You searched for leave - Mineral https://trustmineral.com HR and compliance made simple. Fri, 06 Dec 2024 19:43:54 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 Evaluating Partnership Performance: 28 Metrics to Measure Year-End Success https://trustmineral.com/mineral-updates/evaluating-partnership-performance-28-metrics-to-measure-year-end-success/ Fri, 06 Dec 2024 18:58:55 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=46523 Partnerships are a key growth strategy for many businesses, but how do you know your programs are effective? As the year wraps up, every department reviews its metrics to plan […]

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Partnerships are a key growth strategy for many businesses, but how do you know your programs are effective? As the year wraps up, every department reviews its metrics to plan and set goals for the new year. This is no different for partner channel managers. Validating your partner ecosystem and program requires tracking performance and setting clear goals.

How do you do this? You need to track the right KPIs for your partner program. Not only will this set the stage for even greater success in the year ahead, it can help you improve performance and pinpoint areas for improvement. Tracking the wrong KPIs, or not tracking at all, can result in missed opportunities and an inability to resolve challenges. It also creates a lack of clarity around how partnerships contribute to your business goals. Without the right metrics, it’s difficult to optimize resources or make a strong case to leadership for additional support.

28 Key Metrics for Partnerships

Revenue is the ultimate goal of your partner program, but achieving it involves tracking multiple objectives. Tracking KPIs monthly and quarterly help you accurately review the full picture at the end of the year. For extra credit, compare the growth and analyze the trends and patterns that appear for strategic planning for the next year.

Here are some key partnership metrics to measure year-end success.

Partner Revenue Metrics

Partnership revenue metrics are at the heart of evaluating partner performance. They directly show the financial success and impact of your efforts. Track these partner revenue KPIs by analyzing performance across partner type, tier, and channel:

  • Partner-Sourced Revenue: The total income generated directly through partner referrals or sales over a specific period.
  • Revenue Growth Rate: The rate at which partnership revenue is growing over time. It allows you to determine whether your partnership strategy contributes to your overall business growth.
  • Partner Program ROI: Measures the profitability of the program by comparing the revenue to the costs and initiatives invested in building, maintaining, and growing the partnerships.

Tracking these partnership KPIs identifies your top performers in each segment, helping your team refine strategies to maximize return on investment and prioritize resources. Compare these against your yearly goals to identify gaps between projections and outcomes.

Partner Pipeline Metrics

Partnership pipeline metrics provide valuable insights into the health and potential revenue of your partnerships. To accelerate growth, use these partner KPIs to analyze revenue growth rates. By regularly tracking these metrics, you gain a deeper understanding of your partner program’s performance and identify areas for optimization. Here’s a breakdown:

  • Pipeline Value: Total value of deals in the pipeline attributed to partners. This metric shows the potential total income from partner-sourced revenue.
  • Deal Conversion Rate: Calculates the percentage of potential deals in the pipeline that successfully transition to closed-won deals. This indicates how efficiently your sales team is closing partner deals.
  • Average Deal Size: Calculates the average monetary value of partner-related closed-won deals over a specific period. This metric offers insight into the partner program’s potential for driving higher-value sales.
  • Lead Conversion: Tracks the total number of leads from partners and how many are converted to customers. This helps to examine lead quality to identify successful strategies or improve where needed.
  • Deal Win Rate: Calculates the percentage of deals won out of the total number of deals closed.
  • Time-to-Close: Measures the average time it takes to finalize a deal from initial contact with a lead to the moment it is closed-won.

Monitoring partner pipeline metrics helps evaluate the efficiency of your sales process and the program’s effectiveness in quickly converting leads. Identify areas that require improvement to tailor your enablement efforts, improve collaboration, predict revenue timelines, and spot bottlenecks that may delay deal closures. Use the results from these partner KPIs to assist in strategic planning to streamline the sales process in the new year.

Partner Upsell + Cross-sell Metrics

Leveraging partners for upselling and cross-selling boosts revenue streams and deepens customer relationships. It improves customer retention, making them more valuable over time, and reduces churn risk. Tracking these partnership metrics helps to maximize the value of these relationships.

  • Upsell Revenue: Total revenue generated from selling premium or product add-ons to the same customer.
  • Cross-sell Revenue: Total revenue generated from selling complementary products to the same customer.
  • Number of products referred by each partner: Tracks which products the partner referred. This metric can provide insight into which solutions the partner needs more training on.
  • Total Number of upsell and cross-sell referrals: Tracks the total number of upsell and cross-sell referrals per partner.
  • Deal Win Rate: Calculates the percentage of deals won for upsell and cross-sell referrals.
  • Number of different products a partner’s client purchased: Measures how many additional products each partner’s client purchased.
  • Customer Retention from Partner Upsell/Cross-sell: Compare retention rates between customers who made additional purchases and those who didn’t. This metric can be used to encourage more partners to participate in these cross-selling activities.

Upsell and cross-sell KPIs show how well partners understand your products and align them with customer needs. They also help identify top and underperforming partners in each segment. Tracking these partner metrics gives insight to help improve partner enablement, customer satisfaction, and partner program profitability.

For example, if ABC Firm has a low referral count for upsell and cross-sell, reach out to assess their needs. This partner may need additional training or assets. Use these metrics to show how they can increase customer loyalty and boost revenue.

Partner Enablement Metrics

These partner enablement metrics are not all-encompassing, nor will you need them depending on your channel, type, or ecosystem. A strong enablement program shows partners you’re invested in their success, increasing partner loyalty and reducing churn. Partners showing high enablement activity rates are more likely to generate leads, close deals, and drive revenue faster. Partner enablement KPIs can indicate partnership health, along with partnership satisfaction.

  • Number of Enablement Sessions: Total number of training and enablement sessions conducted for partners.
  • Number of Partner Touchpoints: Measures how often you interact with partners including meetings, emails, & other communications.
  • Partner Portal Activity: This metric includes KPIs such as frequency of logins, collateral views, and number of collateral downloads.
  • Training and Certification Completion Rates: Calculates the percentage of partners who complete the required training and certification programs. This partner metric can indicate effective partner education and partner readiness.

Measuring partner enablement KPIs can pinpoint what is or isn’t working, helping you to refine your strategy for better results. Low numbers indicate low engagement. Use partner enablement metrics to re-engage or motivate these partners. Identifying high-performing enablement practices can allow you to scale growth efficiently by replicating them across your entire partner ecosystem.

Partner Incentive Metrics

Incentives keep partners engaged, reducing partner churn and creating stability. Tracking the right metrics for your partner incentive ensures your program drives the desired behaviors and delivers measurable results. Pay attention to how factors like different incentives, campaign durations, and success benchmarks impact the level of participation.

  • Total Revenue Generated: Calculates the total revenue generated from the incentive.
  • Total Leads Sent: Tracks the leads partners sent in that qualified for the incentive
  • Total Opportunities Created: Calculates the number of leads that converted into an opportunity.
  • Closed-Won Deals: Measures the leads that are converted into closed-won deals.
  • Program Costs: Tracking the incentive payouts, or the total costs of the rewards given to the partners.

Additionally, you can compare these incentive-specific metrics with the overall partner revenue and pipeline metrics to evaluate the impact of the incentive program and assess the total return on investment. These metrics can be used to showcase the program’s value to stakeholders to allocate better resources, increase the budget, and expand the program.

Partner Satisfaction Metrics

Successful partner programs are built on relationships. Partnerships are more than just businesses selling or referring your solutions, they are key advocators of your brand because they BELIEVE in it. Highly satisfied partnerships lead to creative solutions, innovative campaigns, and mutual success and growth. Partner satisfaction KPIs measure your partners’ satisfaction and engagement with your program, resources, and overall collaboration.

  • Partner Net Promoter Score (NPS): Measures how satisfied your partners are with their experience working with your organization. This partner metric indicates the health of the partner relationship, partner loyalty, and likelihood to recommend.
  • Support Tickets & Resolution Times: Tracks the total number of support tickets per partner and the average time to resolve them.
  • Churn Rate: Rate at which partners disengage or leave your program.

Consistently measuring partner satisfaction KPIs helps to identify pain points or areas where partners feel unsupported, uncover trends and patterns, and plan ways to strengthen relationships with these partners. For example, a high partner NPS can also be used to determine which partners are willing to collaborate with you by participating in case studies, new launches, and testing and implementing new programs and portals.

Not Hitting Your Metrics? Elevate Your Partnership Program with Mitratech Mineral

By tracking these 28 key metrics, you’ll unlock a comprehensive understanding of your partner program’s performance. This data-driven approach empowers you to identify areas for improvement, optimize your strategies, and ultimately drive greater success.

Ready to take your partnership program to the next level? Click here to learn more about our partnership opportunities.

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Benefits Check-up: 6 Compliance Issues Affecting Your Clients’ Health  https://trustmineral.com/benefits/benefits-check-up-6-compliance-issues-affecting-your-clients-health/ Fri, 12 Apr 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=44637 The post Benefits Check-up: 6 Compliance Issues Affecting Your Clients’ Health  appeared first on Mineral.

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A health plan is more than a product or service; it’s a relationship. All productive and healthy relationships—especially in the benefits space—rely on trust. When an employer extends trust in a broker or insurance carrier to purchase something as critical as healthcare—for people as critical as their workers and families—we’re obligated to raise all factors that affect that purchase.

Assisting employers with benefits compliance requires understanding key benefits laws to effectively engage, educate, and be a better partner to employer clients. The six compliance obligations listed below are just as important to check on when talking with clients about their organizational health.

1. Employee Retirement Income Safety Act (ERISA)

Dating back nearly a half century, ERISA is essentially the heart of benefits law—setting the standards of protection for employees and their families when they enroll in employer-sponsored benefit plans. Meeting those standards can cause a compliance migraine for employers—particularly when it comes to creating, updating, and distributing Summary Plan Descriptions (SPDs).

Compounding the pain, employers might think their SPD will be created by their insurance carrier or broker, but this isn’t typically the case. It’s important that employers understand their responsibility to know which benefits are subject to ERISA rules, to have these documents created through a reputable vendor or an attorney, and to adhere to ERISA’s distribution requirements.

2. Affordable Care Act (ACA)

Upheld after a contentious congressional approval and multiple Supreme Court challenges, this 2010 law changed the landscape of health insurance in many ways, not least of which was creating new compliance obligations for employers. ACA requires employers to distribute a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) to participants and beneficiaries—including enrolled, nonactive employees—plus additional requirements for ALEs (applicable large employers), those with 50 or more full-time and full-time equivalent employees.

ACA’s hidden health hazard for employers is that the law requires commonly or jointly owned businesses to count all employees together. An HR professional for one business may not know that their employer owns multiple businesses (since commonly owned businesses may not share resources like HR and benefits departments). So, asking about ALE status is an important question brokers and carriers can ask clients as a way to open the conversation about overall ACA compliance obligations.

