Frequently Asked Questions About Data Analytics Solutions

If there’s one thing that we can all agree on in the benefits industry, it’s that data analytics is a key tool for improving the health and well-being of our members. We learned from our recent research that two out of three self-insured employers want to increase their investment in data analytics for employee benefits. 

But wanting data and being willing to invest in it aren’t the same as truly understanding the ins and outs of a data solution. 

Artemis Health is here to help. We offer some the most innovative, forward-thinking analytics tools available for employers and their advisors, and we know what enterprise benefits leaders want from a data analytics solution. We know what questions they’re asking on RFPs, how they’re evaluating multiple options, and what they want to know in order to move forward. 

In today’s blog post, we’ll explore frequently asked questions about data analytics solutions. Let’s dive in. 

Question: How long will it take me to find data insights? 

Answer: Speed is crucial to finding insights and taking action with your benefits data. Many employers want to know if they’ll be waiting 3 months, 3 weeks, or 3 minutes to get answers to their burning benefits questions. The answer depends both on your data partner and on the type of insights you’re looking for. 

Artemis Health offers a number of pre-built, out-of-the-box reports called Standard Stories that highlight key topics for benefits leaders, like prescription spending, avoidable ER utilization, population health metrics, high cost claimants, and more. These are available to employers or their advisors in the time it takes to log onto the Artemis Platform (30 seconds or so). Users can also create custom Stories using pre-populated metrics in an hour on a number of topics, like cancer, diabetes care, wellness program performance, fertility benefits, mental health, and many more. 

In addition, employers should look for a data solution that offers data enhancements to provide insights. Benchmarking capabilities, custom data models, and other methodologies will speed up the time it takes to find key data to help you make great benefits decisions.

Some data solutions offer customer support at a number of levels to help customers build analyses and find actionable insights. While some will charge for these services, others offer them in packages so customers can pick and choose the level of help they need. 

Question: What are your benchmarking capabilities? 

Answer: Benchmarks are a key tool for employers and advisors who need to find out how their population is doing compared to others. They allow you to determine how your population’s health metrics compare to a wider population, while also adjusting for age, gender, geographic differences, and more. They help employers see if their population is healthier or less healthy than average, and find out where they might have opportunities for improvement. 

When looking for a data partner, employers and advisors can compare how the tools let them utilize benchmarks to make decisions. For example, Artemis Health users can access benchmarking data in a few key places in the Platform, including the Standard Stories, Trend Explorer, Visualizations, and Explore apps. Additionally, users can see in the Actionable Overspending app how their addressable costs compare to the Artemis book of business. 

Employers should look for a data solution that will help them answer the following benchmarking questions:

• What are the major variances in performance compared to a benchmark population?
• Do the type, prevalence and/or cost benchmark comparisons differ between different demographic groups?
• What areas of opportunity exist to close the gap in performance?
• Are differences due to cost or use?
• How do the various health plan vendors compare to benchmarks? 
  

Question: How do I create charts and graphs using my data? 

Answer: If you’re using spreadsheets or another data visualization tool outside of your data analytics solution, you should know there’s an easier way. Benefits teams are so used to juggling between multiple tools and programs, none of which were built specifically for benefits data, and that was one of the key motivations for the creation of Artemis Health. Our founders saw that HR and Benefits teams needed the same easy-to-use, thoughtful, and powerful tools that other business units have.  

Some data analytics solutions don’t make it easy to create data visualizations in the product. Often, advisors, analysts, and benefits teams are pulling reports and metrics out of their data tools in order to create charts and graphs that tell a story. A robust data analytics solution should allow benefits data visualization within the tool. 

That’s why Artemis Health built the Visualize app. It offers two key benefits for users:

• Create visualizations from data (charts, graphs, etc.) 
• Share visualizations with those who make decisions

You can see from the screenshot that users can choose from dozens of chart types and add in measures, breakdowns, and filters to create clear, beautiful visualizations that help them make the case for their benefits decisions. Employers and advisors should keep this in mind as they look to invest in data analytics. These tools should make their lives easier, improve their workflows, and help them tell stories with their benefits data. 

Question: Implementation is going to take all of my time, right? 

Answer: Definitely not. While any honest data partner will acknowledge that data implementation is a difficult and sometimes lengthy process, you should look for one that takes on the heavy lifting and involves the employer/advisor only when needed to clear roadblocks. Artemis’ process involves a kickoff meeting, where we connect with key stakeholders and designate a point person on the customer’s team. After we make introductions to key vendors/carriers, we take it from there. 

Our experienced implementation managers work closely with your vendors and only involve you when needed to make the process faster, smoother, and less of a headache. On average, our data implementation process takes 5 months, and we’re continually building new tools and relationships with vendors and carriers to make it faster and easier. 

Benefits data is complex, and quality is absolutely critical. We do a combination of automated and human checks to ensure that implementation and data refresh is not only fast, but is also accurate and trustworthy. 

These are just a few of the questions that employers and advisors are asking as they look to invest in benefits data analytics in 2021. We hope you find this information helpful as you evaluate the right data solutions for your needs. 

Want to learn more about Artemis Health’s data analytics platform? Watch our 2-minute demo video now.