Case Study
St. Francis Healthcare System is
Driving Adoption and Engagement Through a Strategic Open Enrollment Experience
Overview
St. Francis Healthcare System partnered with Strive to create a centralized digital experience where employees could easily access benefits information, vendor tools, and wellness resources in one place. The goal was to improve benefits engagement, simplify access to key resources, and increase employee adoption of the organization’s benefits platform.
The Challenge:
Like many healthcare organizations, St. Francis wanted to improve how employees access and engage with their benefits. Prior to implementing the Strive experience, benefits resources were distributed across multiple systems and vendors, making it difficult for employees to find the information they needed.
As they prepared for Open Enrollment, the St. Francis team identified an opportunity to use the enrollment period as a catalyst to:
→ Increase employee adoption of the benefits platform
→ Centralize benefits information and resources
→ Improve communication with employees
→ Encourage greater participation in wellness initiatives
The organization set a clear goal: increase employee adoption and engagement through a streamlined digital benefits experience.
The Solution:
A Customized, White-Labeled Platform from Strive
St. Francis partnered with Strive, their broker partner McGriff (MMA), and key benefits vendors to build a more connected benefits ecosystem and position the app as the central hub for employees.
Proactive Open Enrollment Preparation
Ahead of Open Enrollment, teams collaborated across HR, Strive, the broker, and vendor partners to ensure systems and resources were ready before employees began enrolling. This preparation included implementation coordination, vendor alignment, and ensuring key resources would be available in the app at launch.
Total Rewards Guide Hosted in the App
To drive employees into the platform, St. Francis hosted their Total Rewards Guide directly within the app. Because employees needed this guide during Open Enrollment, it became a natural entry point that encouraged employees to engage with the platform.
Seamless Vendor Integrations
To reduce friction and simplify access, St. Francis implemented single sign-on (SSO) integrations with several key vendors, including:
- Health Advocate
- AmeriBen
- WEX (FSA and dependent care)
These integrations allowed employees to move easily between benefits resources without managing multiple logins.
Digital ID Cards in One Place
Employees could access medical, dental, and vision ID cards directly within the app, providing convenient access to essential information and reinforcing the value of the platform beyond Open Enrollment.
Coordinated Employee Communications
A coordinated communications campaign helped promote the app during Open Enrollment. St. Francis used branded digital postcards, targeted email communications, and messaging aligned with broker partners to guide employees to download the app and access their benefits information in one place.
Wellness Challenges to Sustain Engagement
Beyond benefits access, St. Francis uses the platform to launch custom wellness challenges, giving employees opportunities to participate in health-focused initiatives and stay engaged throughout the year.
“Open Enrollment was the perfect opportunity for us to introduce a more streamlined benefits experience. By bringing our resources, vendors, and Total Rewards information into one place, the platform made it much easier for employees to find what they needed and actually engage with their benefits.”
– St. Francis Healthcare System HR Team
The Results:
By strategically aligning their Open Enrollment strategy with the launch and promotion of the app, St. Francis achieved strong adoption and sustained engagement.
Key outcomes include:
• 1,235 employees actively using the app
• 41% employee adoption
• 10% increase in adoption over the past year
• 43% utilization during Open Enrollment, the highest monthly utilization to date
• Employees averaged five logins per month during Open Enrollment
Importantly, monthly utilization has remained consistently higher than it was prior to Open Enrollment, showing that employees continue to rely on the platform long after the enrollment period ends.
“The response during Open Enrollment exceeded our expectations. We saw strong adoption right away, and employees were logging in frequently to access their benefits resources and ID cards. It confirmed that providing a centralized digital experience really makes a difference.”
– St. Francis Healthcare System HR Team
The Impact:
With increased adoption, St. Francis has created a more effective way to engage employees with their benefits.
The platform now enables the organization to:
Drive
Deliver
Guide
Provide
“What’s been most valuable is how the platform continues to support engagement beyond Open Enrollment. It gives us an ongoing way to communicate with employees, promote wellness initiatives, and guide them to the resources that help them make the most of their benefits.”
—
St. Francis Healthcare System Team
By using Open Enrollment as a launch point for engagement, St. Francis successfully increased adoption and created a digital benefits experience that continues to deliver value year-round.
Why Strive?
Brand-Aligned Experience
Time Savings
Year Round Support
Exceptional Client Success
“The Strive Client Success team has been an outstanding partner. Thoughtful, resourceful, and incredibly aligned with our goals. They’ve truly been an extension of our team.”
— St. Francis Healthcare System HR Team