3. Transparency in Coverage

Signed into law in 2021, the No Surprises Act builds on ACA transparency rules by requiring group health plans to:

  • Post in-network negotiated rates, and out-of-network allowed amounts on a public-facing website.
  • Provide a web-based price comparison tool that allows individuals to estimate their cost-sharing responsibility for a specific item/service from a particular provider.
  • Annually report detailed information related to prescription drug costs, including most frequently dispersed brand-name drugs and most costly drugs.

Although fully insured plans will rely heavily on insurance carriers to make the information available, self-funded groups will bear the compliance obligations. It is critical for plan sponsors to work with carriers and third-party administrators to outline and clearly document who is responsible for each requirement.

4. Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

FMLA, specifically designed to protect employees and their jobs when taking leave to care for themselves or a family member, exposes employers to compliance risk—especially as it pertains to maintaining employee health benefits.

The law requires employers to maintain an employee’s coverage, including employee contributions, as if they had not taken leave, and prohibits benefits termination while on leave except in limited circumstances.

To keep a compliance cold from turning into a full FMLA flu, broker partners must help employer clients understand their FMLA obligations, including: which benefits fall under the group health category, how to collect employee premiums while on FMLA leave, and how to provide mandatory information and notices while an employee is on FMLA leave.

5. COBRA

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), passed in 1985, applies to most employers with 20 or more employees that sponsor group health plans. The law is relatively straightforward, a rarity in benefits regulations.

Still, it is imperative to know help clients understand COBRA’s key provisions to effectively support them in meeting compliance obligations, including the rules for removing an ineligible dependent if an employee neglects to notify their employer for six months after a divorce is final.

6. Medicare

As employees stay in the workforce longer, employers must understand Medicare rules related to:

  • Prescriptions—in particular, calculating whether their plan offers creditable coverage (compared to the standard Part D plan) and notifying Medicare-eligible employees about the creditable/non-creditable coverage calculation.
  • Disclosures—specifically, preparing and submitting to CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) disclosure about whether the plan provides creditable coverage.
  • Plan limits for cost-shifting when Medicare-eligible employees have dual coverage. The rules differ for employers with fewer than 20 employees, 20 to 99 employees, and 100 or more employees. For employers with 20 or more employees, Medicare rules limit employer plans as the primary payer from shifting an individual’s healthcare costs onto Medicare. Employers need to understand the interaction between their plan and Medicare to meet their compliance obligations.

It’s important for all parties involved to have a baseline understanding of benefits compliance obligations so they can effectively support employer clients in finding a benefits administration platform, a broker to assist with enrollment meetings, a carrier to find an in-network provider for a specialty service, and other scenarios. Compliance rules and regulations are complex. Partnering with other industry professionals, such as Mineral, is an excellent way to ensure that employer groups are educated, supported, and compliant.

Ready to learn more about Mineral as your partner in employee benefits compliance and more? Let’s talk.

Michael Rojas

Enterprise Account Executive

Michael Rojas, Enterprise Account Executive

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4 Strategic Steps for Using Generative AI in HR (part 2 of 3) https://trustmineral.com/artificial-intelligence/4-strategic-steps-for-using-generative-ai-in-hr-part-2-of-3/ Tue, 30 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=42628 By Kelley Butler and Susan Anderson This post is the second in a three-part Q&A series with Mineral Chief Services Officer Susan Anderson that shares Mineral’s organizational journey to leverage […]

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By Kelley Butler and Susan Anderson

This post is the second in a three-part Q&A series with Mineral Chief Services Officer Susan Anderson that shares Mineral’s organizational journey to leverage generative AI to improve business efficiency and maintain positive client outcomes for Mineral’s more than 1 million small business clients nationwide. Read part one here, and find other exclusive AI resources from Mineral at trustmineral.com/ai.

You’ve framed this AI transformation journey as three-fold: What we did, what we learned, and what other organizations–even those outside of HR and compliance—should consider. With that in mind, let’s start with what you did.

We plugged in, using the standard API*, some of the questions that we had from Mineral across four specific HR subject areas: FLSA [Fair Labor Standards Act], FMLA [Family and Medical Leave Act], ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] and immigration. We passed those over to chat output to process and then through the API it sent us back the answers.

We scored the answers with a predefined rubric against six criteria:

  1. Accuracy. Was the answer accurate?
  2. Contextual relevance. Did it make sense with the context of the question?
  3. Consistency. Did we consistently get the same similar answers?
  4. Brevity. Was it the right answer from a brevity perspective, while still providing enough information?
  5. Bias. Did we see any bias in answers?
  6. Practical applicability. Was the answer applicable and actionable from a practice perspective?

* API stands for application programming interface; casually defined, an API is a way for two or more computer programs to communicate with each other.

From all my employment attorneys, all the way through our experts, we worked with our technical team to build the proof of concept. When we got the results, what we saw was varying levels of scoring against these six criteria. We did have some trick questions, I’ll admit, but for the most part what we wanted to do was put it through common questions that HR stakeholders at SMBs across the country might typically have.

One question that we posed for it: Please create a safe form for employees to sign indicating that they waive their right to overtime.

The answer we got: FLSA does not require employees to sign a waiver, but if you want them to, you can. The waiver should state that they’re voluntarily giving up their rights for overtime pay.

Sounds right to me, but I’m sure a team of employment attorneys and HR experts had a far more nuanced take! Overall, what did you and the team learn through the question-posing and answer-scoring process?

We definitely learned that the APIs were secure. One of our first concerns [was security] if we were going to pass data back and forth to the large language model. [Generative AI] held up its promise on that.

The second thing we learned is that, in almost all cases, answers were missing nuance details. One of the things that I think our team is particularly good at is contextualizing a question, peeling the onion and understanding what’s really happening with a client’s organization so that we can give the best advice possible. This doesn’t necessarily naturally happen when you start interacting with generative AI.

The other thing that we learned, and we sort of learned the hard way, is that prompt crafting–engineering the right kinds of questions and setting the context for the large language model tool–is really important. You can define personas, and can build context with your questions.

Up next: The four key steps to apply Mineral’s lessons learned for your organization’s AI transformation. Exclusive AI resources from Mineral are available now on-demand at trustmineral.com/ai.

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Last update June 2 2023 https://trustmineral.com/terms-of-service/last-update-june-2-2023/ Fri, 19 Jan 2024 22:57:37 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?page_id=42739 The post Last update June 2 2023 appeared first on Mineral.

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Mineral® Terms of Service

Last Updated: June 2, 2023

Mineral® updated its Terms of Service on June 2, 2023. This update includes updates to the Order Form auto-renewal terms. Please refer to Article 5 for more information. Click here for previous versions of our Terms of Service. By continuing to use the Services, You agree to the updated terms and conditions in our Terms of Service.

These Terms of Service and all policies or terms incorporated herein by reference (hereinafter referred to as “Terms of Service” or this “Agreement”) is an agreement between Mineral, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as “we,” “us,” “our,” or “Company”) and You or the entity You represent concerning access to and use of our products and services, including our websites and any pages registered on the trustmineral.com website (“Website“) and our proprietary, cloud-based, software-as-a-service offering, including any associated mobile applications and offline components (“Software“) (collectively, the “Services”).

Capitalized terms used herein have the meanings given in Article VIII. However, we include some definitions below to describe the roles of individuals or entities that may be authorized to access or use the Services.

Client” means, as the case may be, a customer of Partner for which Partner is authorized by us to provide access to and/or use of the Services or a portion thereof, or a customer of Partner which purchases subscriptions to Premium Products from us.

Partner” means an entity purchasing subscriptions to the Services and authorized by us to provide access to and use of the Services or a portion thereof to Client.

User” means any individual or entity that uses the Services or a portion thereof on behalf of a Client or Partner or through the account or passwords of either, whether authorized or not, including without limitation the employees and agents of either.

You” or “Your” shall mean the individual accessing or using the Services in his/her/their individual capacity or as a User, Partner, or Client, as the context requires.

Visitor” means any individual or entity visiting our Website and/or Software.

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS OF SERVICE CAREFULLY. BY VISITING, ACCESSING OR USING THE SERVICES, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE APPLICABLE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET FORTH HEREIN AND ALL OTHER TERMS AND POLICIES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE OR OTHERWISE MADE AVAILABLE TO YOU. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO ALL OF SUCH TERMS, YOU MAY NOT USE THE SERVICES. THIS AGREEMENT CONTAINS A MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROVISION THAT, AS FURTHER SET FORTH IN ARTICLE IV, REQUIRES THE USE OF ARBITRATION ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS TO RESOLVE DISPUTES, RATHER THAN JURY TRIALS OR ANY OTHER PROCEEDING OR CLASS ACTIONS OF ANY KIND.

You represent and warrant that You are lawfully able to enter into this Agreement, and that by doing so, You will not be in breach of any obligation, agreement or mandate. You enter into this Agreement by clicking a check box or button indicating Your acceptance of our Terms of Service, accessing or using the Services, or executing an Order Form. If You accept our Terms of Service on behalf of a company or other legal entity, You represent and warrant that You are authorized to enter into this Agreement on such entity’s behalf and bind such entity to this Agreement and that Your agreement to these Terms of Service shall be treated as the agreement of such entity. If You do not agree with our Terms of Service or do not have such authority, You may not use the Services. This Agreement, and any updates, amendment or modification, is effective as of the date You accept it as provided above. If You do not agree to any updated or amended terms to this Agreement, You shall notify us in writing immediately and suspend using the Services.

ARTICLE I – DESCRIPTION OF THE SERVICES

A.       Purpose of the Services

The purpose of the Services is to provide access to general employment and human resources and compliance information. Nothing that appears on or is made available through or in connection with the Services, including without limitation any responses to questions, information provided in handbooks, guides, documents, items, materials, and any other content or information in any communication on or in connection with the Services, should be relied upon or construed as legal, tax, or similar professional advice. The information made available through or in connection with the Services is intended for general informational purposes only and should be used only as a starting point. It is not a substitute for a consultation with an attorney licensed to practice in Your jurisdiction about Your specific legal issue. If You are seeking legal advice, You are encouraged to consult an attorney. We do not engage in the practice of law, and Your subscription to, access to, or use of the Services under no circumstances creates an attorney-client relationship. You understand that questions and answers or other postings to or communications on or in connection with the Services are not subject to attorney-client privilege.

B.       No Protected Health Information

The Services are not designed or intended to process “Protected Health Information” or “Individually Identifiable Health Information” as those terms are defined under the HIPAA Privacy Rule (45 C.F.R. Section 160.103). You agree not to submit or share any Protected Health Information or Individually Identifiable Health Information on or in connection with the Services.

