Care Benefits Administration leads the operational excellence, administration, and execution of Ford’s U.S. health care benefits programs across union and non-union populations. The role partners closely with the Manager, U.S. Health Care Strategy and Design to ensure benefit strategies are administratively feasible and implemented effectively. It serves as a senior operational leader and execution partner, with responsibility for compliant administration, budget execution, vendors, governance, labor negotiations support, and team leadership.

The position is hybrid and requires at least four days per week onsite in Dearborn, Michigan. It is leadership level 6, with a stated salary range of $115,500–$218,100. Final salary grade and base salary depend on candidate skills and experience, job scope, responsibility, and competitive market value. Visa sponsorship is not available; candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Health Care Administration, or a related field.
• 7–10 years of progressive experience in employee benefits.
• At least 4–6 years focused on health care benefits administration in a large, complex organization.
• Knowledge of federal and state benefits legislation and compliance requirements, including ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA.
• Strong operational execution skills and ability to translate strategy into action through disciplined processes.
• Ability to work autonomously and directly support executive leadership.
• Strong analytical skills, including interpreting data, assessing feasibility, and developing actionable recommendations.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, including confident communication with executive leadership and effective collaboration with a peer strategy leader.
• Project management and coaching skills, including managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree.
• Experience in a Fortune 500 company or comparable large, complex organization.
• Experience administering health care benefits in a unionized environment; labor negotiations support experience is a plus.
• Experience managing health care benefits vendor relationships, performance, and contracts.
• Experience building and leading teams focused on service delivery and operational excellence.
• CEBS (Certified Employee Benefit Specialist) or similar professional certification.
• Experience with self-insured health plans, actuarial valuation processes, and claims analytics.
• Experience in automotive, large industrial, manufacturing, or other heavily unionized industries.

Responsibilities

• Own accurate, consistent, and compliant day-to-day administration of health care programs for union and non-union populations.
• Manage health care benefits budget execution, cost tracking, and financial reporting, partnering with Finance and actuarial consultants on funding administration.
• Improve processes, systems, and service delivery while ensuring adherence to collective bargaining agreements, regulations, and internal policy.
• Lead annual enrollment execution, including vendor system readiness, communications, and issue resolution.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex administrative and compliance issues, with significant matters visible to the Executive Director.
• Partner with the Manager, U.S. Health Care Strategy and Design to assess proposed plan changes, vendor strategies, and negotiation proposals for administrative feasibility, implementation risk, and member experience impact.
• Provide operational data, historical performance, and process expertise to inform strategy development.
• Lead detailed implementation planning and execution after strategies and negotiated outcomes are finalized.
• Serve as a senior negotiator for health care benefits in collective bargaining and shape proposals that balance business sustainability, union partnership, and employee value.
• Develop bargaining strategies, scenario modeling, and long-term cost projections for executive decision-making and negotiation positioning.
• Build strategic relationships with union leadership to support collaboration and problem-solving.
• Translate negotiated agreements into implementation roadmaps and lead the team in execution.
• Manage vendor relationships and ensure service-level agreements and performance standards are met.
• Lead vendor benchmarking and market testing, including RFPs and RFQs; evaluate proposals, coordinate due diligence, and ensure smooth implementation of selected vendors.
• Design and oversee vendor governance frameworks; escalate performance issues and manage contract administration and renewals.
• Implement governance structures, policies, and procedures for equitable, compliant, and consistent benefit delivery.
• Ensure compliance with applicable federal, state, and local regulations, including ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA, and with collective bargaining agreements.
• Identify and mitigate operational and compliance risks through monitoring and audit support.
• Build and lead a team, coach employees, and develop operational expertise and member-service capabilities.
• Foster accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Manage change execution for benefits transformation initiatives to support adoption and minimize disruption.
• Act as an operational partner to the Manager, U.S. Health Care Strategy and Design and stakeholders in Supply Chain, Finance, Legal, IT, HR, and Labor Relations.

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage.
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, and subsidized backup child care.
• Adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and other family-building benefits.
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases.
• Tuition assistance.
• Established and active employee resource groups.
• Paid time off for individual and team community service.
• Paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager