Benefits Specialist

VISA- no-h1b
TITLE- Benefits Specialist III
LOCATION- Remote, US, EST time zone preferred, flexible for the right candidate
DURATION- 3+ months
INTERVIEW video
Job Title : Benefits & LOA Specialist
Remote, US, EST time zone preferred, flexible for the right candidate
Urgency & Submission Process
Employee goes on leave of absence Wednesday — speed is the priority.
Submit qualified candidates to Ornella; prioritize current, gap-free LOA experience.
Direct follow-up questions to Ornella via email; she will relay to Serena and respond to suppliers.
Interview process: one round with Serena only; she will test leave of absence knowledge directly.
Company ships a laptop; Ornella is ordering equipment.
Team & Scope
Team is just Serena and the employee going out, supporting ~5,000 employees globally.
North America benefits are handled entirely by these two.
Serena is entering open enrollment season (renewals, comms, contracts), so the contractor must run LOA independently.
HRIS: UltiPro now, migrating to Oracle as of January 1 (no contractor support needed on the migration).
Leave vendors: Prudential (U.S. claims, medical certs, FMLA paperwork); Canada Life (Canada; parental leave goes direct to government).
ADA accommodations are managed in-house; Serena will handle if the candidate lacks experience.
What They'll Do
Serve as primary point of contact for all North America LOA cases, including STD, LTD, PFL, FMLA, ADA, and Reasonable Accommodation requests (primary, most time-intensive duty).
Track U.S. and Canada LOAs start to return on a spreadsheet tracker, keeping records of employee comings and goings current.
Meet with employees going on leave and walk them through packets and instructions.
Explain leave policies, eligibility, and processes clearly to employees and managers.
Create the biweekly Excel payroll file for employees starting, ending, and on leave, including regular hours, time off, and parental leave top-ups using accrued time off.
Process and review benefits invoicing and billing via the AP system (cheat sheet provided).
Answer general employee benefits questions, triaging complex cases to Serena.
Coordinate with external vendors and carriers on leave and benefits administration.
Maintain compliance with federal and state leave regulations.
Ideal Candidate Profile
3+ years of hands-on North America leave administration (STD, LTD, PFL, FMLA, ADA) — a must, not a nice-to-have.
Deep knowledge of state paid family/medical leave, including NY and Rhode Island; no need to explain basic leave types to this person.
Current and not rusty; no major resume gaps (explained gaps such as parental leave are acceptable).
Prior benefits invoicing/billing and vendor coordination experience.
Picks up company-specific tools and processes quickly; Serena will train and double-check the payroll file process.
Strong communicator who explains complex leave policies in plain, reassuring terms.
Highly organized, detail-oriented, and comfortable managing multiple concurrent leave cases.
Next Steps
Source and screen for current, hands-on LOA administrators with multi-state leave depth.
Submit strongest candidates to Ornella quickly given the Wednesday start of leave.
Route any fit questions to Ornella via email before submitting.

Work arrangement
Yes