C.       Your Account

You must register for an account to access and use the Services. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality and security of Account Information and User Content. You agree to maintain and promptly update Account Information and any other information You provide to us, to keep it accurate, current and complete. You must promptly notify us of any breach or unauthorized use of Your account or of user names or passwords associated with Your account, which are intended for Your internal use only. You shall not sell, transfer, or sublicense user names, passwords, Account Information, or other information associated with Your account to any other person or entity. Users may include You or Your employees or agents, and You shall only create one account per email address. Access to or use of the Services in any other manner or by any third party is prohibited.

D.      Your Use

During the Order Form Term, You may access and use such features and functions of the Services as set forth on an Order Form, pursuant to the terms thereof and this Agreement.

E.       Your Content

The Services allow Users to create, post, store, share, or otherwise make available User Content. By submitting, uploading, publishing, transmitting, or otherwise making available User Content on or in connection with the Services, You represent, warrant, and covenant that You or Your licensors own all right, title, and interest in and to User Content and that User Content and use of User Content shall not violate this Agreement or result in the violation of any applicable laws, rules, or regulations.

You recognize and agree that hosting data online involves risks of unauthorized disclosure or exposure and that, in accessing and using the Services, You assume such risks. We make no representation, warranty, or guarantee that User Content will not be exposed or disclosed through errors or the actions of third parties.

We shall have no responsibility or liability for the accuracy of data uploaded to the Services by You, including without limitation User Content and any other data uploaded by Users. We may, in our sole discretion, delete, edit, or remove User Content at any time and for any reason including a breach of any of the foregoing or if Your account is delinquent, suspended, or terminated for 60 days or more.

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Subject to Your use of the Services in accordance with this Agreement, we will: (1) make the Services available pursuant to our Service Level Agreement set forth at Annex 2 below, which is incorporated herein by this reference; (2) provide standard support for the Services at no additional charge or premium support if purchased; and (3) provide the Services in accordance with generally applicable laws, rules, and regulations.

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When You access or use the Services, You consent to our collection and use of data pursuant to our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by this reference. In the event of a conflict between the provisions of our Privacy Policy and this Agreement, the provisions of our Privacy Policy shall control. Without limiting the provisions of Articles I, II, or  III, we will implement commercially reasonable security measures as described in our Privacy Policy.

ARTICLE II – PROPRIETARY RIGHTS

A.       Reservation of Rights

Unless expressly provided under this Agreement, access to or use of the Company Materials shall not be construed as conferring any Intellectual Property Rights or licenses thereto, whether by estoppel, implication, or otherwise. Company Materials include proprietary property of Company or its licensors protected by U.S. and international intellectual property laws. Company or its licensors own and retain all right, title, and interest in and to the Company Materials and all related Intellectual Property Rights thereto. No rights are granted except as expressly provided under this Agreement.

B.       Limited Right to Access and Use

Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, during the Order Form Term You are granted a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, non-transferable right to: (1) access and use the Services solely as expressly provided in this Agreement; and (2) electronically copy (except where prohibited without a license) and print to hard copy portions of the Services Materials and Documentation solely for Your informational, non-commercial, and personal use. Any use of the Services or the Services Materials other than as specifically authorized herein, without our prior written permission, is strictly prohibited and shall terminate all rights granted herein. The foregoing limited license is revocable by Company or its licensors at any time.

You shall not access or use the Services in any manner or for any purpose other than as expressly permitted by this Agreement. You represent, warrant, and covenant that Your use shall comply with our Acceptable Use Policy. You shall take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorized access to the Services, including without limitation by protecting Your passwords and other log-in information. You shall notify us immediately of any known or suspected unauthorized use of the Services or breach of its security and shall use best efforts to stop said breach. In Your use of the Services, You represent, warrant, and covenant that Your use of the Services shall not violate this Agreement or any applicable laws, rules, or regulations, including any privacy and security laws governing User Content.

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You shall not: (1) access or use the Services in a way intended to avoid incurring fees or contractual usage limits under an Order Form or this Agreement; (2) provide passwords or other log-in information to any third party except as specifically authorized by this Agreement; (3) share non-public Services features or content with any third party; (4) sell, resell, license, sublicense, rent, lease, transfer, distribute, or otherwise make available the Services or any part thereof, include the Services or any part thereof in a service bureau or outsourcing offering, or in any other way allow third parties to exploit the Services except as specifically authorized by this Agreement; (5) access the Services in order to build a competitive product or service, to build a product or service using similar ideas, features, functions or graphics of the Services, or to copy any ideas, features, functions or graphics of the Services, or allow a third party to do so using Your our Your Users’ accounts; (6) engage in web scraping or data scraping on or related to the Services, including without limitation collection of information through any software that simulates human activity or any bot or web crawler reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, copy, or otherwise attempt to derive any source code or other trade secrets from or related to the Services or any part thereof; (7) modify, alter, translate, adapt, tamper with, or otherwise create derivative works of the Services or any part thereof; (8) remove, alter, cover, or obfuscate any proprietary notices, labels, trademarks, or service marks on the Services or any part thereof; or (9) use the Services in a way that violates or infringes upon the rights of a third party, including those related to contract, intellectual property, privacy, or publicity. You shall immediately notify us of any violation of any of the foregoing and reasonably assist us in any action or claim to enforce our rights. If we suspect any breach of the requirements of this Section C of this Article II, we may suspend access to the Services without advanced notice, in addition to such other remedies as we may have. Neither this Agreement nor our Acceptable Use Policy requires that we take any action against You or any User or other third party for violating our Acceptable Use Policy, this Section C of this Article II, or this Agreement, but we are free to take any such action as we see fit.

The Marks are proprietary materials of the Company or its licensor and may not be copied, imitated, or used, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of Company or its licensor. You may not use any metatags or any other “hidden text” utilizing any Marks without our prior written permission. In addition, the look and feel of the Services, including all page headers, custom graphics, button icons and scripts, is the service mark, trademark and/or trade dress of the Company and may not be copied, imitated or used, in whole or in part, without our prior written permission. All other trademarks, registered trademarks, product names and company names or logos mentioned in the Services are the property of their respective owners. Reference to any products, services, processes or other information, by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, supplier or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement, sponsorship or recommendation thereof by us.

D.      User Content

Except as expressly provided under this Agreement, we obtain no rights to User Content. You hereby grant us a worldwide, royalty-free, fully paid-up, non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, fully transferable and sublicensable (through multiple tiers) license, without additional consideration to You or any other person or entity, to reproduce, distribute, perform, display (publicly or otherwise), and create derivative works from User Content.

E.       Feedback

We shall be entitled to use the Feedback provided by You without restriction. You hereby irrevocably assign to us all right, title, and interest in and to the Feedback, and nothing in this Agreement or in the parties’ dealings arising out of or related to this Agreement will restrict our right to use, profit from, disclose, publish, keep secret, or otherwise exploit Feedback, without compensating or crediting You. Feedback will not constitute Your confidential information.

F.       Confidentiality

We shall limit use of Your Confidential Information to our performance of this Agreement and access to Your Confidential Information to our employees, contractors, or agents who are bound by confidentiality obligations no less restrictive than those of this Section F. We shall not transfer or disclose Your Confidential Information to any third party except as expressly permitted under this Agreement nor allow the unauthorized disclosure, publication, display, or use of Your Confidential Information without Your prior written consent. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, we shall protect Your Confidential Information with the same degree of care we use to protect our own confidential information of similar nature and importance, but with no less than reasonable care. We shall promptly notify You of any misuse or misappropriation of Confidential Information that comes to our attention.

You shall limit use of and access to Confidential Information to You and Your employees, contractors, or agents whose use of or access to Confidential Information is permitted under and Order Form or this Agreement and who are bound by confidentiality obligations no less restrictive than those of this Section F. You shall not disclose Confidential Information to any third party nor allow the unauthorized disclosure, publication, display, or use of Confidential Information without our prior written consent. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, You shall protect Confidential Information with the same degree of care You use to protect Your own confidential information of similar nature and importance, but with no less than reasonable care. You shall promptly notify us of any misuse or misappropriation of Confidential Information that comes to Your attention.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, a party may disclose Confidential Information of the other party as required by applicable law or by proper legal or governmental authority, provided that such party gives prompt notice to the other party of any such legal or governmental demand and reasonably cooperates with the other party in any effort to seek a protective order or otherwise to contest such required disclosure at the other party’s expense. Because of the unique and proprietary nature of the Confidential Information, each party understands and agrees that remedies at law for a breach of confidentiality will be inadequate and that a party shall be entitled to equitable relief, without proof of actual damage or posting a bond or other security, in addition to all other remedies provided under this Agreement or available at law. Upon termination of an Order Form or this Agreement, each party shall return all copies of the other party’s Confidential Information to the other party or certify, in writing, the destruction thereof.

Pursuant to the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016, 18 USC Section 1833(b), You are on notice and acknowledge  that, notwithstanding the foregoing or any other provision of this Agreement, an individual shall not be held criminally or civilly liable under any federal or state trade secret law for the disclosure of a trade secret that (1) is made (a) in confidence to a federal, state, or local government official, either directly or indirectly, or to an attorney; and (b) solely for the purpose of reporting or investigating a suspected violation of law; or (2) is made in a complaint or other document filed in a lawsuit or other proceeding, if such filing is made under seal. An individual who files a lawsuit for retaliation by an employer for reporting a suspected violation of law may disclose the trade secret to the attorney of the individual and use the trade secret information in the court proceeding, if the individual- (3) files any document containing the trade secret under seal; and (4) does not disclose the trade secret, except pursuant to court order.

Confidential Information includes proprietary information of Company or its licensors protected by U.S. and international intellectual property laws. Company or its licensors own and retain all right, title, and interest in and to Confidential Information and all related Intellectual Property Rights thereto.

ARTICLE III – DISCLAIMERS

The Services are not designed or intended to process “Protected Health Information” or “Individually Identifiable Health Information” as those terms are defined under the HIPAA Privacy Rule (45 C.F.R. Section 160.103). You agree not to submit or share any Protected Health Information or Individually Identifiable Health Information (“Excluded Data”) on or in connection with the Services. You recognize and agree that we have no liability for any failure to provide protections set forth in laws applicable to Excluded Data or otherwise to protect Excluded Data, and the Services are not intended for management or protection of Excluded Data and may not provide adequate or legally required security for Excluded Data.

The Services may contain links or otherwise allow You to access other websites, services, or technologies that are not under our control and are licensed by third parties (“Third-Party Services”). Such licensors retain all ownership right, title, and interest in and to such Third-Party Services and Partners and Clients are authorized to use such Third-Party Services solely in connection with the use of ThinkHR Services during the term of the applicable subscription. We make no claim or representation regarding, and accept no responsibility for, the availability, quality, content, nature, or reliability of Third-Party Services or other websites or services linking to the Services. We are not responsible for the contents, materials, or information provided or otherwise made available on any Third-Party Services, or any review, changes or updates thereto. We provide these links or access to the Third-Party Services to You only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link or access to any Third-Party Services does not imply affiliation, endorsement or adoption by the Company of any Third-Party Services or any information contained therein. When You leave the Services, You should be aware that our terms and policies no longer govern. You should review the applicable terms and policies, including privacy and data gathering practices, of any site to which You navigate from the Services.

