Senior Manager, U.S. Benefits

Gallagher•Rolling Meadows, IL

12d

About The Position

Gallagher is seeking a highly experienced and enterprise-minded benefits leader to oversee critical U.S. health and welfare programs and supporting a large and complex employee population. This role is responsible for leading the administration, governance, delivery, and continuous improvement of enterprise benefit programs while ensuring a high standard of employee experience, compliance, operational effectiveness, and vendor performance. Operating within a dynamic Fortune 500 environment, the Senior Manager, U.S. Benefits will partner across HR, HRIS, Payroll, Finance, Communications, Legal, vendors, and leadership teams to support scalable and employee-centered benefits administration practices. This individual will play a key role in strengthening governance, improving operational consistency, modernizing ways of working, and driving effective execution across benefits programs and initiatives. The ideal candidate brings deep functional expertise in health and welfare benefits administration, strong enterprise judgment, experience navigating complex environments, and the ability to lead through ambiguity, organizational change, acquisitions/integration activities, and evolving business needs. This role requires a balance of strategic thinking, operational leadership, governance discipline, employee advocacy, execution excellence, and cross-functional partnership.

Requirements

Bachelors degree 7 years related experience required.
8–12+ years of progressive experience in health and welfare benefits administration within large, complex organizations.
Deep expertise in U.S. benefits regulations, plan administration, compliance practices, and large-scale benefits program management.
Demonstrated experience managing complex vendor ecosystems and enterprise-level benefits administration activities.
Proven ability to lead complex initiatives, annual cycles, organizational change efforts, and acquisitions/integration support activities.
Experience operating within fast-paced, matrixed, and evolving enterprise environments.
Strong experience partnering cross-functionally across HR, HRIS, Payroll, Finance, Communications, Legal, and vendor teams.
Strong working knowledge of HRIS platforms and benefits administration systems, including Workday or comparable technologies.
Exceptional leadership, communication, stakeholder management, problem-solving, and organizational skills.
Demonstrated ability to introduce structure, improve processes, strengthen governance practices, and support modernization within benefits administration environments.

Nice To Haves

Bachelors degree in Human Resources, Business Administration , Finance or a related field
Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS) or Certified Benefits Professional (CBP) accreditation.

Responsibilities

Lead administration and ongoing management of U.S. health, welfare, and life insurance programs across a complex multi-vendor environment.
Oversee key benefits administration activities including plan operations, eligibility processes, billing administration, reporting, escalated employee matters, and service delivery coordination.
Ensure programs are administered effectively, consistently, and in alignment with enterprise standards, business objectives, and employee experience goals.
Serve as a trusted subject matter expert and advisor on plan administration, regulatory requirements, escalated employee issues, and benefits program governance.
Partner with internal stakeholders and external vendors to support effective program execution, issue resolution, and ongoing operational alignment.
Support and develop governance processes, internal controls, and compliance practices that improve consistency, visibility, accountability, and execution across benefits programs and initiatives.
Ensure compliance with applicable federal and state regulations including ERISA, ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, and related benefits requirements.
Oversee audit readiness, documentation practices, operational controls, and regulatory reporting activities including annual and recurring compliance cycles.
Identify opportunities to improve operational effectiveness, administrative consistency, scalability, governance maturity, and employee experience across benefits processes and programs.
Drive a culture of accountability, collaboration, operational excellence, continuous improvement, and employee-centered service delivery across the benefits function.
Lead and support benefits-related initiatives, annual cycles, program enhancements, vendor implementations, acquisitions/integration activities, and regulatory-driven changes across the benefits function.
Partner cross-functionally with HR, HRIS, Payroll, Finance, Communications, Legal, and external vendors to support effective execution and organizational readiness for benefits initiatives.
Lead complex benefits implementations and enterprise initiatives through effective stakeholder coordination, governance, prioritization, risk management, and execution oversight.
Support adoption of scalable documentation, tracking, governance, and collaboration practices across the benefits function.
Provide visibility into operational trends, escalations, program performance, and key initiative updates through reporting and dashboarding practices.
Support organizational readiness and transition activities associated with acquisitions, organizational changes, and enterprise growth initiatives.
Oversee a portfolio of national and regional benefits vendors, carriers, administrators, and technology partners.
Support vendor governance processes, service improvement initiatives, performance management discussions, and ongoing operational partnership activities.
Partner with vendors and internal stakeholders to address escalated issues, improve service delivery outcomes, and support employee satisfaction.
Monitor vendor performance, operational effectiveness, SLA attainment, and ongoing service quality across the benefits ecosystem.
Identify opportunities for process enhancements, operational improvements, and stronger alignment between vendors and enterprise priorities.
Participate in the design and delivery of enterprise-wide benefits education and communication strategies, including annual enrollment support, digital content, employee education, and leadership communications.
Partner across HR and communications teams to support employee awareness, engagement, and understanding of benefits programs and initiatives.
Leverage employee feedback, operational insights, analytics, and market trends to support continuous improvement of the employee benefits experience.
Support employee-centered service delivery practices that improve clarity, responsiveness, and overall employee experience outcomes.
Act as a key contributor to Total Rewards initiatives by identifying opportunities to improve operational effectiveness, governance maturity, scalability, employee experience, and program delivery.
Contribute to scalable administration practices, operational consistency, governance alignment, and process improvement efforts across the benefits function.
Partner with leadership to support modernization efforts, evolving business needs, acquisitions/integration activities, and continuous enhancement of benefits administration practices.
Provide insights, operational reporting, and market perspectives that support informed decision-making across Total Rewards and Benefits leadership.
Help strengthen organizational capabilities through knowledge sharing, process discipline, cross-functional partnership, and execution leadership.

Benefits

Medical/dental/vision plans, which start from day one!
Life and accident insurance
401(K) and Roth options
Tax-advantaged accounts (HSA, FSA)
Educational expense reimbursement
Paid parental leave
Digital mental health services (Talkspace)
Flexible work hours (availability varies by office and job function)
Training programs
Gallagher Thrive program – elevating your health through challenges, workshops and digital fitness programs for your overall wellbeing
Charitable matching gift program