We, Partners, or Clients may provide third party content on the Services and may provide links to webpages and content of third parties (collectively the “Third-Party Content”). We do not control, endorse or adopt any Third-Party Content and make no representation or warranties of any kind regarding the Third-Party Content, including without limitation regarding its accuracy or completeness. You acknowledge and agree that we are not responsible or liable in any manner for any Third-Party Content and undertake no responsibility to update or review any Third-Party Content. Your access to and use of such Third-Party Content contained therein is at Your own risk.

EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED IN THIS AGREEMENT AND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT COMPANY MATERIALS AND ALL INFORMATION, CONTENT, OR OTHER ITEMS OR MATERIALS CONTAINED THEREIN ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS WITHOUT REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, QUIET ENJOYMENT, OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY ARISING FROM STATUTE, ANY REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES ARISING FROM COURSE OF DEALING, COURSE OF PERFORMANCE, OR USAGE OF TRADE, OR THE RESULTS TO BE DERIVED FROM THE USE OF THE COMPANY MATERIALS, AND COMPANY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL SUCH WARRANTIES AND ANY OTHER WARRANTY EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY SET FORTH HEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING: (1) COMPANY DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE SERVICES WILL PERFORM WITHOUT INTERRUPTION OR ERROR; AND (2) COMPANY DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE SERVICES IS SECURE FROM HACKING OR OTHER UNAUTHORIZED INTRUSION OR THAT USER CONTENT WILL REMAIN PRIVATE OR SECURE. NO ORAL OR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION BY COMPANY OR ANY OTHER DOCUMENT, INCLUDING SALES OR MARKETING COLLATERAL, SHALL CREATE A REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OR IN ANY WAY INCREASE THE SCOPE OF ANY REPRESENATION OR WARRANTY EXPRESSLY PROVIDED IN THIS AGREEMENT. THE DISCLAIMERS IN THIS ARTICLE III CONSTITUTE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THIS AGREEMENT.

ARTICLE IV – DISPUTES

A.       Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL COMPANY, ITS AFFILIATES, OR THEIR DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUES, CUSTOMERS, OPPORTUNITIES, GOODWILL, USE, OR DATA, WHETHER IN AN ACTION IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH THIS AGREEMENT EVEN IF ADVISED IN ADVANCE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, SUCH DAMAGES WERE FORESEEABLE, AND REMEDIES FAIL OF THEIR ESSENTIAL PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AGGREGATE LIABILITY OF COMPANY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, WARRANTY, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE, WHETHER ACTIVE, PASSIVE OR IMPUTED), PRODUCT LIABILITY, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHER THEORY, ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT EXCEED THE AMOUNTS PAID TO COMPANY BY THE RELEVANT CUSTOMER UNDER THE RELEVANT ORDER FORM FOR ACCESS TO OR USE OF THE SERVICES DURING THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THE FOREGOING LIMITATION OF LIABILITY PROVISION SHALL APPLY TO ANY CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH THIS AGREEMENT, EVEN IF ANY REMEDIES FAIL OF THEIR ESSENTIAL PURPOSE. No action, regardless of form, arising out of or related to the Services shall be brought by You more than one (1) year after the cause of action has accrued.

B.       Indemnification by Us

Company shall indemnify, defend, or settle any claim, suit or proceeding brought against a Customer that is based upon a third-party claim that content authored, controlled, and provided by Company infringes an intellectual property right protected by United States law (“Claim”), provided that: (1) Customer shall notify Company in writing of any Claim promptly, but in no event later than ten (10) calendar days after Customer first receives notice of the Claim; (2) Company shall have sole control over any Claim (including without limitation the selection of legal counsel and the right to settle on behalf of Customer on any terms Company deems desirable in its sole discretion); and (3) Customer shall provide to Company such assistance and cooperation as Company may reasonably request from time to time in connection with the defense of the Claim. Customer may, at its sole cost, retain separate legal counsel and participate in the defense or settlement negotiations. Company shall pay actual damages and costs awarded against Customer (or payable by Customer pursuant to a settlement agreement) in connection with a Claim. If any content authored, controlled, and provided by Company or its use becomes the subject of a Claim or its use is enjoined, or if, in the opinion of Company’s legal counsel, is likely to become the subject of a Claim, Company shall attempt to resolve the Claim by using commercially reasonable efforts to modify the content or obtain a license to continue using the content. If, in the opinion of Company’s legal counsel, the Claim, injunction, or potential Claim cannot be resolved through reasonable modification or licensing, Company, at its own election, may terminate the Order Form, in whole or in part, and/or the applicable content without penalty, and will refund to Customer the pro-rata portion of any Subscription Fees for the infringing content paid in advance by Customer to Company and attributable to any post-termination period. Company shall have no obligations under this paragraph if the Claim is based on additions, modifications, or a combination of material, content, products, or software not provided by Company, or any use other than as expressly permitted by this Agreement. THE FOREGOING CONSTITUTES YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY AND OUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE LIABILITY FOR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INFRINGEMENT.

C.       Indemnification by You

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Company, its Affiliates, and their directors, officers, shareholders, employees, agents, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, damages, costs, liabilities and expenses, including without limitation reasonable attorneys’ fees, arising out of or in any way related to: (1) Your access to or use of the Services; (2) Your breach of this Agreement or violation of applicable law with respect to Your use of the Services; (3) a dispute between You, in the case of a Partner, and Your Client, or (4), any claim alleging that You or Your User Content infringes or misappropriates another person or entity’s Intellectual Property Rights, privacy rights, or publicity rights, provided that: (a) we notify You in writing promptly but in no event later than ten (10) calendar days after we first receive notice of the claim; (2) You shall have sole control over any claim; and (3) we shall provide You such assistance and cooperation as You may reasonably request from time to time in connection with the defense of the claim.

D.      Applicable Law; Jurisdiction

Unless prohibited by applicable law, all disputes arising out of or in any way related to this Agreement or any aspect of the relationship between You and Company shall be governed by the laws of the United States (including federal arbitration law) and the State of California, regardless of Your location, and without reference to: (1) any conflicts of law principle that would apply the substantive laws of another jurisdiction to the parties’ rights or duties; (2) the 1980 United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods; or (3) other international laws.

E.       Arbitration

ALL DISPUTES ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY ASPECT OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOU AND COMPANY, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, STATUTE, FRAUD, MISREPRESENTATION, OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, WILL BE RESOLVED THROUGH FINAL AND BINDING ARBITRATION BEFORE A NEUTRAL ARBITRATOR INSTEAD OF IN A COURT BY A JUDGE OR JURY, AND YOU AGREE THAT YOU AND COMPANY ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO TRIAL BY A JURY. YOU AGREE THAT ANY ARBITRATION UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL TAKE PLACE ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS; CLASS ARBITRATIONS AND CLASS ACTIONS ARE NOT PERMITTED AND YOU ARE AGREEING TO GIVE UP THE ABILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION.

The arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Arbitration Rules, as amended by this Agreement. The Commercial Arbitration Rules are available online at https://adr.org/sites/default/files/Commercial%20Rules.pdf (or any successor URL or website thereto). The arbitrator’s decision will follow this Agreement and will be final and binding. The arbitrator will have authority to award temporary, interim or permanent injunctive relief or relief providing for specific performance of this Agreement, but only to the extent necessary to provide relief warranted by the individual claim before the arbitrator. The award rendered by the arbitrator may be confirmed and enforced in any court having jurisdiction thereof.

ARTICLE V – PURCHASE TERMS

A.       Order Form

Subscriptions to the Services are purchased under an Order Form or the purchasing portal within the Services, both of which incorporate this Agreement by reference and shall be deemed an Order Form. The Order Form shall remain in effect for the duration of the Subscription Term provided on the Order Form (“Initial Term”). Thereafter, the Order Form shall automatically renew for successive terms of the same duration as the Initial Term (each such period, a “Renewal Term” and collectively, the “Order Form Term”), unless: (1) either party provides written notice of non-renewal no less than thirty (30) days before the end of the then-current term of the Order Form Term; or (2) the Order Form is terminated for cause pursuant to Section J of this Article V. It is your responsibility to keep track of the renewal dates and by signing or agreeing to this Terms of Service and/or by using the services or products, you expressly agree to the auto-renewal provision outlined herein.

B.       Subscriptions

Unless otherwise expressly provided in an Order Form, subscriptions to the Services are purchased for the duration of the Order Form Term. Subscriptions added during the Order Form Term are prorated for the portion of the Order Form Term remaining at the time subscriptions are added and are coterminous with the underlying Order Form.

C.       Subscription Fees

You agree to pay all Subscription Fees set forth on an Order Form for the duration of the Order Form Term, including Subscription Fees for subscriptions added during the Order Form Term. Unless otherwise expressly provided in an Order Form: (1) Subscription Fees are based on the number of subscriptions purchased and not actual usage; (2) the number of subscriptions shall not be decreased, removed, or cancelled during the Order Form Term; (3) Subscription Fees shall not be decreased, removed, or cancelled during the Order Form Term; and (4) payment obligations for Subscription Fees are non-cancelable and Subscription Fees paid are non-refundable unless the Order Form is terminated by You for cause pursuant to Section J of this Article V.

Services are subject to Usage Limits provided in an Order Form. If Usage Limits are exceeded or any overages are discovered, You shall be responsible for and shall pay Subscription Fees attributable to such overages, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable in accordance with this Article V. Company may monitor or audit use of the Services to ensure compliance with this Agreement. If such an audit reveals any underpaid Subscription Fees, You shall be responsible for and shall pay such underpaid Subscription Fees, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable in accordance with this Article V.

You agree to reimburse Company for reasonable travel expenses related to its provision of Services. Travel expenses require Your prior written approval and may be invoiced separately.

D.      Minimum Subscription Fees

No later than the last business day of each Billing Frequency set forth on an Order Form (“Billing Period”) during the Order Form Term, You or Company shall calculate the number of subscriptions added (or to be added) since the previous Billing Period (“Periodic Count”). You shall pay the minimum subscription fees, hereby defined as the greater of: (1) the Subscription Fees attributable to the actual Periodic Count for the current Billing Period; or (2) the Subscription Fees attributable to the Highest Periodic Count for any Billing Period during the Order Form Term (“Minimum Subscription Fees”). The Minimum Subscription Fees shall apply to the current Billing Period, and You shall remain responsible for the Minimum Subscription Fees for the remainder of the Order Form Term unless the Order Form is terminated by You for cause pursuant to Section J of this Article V.

E.       Invoices & Payment

All amounts payable under this Agreement shall be paid without setoff or counterclaim and without any deduction or withholding. Payment of the Minimum Subscription Fees shall be in accordance with the Billing Frequency provided on the Order Form. Unless otherwise expressly provided in an Order Form, Minimum Subscription Fees are due within thirty (30) days from the invoice date. If You provide credit card information to Company, You authorize Company to charge the payable Minimum Subscription Fees to such credit card. You are responsible for providing complete and accurate billing and contact information to Company and notifying Company of any changes to such information.

F.       Billing Frequency

For a Pre-Paid Monthly Billing Frequency, Company shall invoice You the Minimum Subscription Fees on a pre-paid monthly basis on the first day of the Subscription Term and thereafter on the first day of the calendar month during the Order Form Term. After the first invoice, Company shall invoice You for the Minimum Subscription Fees and any overages or underpaid Subscription Fees for Periodic Counts attributable to the previous month, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable. 

For a Pre-Paid Quarterly Billing Frequency, Company shall invoice You the Minimum Subscription Fees on a pre-paid quarterly basis on the first day of the Subscription Term and thereafter on the first day of each calendar quarter during the Order Form Term. After the first invoice, Company shall invoice You for the Minimum Subscription Fees and any overages or underpaid Subscription Fees for Periodic Counts attributable to the previous quarter, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable.

For a Pre-Paid Annual Billing Frequency, Company shall invoice You the Minimum Subscription Fees on a pre-paid annual basis on the first day of the Subscription Term and thereafter on the first day of each annual period during the Order Form Term. After the first invoice, Company shall invoice You for the Minimum Subscription Fees and any overages or underpaid Subscription Fees for Periodic Counts attributable to the previous annual period, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable.

G.      Late Payment

If an undisputed invoice remains unpaid by the due date, without limiting Company’s rights or remedies, Company may: (1) add a late payment charge of 1.5% of the outstanding balance per month or the maximum rate permitted by law, whichever is lower; (2) suspend access to Services until such amounts are paid in full; and/or (3) accelerate payment of all Minimum Subscription Fees due through the end of the then-current Order Form Term and terminate for cause if payment is not received within sixty (60) days of the due date. You shall be responsible for all reasonable costs and fees associated with our collection efforts, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs and any auditing process.

H.      Price Changes

Fees for Services may be changed at the end of the Initial Term and any Renewal Term thereafter. Fees for new features or functionality shall be effective when Company posts updated fees on the Services or its website, or by notifying You in accordance with Section D of Article VII. Certain Products may be provided without charge if provided in an Order Form. Access to and use of such Products is subject to this Agreement. Company may, in its sole discretion, charge then-current list prices for such Products after providing thirty (30) days’ prior written notice, and You agree to pay for such Products pursuant to this Article V.

I.         Taxes

Amounts due under this Agreement are payable to Company without deduction and are net of any tax, tariff, duty, or assessment imposed by any government authority (national, state, provincial, or local), including without limitation any sales, use, excise, ad valorem, property, withholding, or value-added tax, whether or not withheld at the source (collectively, “Sales Taxes”). Except as forbidden by applicable law, You shall pay applicable Sales Taxes to Company. However, the preceding sentence does not apply to the extent that You are tax exempt, provided You provide a valid tax exemption certificate within 30 days of the Order Form Effective Date. Company’s failure to include any applicable tax in an invoice will not waive or dismiss the parties’ rights or obligations pursuant to this Section I of this Article V. If applicable law requires withholding or deduction of Sales Taxes or any other tax or duty, You shall separately pay Company the withheld or deducted amount, over and above fees due. For the avoidance of doubt, this Section I of this Article V does not govern taxes based on Company’s net income.

J.       Termination

These Terms of Service are effective until terminated as provided herein. Either party may terminate an Order Form for cause if the other materially breaches this Agreement and the material breach remains uncured for a period of thirty (30) days from receipt of notice from the other, or immediately if the other becomes the subject of a petition in bankruptcy or any other proceeding relating to insolvency, receivership, liquidation or assignment for the benefit of creditors. You may not terminate this Agreement or any applicable Order Form for convenience without our express prior written consent, which will not be unreasonably withheld.

Notwithstanding any in this Agreement to the contrary, we reserve the right, without notice and in our sole discretion, to suspend access to the Services and terminate Your license to access and use the Services for failure to comply with this Agreement. Upon any such termination or suspension, Your right to use the Services shall immediately cease, and we may, without liability to You or any third party, immediately deactivate or delete Your user name, password and account, and all associated materials, without any obligation to provide any further access to such materials.

K.        Effect of Termination

Upon termination of an Order Form: (1) all Your rights under the Order Form and this Agreement immediately terminate; (2) Your payment obligations for Minimum Subscription Fees for the remainder of then-current term of the Order Form Term shall immediately accrue and be due and payable unless the Order Form is terminated by You for cause pursuant to Section J of this Article V; (3) You shall immediately return all Confidential Information in Your possession; and (4) all sections of this Agreement which by their nature should survive termination shall survive termination, including restrictions, accrued rights to payment, confidentiality obligations, intellectual property rights, warranty disclaimers, limitations of liability, indemnification, and any other provision of the Order Form or this Agreement that must survive to fulfill its essential purpose. For any use of the Services after termination, the terms of this Agreement shall apply, and You agree to pay applicable fees pursuant to this Agreement.

ARTICLE VI – PARTNERS

For the avoidance of doubt, the terms and conditions of this Article VI apply solely to Partners. No rights granted or obligations created under this Article VI apply to any other person or entity. In the event of a conflict between any provision of this Article VI and any other provision of this Agreement, this Article VI shall control as to Partners with respect to the subject matter of this Article VI.

A.       Appointment as Registered Partner

Subject to the terms and conditions of an Order Form and this Agreement, Company grants Partner a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, non-transferable right to offer subscriptions to the Services during the Order Form Term, solely to Clients in the Territory. Subject to the provisions of this Article VI, Partners may, and Partners may authorize their Clients and its and their Users to access and use the Services in such numbers and according to such restrictions or Usage Limits as are set forth in the applicable Order Form, solely for its or Client’s internal business purposes.

B.       Responsibilities; Restrictions

Partner shall not offer subscriptions or access to the Services to any third party unless the terms of Partner’s agreement with such third party are consistent with this Agreement. Partner shall not offer subscriptions or access to any resellers, distributors, sub-licensors, or other similar persons or entities to promote or offer subscriptions to the Services. Partner shall not misrepresent the relationship between Partner and Company nor imply any relationship except as expressly permitted by this Agreement.

Partner shall provide complete contact information for each proposed Client and such Client’s Users upon or before providing such access, and update such information as soon as it become aware of a change. Partner shall make no representations or warranties concerning the quality, performance, features, functionality, or other characteristics of the Services in any way inconsistent with this Agreement to Clients, Users, or any other third party, from or on behalf of Company, and Partner shall not create or purport to create any obligations or liabilities for Company.

Partner shall be solely responsible for costs related to its marketing activities under this Agreement. Partner shall: (1) ensure its marketing activities strictly comply with the terms and conditions of this Agreement; (2) comply with all applicable laws in its performance of this Agreement; (3) conduct business in a manner that reflects favorably at all times on the Services and the good name, goodwill, and reputation of Company; (4) avoid deceptive, misleading or unethical practices that are or might be detrimental to Company or the public, including but not limited to disparagement of the Company or the Services; (5) not publish, employ or cooperate in the publication of any misleading or deceptive marketing material; and (6) not make representations, warranties or guarantees with respect to the Company that are in any way inconsistent with the this Agreement.

C.       Use of Marks

Partner may use the Marks only as expressly permitted under Company’s brand usage guidelines. Partner must receive Company’s prior written approval for any press release, marketing material, promotion, or advertising that mentions Company or the Services.

Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, Company hereby grants Partner, a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable, non-transferable right to use the Marks, solely during the Order Form Term and as expressly permitted under this Article. Any use of the Marks: (1) shall indicate that such Marks are the property of Company; (2) shall bear a legal notice in such form as may be prescribed by law; and (3) shall conform with Company’s brand usage guidelines, polices, or requirements provided by Company. Any rights not expressly granted under this Article are reserved by Company, and all use by Partner of the Marks (including all goodwill associated therewith) shall be on behalf of and inure to the benefit of Company. Nothing contained in the Order Form, this Article, or otherwise, shall be deemed to grant Partner any right, title, or interest in or to the Marks other than the limited rights granted under this Article. As between the parties, Partner acknowledges that Company is the sole and exclusive owner of the Marks. Company reserves the right to change the Marks at any time.

Partner shall not: (1) take any action that (a) would conflict with or be contrary to Company’s rights to and interest in the Marks or (b) would be deemed by Company as damaging to the goodwill associated with the Marks; (2) modify or remove any Marks incorporated in, marked on, or affixed to Confidential Information, or any other information, content, items, or materials provided by Company; (3) challenge Company’s ownership of or rights to the Marks; or (4) adopt, use, register, or attempt to register (whether as a corporate name, domain or subdomain name, trademark, service mark, or other indication of origin) the Marks, any mark that is confusingly similar to or will dilute the distinctive nature of the Marks, or combination marks with the Marks. Partner shall provide Company with samples of all materials that use the Marks prior to use or display for quality control purposes. Company shall have the right to audit Partner’s use of the Marks and require modification of such use. Company may terminate, in whole or in part, the right to use the Marks regardless of whether an Order Form is in effect.

Company may refer to Partner as a customer by reference on its website and marketing materials. Partner grants to Company a non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use Partner trademarks made available to Company and pursuant to Partner’s trademark use policies, provided that Company strictly complies with any applicable criteria and requirements in any such policies. Company will immediately discontinue use of any Partner trademark upon request. Any use of Partner trademarks by Company shall inure to the benefit of Partner.

D.      Product Demo

Company may, in its sole discretion, make the Services available to Partner solely for the limited purpose of demonstrating the Services to Clients. Partner agrees that its use of the Services provided under this Section D is strictly limited to nonproduction purposes and shall be done in accordance with the instructions and specifications made available by Company. Access to or use of the Services shall immediately cease upon termination of this Agreement.

E.      Partner Enablement

Company uses a third-party service provider to provide partner enablement services within the Mineral Platform. When Partners log into the Mineral Platform and use the partner enablement functionality, Partners are consenting to MindMatrix’s Terms of Service located at https://www.mindmatrix.net/MMSite/terms-of-use.htm.

F.      Audit

Services are subject to Usage Limits provided in an Order Form. We may audit access to and use of the Services and suspend or terminate access at any time, without advanced notice, if a Partner or its Clients’ access or use is any way inconsistent with or in breach of the requirements of the applicable Order Form and/or this Agreement. Upon written request, Partner shall complete an audit form certifying the number of subscriptions to be added to comply with this Agreement and/or the applicable Order Form. If such audit form or audit reveals any underpaid Subscription Fees, Partner shall be fully responsible and liable for, and shall pay such, underpaid Subscription Fees, which shall immediately accrue and be due and payable in accordance with Article V.

In the event of a Partner’s corporate reorganization, consolidation, merger, or acquisition, Partner shall notify Company and complete an audit form within thirty (30) days of any such event. The number of subscriptions under the applicable Order Form shall be increased to include the number of employees attributable to such corporate reorganization, consolidation, merger, or acquisition, or Company may prohibit access to and use of the Services by such Partner employees and associated Clients.

Partner’s failure to comply with this Section F shall constitute a material breach, and Company may elect to suspend or terminate the Services or increase unit pricing up to twenty-five percent (25%) for future invoices.

G.      Assignment; Acquisitions

Partner may not assign or delegate any rights or obligations created under an Order Form or this Agreement without the prior written consent of Company, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. Notwithstanding the generality of the foregoing, Partner may assign an Order Form without Company’s consent as part of a corporate reorganization, consolidation, merger, or sale of substantially all of Partner’s assets, provided that: (1) written notice is given to Company as soon as practical; and (2) the surviving or acquiring entity expressly assumes all of Partner’s obligations under all Order Forms, unless otherwise expressly agreed to in writing by Company.

If Partner acquires another entity that is separately contracted with Company for Services, Partner acknowledges and agrees that the acquired entity will separately retain its existing contract with Company, or Company may transfer the subscriptions of the acquired entity and add them to Partner’s contract, and Subscription Fees for both contracts shall be combined under Partner’s contract at the higher rate and be subject to this Agreement.

If Partner is acquired by, sells substantially all of its assets to, or undergoes a change of control in favor of a direct competitor of Company, then Company may terminate all applicable Order Forms and provide Partner a prorated refund.

Except to the extent prohibited under this Section G, Order Forms shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties’ respective successors and assigns.

ARTICLE VII – MISCELLANEOUS

A.       Term; Termination

The term of this Agreement shall commence when You accept it as provided herein and shall remain in effect unless terminated pursuant to its terms. Without limiting our other rights and remedies, we may suspend or terminate any User’s access to the Services at any time, without advanced notice, if we reasonably conclude or suspect such User has conducted itself in a way that is inconsistent with or in breach of the requirements of the Acceptable Use Policy, the Order Form, this Agreement, or in a way that subjects us to potential liability. Upon termination, You shall cease all use of the Services and delete, destroy, or return all copies of Confidential Information in Your possession or control.

B.       Relationship

This Agreement and any aspect of the business relationships arising from or related to this Agreement do not and shall not be construed to, create any partnership, joint venture, employer-employee, agency or franchisor-franchisee relationships.

C.       Non-Exclusive

The rights granted hereunder are non-exclusive, and neither an Order Form nor this Agreement shall be construed to prohibit us from entering into similar agreements with others for our products and services or the solicitation thereof, unless explicitly stated otherwise and signed by Us.

D.      Notices

Notices to You may be made pursuant to the Order Form, by posting to our website or the Services, by email to the address then associated with Your account, by postal mail, or as otherwise permitted under this Agreement. Notices we provide by posting to our website or the Services shall be effective upon posting, and notices we provide by email shall be effective when sent. You agree that notices or communications in electronic form satisfy any requirement that such notices or communications be in writing. Your continued use of the Services after receiving any notice form us shall be considered you full acceptance.

Notices to us must be made pursuant to the Order Form. Notices provided by email shall be effective when sent. Notices provided by personal delivery shall be effective upon receipt. Notices provided by overnight courier shall be effective one business day after sent. Notices provided registered or certified mail shall be effective three business days after sent.

In addition, You are on notice and agree that for claims of copyright infringement, the complaining party may contact legal@trustmineral.com, and we will terminate the accounts of subscribers who are repeat copyright infringers.

E.       Force Majeure

We shall not be responsible for any failure to perform or delay in performance due to any cause beyond our control.

F.       Assignment; Successors

You may not assign, transfer, or sublicense any of Your rights nor delegate any of Your obligations under this Agreement without our express prior written consent. Except to the extent prohibited by this Section F, this Agreement will be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties’ respective successors and assigns.

G.      Severability

To the extent permitted by applicable law, You waive any provision of law that would render any provision of an Order Form or this Agreement invalid or otherwise unenforceable in any respect. If one or more provisions of this Agreement are held to be unenforceable under applicable law, then the meaning of said provision shall be construed, to the extent feasible, so as to render the provision enforceable, and if no feasible interpretation would save such provision, it shall be severed from the remainder of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect. In such event, You agree to negotiate, in good faith, a substitute, valid and enforceable provision that most nearly effects the intent in entering into this Agreement.

H.      No Third-Party Beneficiaries

No third party is intended to be nor shall be construed as a third-party beneficiary to Your rights under this Agreement.

I.         Attorneys’ Fees

If any action in law or in equity is necessary to enforce the terms of the Order Form or this Agreement, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover reasonable fees, costs, and expenses of attorneys, accountants, and other professionals, in addition to any other relief to which such prevailing party may be entitled.

J.        Construction

Any heading, caption or section title contained herein is for convenience only, and in no way defines or explains any section or provision. All terms defined in the singular shall have the same meanings when used in the plural, where appropriate and unless otherwise specified. Any use of the term “including” or variations thereof in these Terms of Service shall be construed as if followed by the phrase “without limitation.” This Agreement shall not be construed in favor of or against a party by reason of authorship.

K.       Modification; Waiver

We may modify this Agreement and any terms or policies referenced herein at any time by posting a revised version on our website, the Services, or by otherwise notifying You in accordance with Section D of this Article VII. The modification shall become effective upon posting or, if we otherwise notify You, as stated in our communication. Your continued access to and use of the Services following the posting of the modification or other notice of modification shall constitute Your acceptance of such modification. The “Last Updated” date above indicates when our Terms of Service were last modified. This Agreement may not be modified in any other way except through a written agreement signed by our authorized representative. Neither an Order Form nor this Agreement may be orally modified, nor shall any oral waiver of any of the terms of either be effective. No waiver shall be implied from conduct or failure to enforce or exercise rights under an Order Form or this Agreement. Company shall not be deemed to have waived any of its rights under this Agreement by lapse of time or by any communication other than by a duly authorized representative of Company in an express written waiver. No permissible waiver of a breach of an Order Form or this Agreement shall constitute a waiver of any other breach of the Order Form or this Agreement.

L.        Technology Export

You shall not: (1) permit any third party to access or use the Services in violation of any U.S. law or regulation; or (2) export any software provided by us or otherwise remove it from the United States except in compliance with all applicable U.S. laws and regulations. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, You shall not permit any third party to access or use the Services in, or export such software to, a country subject to a United States embargo.

M.     Entire Agreement

This Agreement, the attached Annexes, and any terms or policies incorporated herein by reference, is the complete and exclusive expression of Your agreement with us with respect to the subject matter of this Agreement. All prior and contemporaneous oral or written communications, discussions, understandings, representations, proposals, commitments, negotiations, or agreements between You and Company are expressly merged into and superseded by this Agreement. In entering into this Agreement, You represent that You have not relied upon any communication or writing except for those expressly contained in this Agreement.

No communication or writing provided by You (including any clickwrap, browsewrap, or any other pre-printed terms) shall supersede, contradict, vary, or modify the terms and conditions of an Order Form or this Agreement, and any such communication or writing shall have no legal effect. We shall not be bound by, and specifically object to, any term or condition in any communication or writing that is different from or in addition to any provision of this Agreement including any term, condition, or provision submitted by You in any order, receipt, acceptance, confirmation, correspondence or other document; related to any online registration, response to any request for bid, request for proposal, request for information; or related to any invoicing process or other questionnaire that You submit or require us to complete.

Without limitation, a printed version of an Order Form, this Agreement, and any notice given in electronic form shall be admissible in any proceeding arising from or related to this Agreement to the same extent as other business documents and records generated and or executed in printed form.

N.      Conflicts

In the event of a conflict between certain terms of this Agreement and the Order Form, the terms in the Order Form shall control. In the event of a conflict between a provision of this Agreement and another provision this Agreement, the specific shall control over the general. In the event of a conflict between any provision of this Agreement and any other applicable communication or writing, this Agreement shall control.

ARTICLE VIII – DEFINITIONS

Capitalized terms used herein shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this Article. All terms defined in the singular shall have the same meanings when used in the plural, unless otherwise expressly provided. Any use of the term “including” or variations thereof in this Agreement shall be construed as if followed by the phrase “without limitation.”

Acceptable Use Policy” shall mean our policy on permitted or prohibited uses with respect to the Services and more fully described in our Acceptable Use Policy.

Account Information” shall mean information about You that You provide to us in connection with the creation or administration of Your account, such as names, user names, passwords, authentication information, phone numbers, email addresses and billing information associated with Your account.

Affiliates” shall mean any entity that directly or indirectly controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the subject entity; control, for purposes of this definition, shall mean direct or indirect ownership or control of more than 50% of the voting interests of the subject entity.

Billing Frequency” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section F.

Billing Period” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section D.

Client” shall mean, as the case may be, a customer of Partner for which Partner is authorized by us to provide access to and use of the Services or a portion thereof, or a customer of Partner which purchases subscriptions to Premium Products from us.

Company Materials” means all information, data, documents, and materials that You access, acquire, learn, or receive from Company’s files, documents, employees, or representatives; Company Materials include Company Marks, the Services, and the Services Materials.

Confidential Information” shall mean, however disclosed, whether in written, oral, electronic, website-based or other form, and regardless of whether marked confidential, any non-public information of a confidential, proprietary, or trade secret nature, including without limitation trade secrets, software, source code, strategies, techniques, drawings, specifications, technical or know-how data, research and development, ideas, inventions, patent disclosures, product roadmap, product plans and designs, business, marketing, or financial plans/information, testing information (including without limitation any results or reports of any penetration or vulnerability testing), customer/vendor related data, security policies and procedures, services and support information, technology and technical information, business processes, and other business information including without limitation information that has been made available by third parties under confidentiality obligations, the terms and conditions of this Agreement and all Order Forms (including pricing), the nature, content and existence of any discussions or negotiations between You and us or our affiliates, or any information that reasonably should be understood to be a trade secret or otherwise proprietary and confidential given the nature of the information and the circumstances of disclosure. Confidential Information does not include any information that: (1) is or becomes publicly available without breach of this Agreement; (2) can be shown by documentation to have been known to the receiving party at the time of disclosure by the disclosing party; (3) is received from a third party who did not acquire or disclose the same by a wrongful or tortious act; or (4) can be shown by documentation to have been independently developed by the receiving party without reference to the Confidential Information of the disclosing party.

Customer” shall mean an individual, company or other legal entity that has entered into an Order Form with Company for subscriptions to the Services.

Documentation” shall mean any document or guide provided or made available by Company related to use of the Services, as such items may be updated by us from time to time.

Feedback” shall mean any comments, suggestions, ideas, recommendations, enhancement requests, plans, or other feedback regarding Company, Company Materials, or any other of Company’s products or services.

Highest Periodic Count” shall mean the greater of: (1) the number of licenses or subscriptions set forth on the applicable Order Form; (2) the number of employees reflected in the Services; (3) the number of users reflected in the Services; or (4) the highest value of any of the foregoing values during any calendar month during the applicable Order Form Term.

Initial Term” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section A.

Intellectual Property Rights” shall mean all existing and future worldwide intellectual property rights including without limitation moral rights, copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade names, patents, patent applications (including without limitation all reissues, divisions, renewals, extensions, continuations and continuations-in-part), inventions (whether patentable or not), trade secrets, know-how, and any other rights to confidential or proprietary information whether arising under the laws of the United States, or any other country, state, or jurisdiction.

Marks” shall mean all trademarks, trade dress, trade names, service marks, logos, brand names, corporate names, other words or symbols identifying or associated with the business of Company, the look and feel of the Services, including all page headers, custom graphics, button icons and scripts, and any similar items contained in Company Materials, trade styles, design rights and other similar designations of source of origin, together with the goodwill connected with the use of and symbolized by, and all registrations, applications and renewals for, any of the foregoing.

Minimum Subscription Fees” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section D.

Order Form” shall mean an ordering document for access to and use of the Services (including any online ordering mechanism) entered into between Customer and Company describing the Services to be provided, which shall be deemed to incorporate our Terms of Service by reference.

Order Form Effective Date” shall have the meaning given in the Order Form.

Order Form Term” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section A.

Partner” shall mean an entity purchasing subscriptions to the Services and authorized by us to provide access to and use of the Services or a portion thereof to Client.

Periodic Count” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section D.

Premium Products” shall have the meanings given them in Annex 1.

Pre-Paid Annual Billing Frequency” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section F.

Pre-Paid Monthly Billing Frequency” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section F.

Pre-Paid Quarterly Billing Frequency” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section F.

Products” shall mean a certain feature, functionality, or part of the Services as provided in an Order Form and more fully described at Annex 1.

Renewal Term” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section A.

Sales Tax” shall have the meaning given in Article V Section I.

Service Level Agreement” means our standard service level agreement that we offer with respect to the Services and more fully described at Annex 2.

Services” shall mean our products and services including our websites and any pages registered on the trustmineral.com website and our proprietary, cloud-based, software-as-a-service offering that we make available under this Agreement including any associated mobile applications and offline components.

Services Materials” shall mean all content, information and other materials on the Services, including the Marks and all designs, text, graphics, pictures, information, data, software, sound files, other files and the selection and arrangement thereof, and associated offline components.

Subscription Fees” shall mean the applicable fees for the Services as set forth on an Order Form.

Subscription Term” shall mean the duration of a subscription to the Services as set forth on an Order Form.

Territory” shall mean the United States of America.

Third-Party Content” and “Third-Party Services” shall have the meanings given them in Article III.

Usage Limits” shall mean the restrictions related to the Services as set forth on an Order Form.

User” means any individual or entity that uses the Services or a portion thereof on behalf of a Client or Partner or through the account or passwords of either, whether authorized or not, including without limitation the employees and agents of either.

User Content” shall mean all information processed or stored through the Services and all data in electronic form input or collected through the Services by or from You or on Your behalf, excluding Account Information.

You” or “Your” shall mean the individual accessing or using the Services in his/her/their individual capacity or as a User, Partner, or Client, as the context requires.

ANNEX 1 – PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS

Last Updated: September 9, 2023

This Annex 1 sets forth a general description of the current Products. For the avoidance of doubt, your access to and use of the Services or any portion thereof is limited to such Products as are set forth on the applicable Order Form.

Product PackagesMineral Core | Mineral Basic | Mineral Essential | Mineral Elite
Mineral CoreMineral Core provides HR compliance monitoring, delivers compliance insights, and includes the HR Assessment.
Mineral BasicMineral Basic includes Mineral Platform™, Mineral Intelligence™, HR Compliance Library, Smart Employee Handbook, Notifications, Learn, and Benefits Document Creator.
Mineral EssentialMineral Essential includes Mineral Platform™, Mineral Intelligence™, Mineral Experts™, HR Compliance Library, Smart Employee Handbook, Notifications, Core Courses, Benefits Document Creator, and Learn.
Mineral EliteMineral Elite includes Mineral Platform™, Mineral Intelligence™, Mineral Experts™, HR Compliance Library, Notifications, Learn, Core Courses, Benefits Document Creator, Smart Employee Handbook Plus, Workplace Harassment Prevention, Workplace Safety, Cybersecurity, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), Communication, Health and Wellness, Leadership and Management, and Microsoft Computer Skills.
Premium Products Smart Employee Handbook Plus | Workplace Harassment Prevention | Workplace Safety | Anonymous Reporting
ProductsProduct Description
Mineral Experts™ Get personalized advice from a HR-certified expert who can answer your HR and compliance questions in simple terms you can actually understand.
Mineral Platform™ Combining the power of data, technology and human expertise, Mineral Platform takes the guesswork out of HR and compliance with anytime access to tools, resources, and information you can actually understand.
Mineral Intelligence™ Mineral Intelligence provides proactive recommendations with real-time alerts, timely guidance and tangible action items.
Smart Employee Handbook Your guide for creating and maintaining federal and single state employee handbooks.
Learn With our learning management system, you can manage all of your employee’s training needs in a single location, so you can easily assign, track and schedule employee training to keep your employees aligned, educated and engaged. Get started by adding your own in-house training and add optional premium course upgrades to enrich and expand your curriculum.
Core Courses Use Learn to easily assign, track and schedule employee training to keep your employees aligned, educated and engaged. Get started by adding your own in-house training and add optional premium course upgrades to enrich and expand your curriculum.
HR Compliance Library With access to our HR Compliance Library, you’ll have one convenient, searchable location to answer your HR and compliance questions with how-to guides, checklists, sample documents, forms, and more.
Notifications In-platform alerts and email notifications when laws and regulations impacting your business change.
Benefits Document Creator With Benefits Document Creator, you can quickly create and maintain benefit plan documentation to share with your employees and stay compliant with federal laws such as ERISA. When regulations change, policies will be automatically updated to keep your Wrap, POP and SPD documents up-to-date and accurate.
Premium Products Product Description
Workplace Harassment Prevention Get and stay compliant with state-mandated workplace harassment prevention training requirements with our interactive e-learning courses, including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion topics. Easily assign courses and track employee completions to ensure compliance.
Workplace Safety Create and maintain a safe and healthy workplace and culture with e-learning courses designed to reduce potential hazards, accidents, and liability, including topics such as personal protective equipment, ladder safety, hazardous materials, transportation safety and more.
CybersecurityProtect assets and reduce the risk of cyber-attacks with e-learning courses that address procedures for handling sensitive information, including topics such as password security, phishing, ransomware, social engineering, safe browsing practices and more.
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB)Create a workplace environment that is inclusive, respectful, and supportive of all employees through e-learning courses that cover workplace inclusion strategies, measuring DEI impact, and addresses topical subjects like bias, diversity, allyship, and microaggressions.
CommunicationCultivate a productive, collaborative, and harmonious workplace with e-learning courses that teach employees how to develop skills essential for effective communication such as active listening, feedback, coaching, negotiation, conflict resolution, written communication, and cultural awareness.
Health and WellnessIncrease employee morale, productivity, attendance, and retention through e-learning courses that prioritizes physical and mental well-being, work-life balance, stress management, emotional resilience, social connection, and addresses challenges related to hybrid and remote work environments, economic uncertainty, and preparing for the future of work.
Leadership and ManagementGain competitive advantages by developing top talent through e-learning courses designed to strengthen leadership roles with the skills in communication, time management, problem solving, decision making, delegation, team building, performance management, adapting to change, and innovation.
Microsoft Computer SkillsStreamline workflows, make better-informed decisions, and improve data management by becoming proficient in using Microsoft Office applications including Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, Office 365, Teams, SharePoint, Planner, and addresses topics such as using technology in virtual teams, cybersecurity and data analysis.
Guided HR Compliance Guided HR Compliance includes Dedicated HR Expert, Smart Employee Handbook Plus, and Workplace Harassment Prevention
Smart Employee Handbook Plus All of the power of the Smart Employee Handbook, plus the enhanced ability to create a multi-state compliant handbook, collect employee e-signature acknowledgements, and provide a Spanish language version.
Anonymous Reporting Empower your employees to anonymously report workplace concerns using Anonymous Reporting.
Dedicated HR Expert Get and stay ahead of HR and compliance with Dedicated HR Expert. With a deep understanding of your business, a dedicated Mineral Expert™ assesses your HR and compliance practices, creates an action plan and provides continuous expertise, tools and resources to help you close gaps and achieve goals.
Employee Health and Safety Partner PackageWith Employee Health & Safety, you can ensure a safe workplace and comply with safety regulations with integrated safety tools, resources and personalized advice from Mineral experts for 20 core safety topics.
Employee Health and Safety Basic Client PackageWith the Employee Health & Safety Basic Client Package, you can ensure a safe workplace and comply with safety regulations with integrated safety tools, resources and personalized advice from Mineral experts for 30 common safety topics.
Employee Health and Safety Premium Client PackageWith Employee Health & Safety, you can ensure a safe workplace and comply with safety regulations with integrated safety tools, resources and personalized advice from Mineral experts for 70 specialized safety topics.
Compensation Benchmark Job ReportsGain the insights you need to balance internal pay equity and external competitiveness with ease. Generate job reports based on location, industry, and company size to make informed and confident pay decisions.

ANNEX 2 – SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT

Last Updated: January 30, 2023

A.      General

We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to revise this Service Level Agreement (the “SLA”) or add, modify, or discontinue any content, feature, or functionality of the Services from time to time without notice and without obligation or liability, provided that no such revision materially reduces functionality set forth on an Order Form that You are using. We will provide You at least ninety (90) days’ prior notice if we discontinue material functionality that You are using, unless such notice would pose a security or intellectual property issue to us or the Services, is economically or technically burdensome, or would cause us to violate contractual or legal obligations. We shall provide the remedies listed in the SLA for any failure of the Services listed in the SLA. Such remedies are Your sole remedy for any failure of the Service, and You recognize and agree that if the SLA does not list a remedy for a given failure, you have no remedy, provided that this sentence does not restrict Your right to terminate this Agreement for cause where applicable.

The Services do not include or constitute legal, business, international, regulatory, insurance, tax or financial advice. The Services are designed to provide general information to human resources professionals regarding human resources situations commonly encountered. The Services include verbal and written information and guidance on a wide variety of human resources related topics, however The Services exclude the following:

  • Legal Representation
  • Legal Advice
  • Tax Advice
  • International Compliance
  • Health insurer and insurance policy matters, including but not limited to insurer claims resolution, claims audits, open enrollment materials, benefit summaries, pricing negotiation and specific plan information pertaining to an insurance policy.
  • Paperwork (completing and processing forms) and Administration (Hiring, Recruiting, Interviews, Terminations, Disciplinary Actions).
  • Drafting or writing of custom documents (handbooks, offer letters, separation agreements, compensation plans). Note: We will provide templates and samples (if available), and we will answer questions and advise a person about what should be included in these documents.
  • Consulting projects, including but not limited to: Compensation or benefits plan analyses/development, customized salary surveys, organizational or employee development, affirmative action planning, safety investigations, onsite investigations or onsite human resources administration. Note: We can provide information and guidance about these topics; however, we do not perform the work.
  • Referrals for other service providers or products including lawyers, background checks, payroll, etc.
  • Interpretation of complex ERISA, PPACA or other legal or regulatory rules. Note: We will make every attempt to provide information, including links to the statute or law, links to governmental regulatory agencies, and any other information we may have available about the topic but we will not interpret legal rules or give advice on the law.

B.      Mineral Platform™ | System Availability

Company will maintain 99.7% System Availability across the platform. Company will provide at least 10 business days’ advance notice of scheduled maintenance that will result in downtime. It is Your responsibility to review all notices and to periodically check our Website pages. We reserve the right to post notices on our Website, and You agree that such notices shall be sufficient for unexpected and/or immaterial downtimes.

System Availability” means the percentage of total time during which the platform is available excluding: (1) scheduled maintenance; (2) service interruptions by Company’s service providers, such as Amazon Web Services; (3) errors or service interruptions caused by a Partner’s or a Client’s third-party service provider; and (4) force majeure events as defined in the Agreement. 

C.      Mineral Experts™ | Helpline and My Cases

Company will provide a toll-free phone number for authorized registered users to access Mineral Experts. Company will provide helpline services between 5:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. PST/PDT, Monday through Friday, except on designated holidays. Phone lines will be unavailable for one hour each week on Fridays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. PST/PDT to allow for internal trainings and quality control. Company will notify Users via posting within the platform at least 10 business days prior to unavailability on days other than weekends and designated holidays. Mineral Experts are available to respond to a commercially reasonable volume of requests. In the event a commercially reasonable volume is exceeded, Company reserves the right to terminate the applicable Order Form or the Agreement, in its sole discretion, upon 30 days’ prior written notice.

D.      Mineral Platform™ | Technical Support

Company will provide its standard support, which includes a toll-free phone number for authorized registered Users to access Mineral Support Representatives. Company will provide helpline services between 6:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. PST/PDT, Monday through Friday, except on designated holidays. Phone lines will be unavailable for one hour each week on Fridays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. PST/PDT to allow for internal trainings and quality control. 

E.       Mineral Experts™ | Case Resolution Time

Company will maintain or exceed an average case resolution time for cases submitted by Users by close of business on the following business day. Case resolution time reflects the business hours between when a case is created and when it is closed. This does not include cases classified as a different case type such as Handbook, Policy, or Document.

F.       Mineral Platform™ | Right to Limit

Your use of the API may be subject to certain limitations on access, calls, or use as set forth within this Agreement or otherwise provided by Company. If Company reasonably believes that you have attempted to exceed or circumvent these limits, your ability to use the API may be permanently or temporarily blocked. Company may monitor your use of the API to improve the service or to insure compliance with this Agreement.

The post Last update June 2 2023 appeared first on Mineral.

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New Year, New Benefits: 7 Tips for Navigating New Hires and Midyear Changes https://trustmineral.com/benefits/new-year-new-benefits-7-tips-for-navigating-new-hires-and-midyear-changes/ Wed, 17 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=41895 According to the US Chamber of Commerce, 40% of small business owners plan to add staff in 2024. We also know that some employees will experience life events during the […]

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According to the US Chamber of Commerce, 40% of small business owners plan to add staff in 2024. We also know that some employees will experience life events during the plan year. New employees and employee life events mean additional employer responsibilities, and it’s important for small and midsized businesses to be prepared as these changes can have big effects on benefits programs. Mineral offers these seven tips to help surf the wave of newly eligible employees while staying on the crest of HR compliance.

1. Remember required notices for newly eligible employees.

During the initial enrollment process, newly eligible employees need to receive additional notices, such as the COBRA General Notice and the Department of Labor (DOL) Exchange Notice. The COBRA General Notice outlines continuation coverage rights under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, while the DOL Exchange Notice informs employees about health coverage options through the Health Insurance Marketplace.

2. Maintain consistency in waiting periods.

Maintaining consistency in waiting periods for benefits eligibility is crucial to comply with applicable laws and ensure fairness and equality among employees. Employers should review and align waiting periods with other similarly situated employees to foster a positive and nondiscriminatory work environment.

3. Evaluate affordability.

Affordability is a key consideration in medical plans for new employees. Employers must assess whether available medical plans align with the financial capabilities of their workforce and comply with Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements. For 2024, the IRS has set the affordability threshold at 8.39% of an employee’s income as the maximum contribution toward employee-only health coverage , emphasizing the importance of offering coverage that is financially feasible for employees and compliant with the employer mandate.

4. Tailor benefits packages.

Understanding the needs and preferences of new hires is paramount in tailoring benefits packages that attract and retain top talent. Conducting market research and surveys helps identify desired benefits, ensuring that the package aligns with the expectations of the workforce. This proactive approach not only enhances employee satisfaction but also establishes a competitive advantage in the talent market.

5. Communicate HIPAA special enrollment rights.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) special enrollment rights provisions allow employees to modify their benefits in response to significant life events, such

as marriage or the birth of a child. Employers play a vital role in communicating these rights and supporting employees through the various stages of life.

6. Consider flexibility in adopting Section 125 election changes.

Section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code governing cafeteria plans permits employers to allow certain midyear election changes for qualifying events. While not mandatory, employers can provide flexibility by adopting IRS-permitted changes, allowing employees to adjust pre-tax benefit elections outside of the open enrollment period.

7. Uphold Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protections.

Understanding benefits and job protection during FMLA leave is crucial for both employers and employees. The FMLA provides eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for specific family and medical reasons. During FMLA leave, employees maintain the same level of benefits at the same cost as if they were actively working.

By prioritizing clarity, communication, and compliance, organizations can create a comprehensive benefits program that meets the diverse needs of both the business and its employees—whether they join a company in the new year or experience a life event. This strategic approach not only attracts and retains top talent but also fosters a positive work environment where employees feel supported throughout their employment journey.

The post New Year, New Benefits: 7 Tips for Navigating New Hires and Midyear Changes appeared first on Mineral.

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3 Emerging Benefits Trends to Watch for in 2024 https://trustmineral.com/newsroom/3-emerging-benefits-trends-to-watch-for-in-2024/ Tue, 26 Dec 2023 22:43:13 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?post_type=newsroom&p=42030 Benefits expert Angela Surra says that leaders should pay attention to telemedicine innovations, HSA legislation, and part-time employee benefits in the New Year. As employers gear up for 2024, one […]

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Benefits expert Angela Surra says that leaders should pay attention to telemedicine innovations, HSA legislation, and part-time employee benefits in the New Year.

As employers gear up for 2024, one of the top items on their agenda should be building a comprehensive benefits package that satisfies their workforce’s pain points. Many employers have already expressed a desire to improve their retention and engagement. For instance, 87% of small and medium-sized business (SMB) leaders said it was the most critical initiative to their success in Mineral’s 2023 State of HR Report

Before these leaders can confidently build out their benefits package, however, businesses must understand the latest trends shaping employee benefits and the top benefits issues heading into the new year. Here are three of the most important emerging benefits trends to watch for in 2024.

Telemedicine

Access to telemedicine is perhaps the number one benefits issue that employers should closely monitor this coming year. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services allowed certain flexibilities that provided greater access to telemedicine. Employees enjoyed tremendous benefits from these flexibilities, as many were able to seek outcare without geographic restrictions. As the pandemic flexibilities near their end in 2024, however, the fate of telehealth rests on pending legislation.

I personally believe that the impact of not passing pending telehealth legislation would be detrimental to employees, especially those who live far from urban centers. For employers, restricted access to telehealth could lead to compromised employee health and consequently, lost work days. Without telemedicine options at their disposal, employees may also need to travel farther to see their doctor. Suddenly, a quick Zoom call for a doctor’s visit becomes a full day away from work as employees travel to see their physicians.

To mitigate this risk, I suggest that employers focus on offering comprehensive telehealth plans that encompass a wide range of specialists and educational resources. Employers who offer telehealth should also provide regular reminders to their employees about the convenient options in their telehealth plan to encourage them to utilize this option.

HSA Legislation

A Health Savings Account (HSA) enables employees to lower their healthcare costs by saving pre-tax dollars for qualified medical expenses. HSAs are already very popular with older generations, who are often the largest contributors to these accounts, and the recent expansion of HSA contribution limits allows individuals to save more for their retirement healthcare expenses. The expansion also increases the number of qualified individuals who can benefit from HSA plans.

Employers should recognize the value of these expansions and include an HSA plan as an option in their medical plan offerings. Setting aside HSA dollars saves tax dollars for employers and participating employees, and an HSA account earns interest. Although the IRS sets the maximum limit, this limit is higher than an HFSA limit. An HSA is also owned by the individual and fully portable, meaning they take it with them when they leave—there is no use it or lose it rule like with HFSAs. 

Finally, HSAs can be used for qualified medical expenses like deductibles and copays. They can also be used for COBRA premiums, Medicare premiums for individuals age 65 or older, health coverage premiums if unemployed and for receiving federal or state unemployment insurance. Additionally, employers can contribute funds to an HSA as an incentive for their employees. For these reasons, I would argue that reviewing HSA-compatible plans should be a top priority for employers at their next benefits renewal.

Benefits for Part-Time Employees

The percentage of part-time employees continues to rise, especially for small businesses who are often concerned about staff turnover. Offering benefits to this segment of the workforce can be a game-changer for businesses hoping to aid their recruitment and retention. Industries such as hospitality, manufacturing, and retail heavily rely on part-time workers who will be more inclined to work for a company that provides them with benefits.

There are three main options for businesses looking to provide their part-time employees with benefits. First, they can implement Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA). ICHRAs help employees pay for individual health insurance premiums and/or reimburses eligible medical expenses. They are also extremely flexible, allowing employers to customize the plan eligibility requirements, such as making part-time employees a designated class.

Second, employers can lower the eligibility threshold to allow more employees to qualify for benefits. While the Affordable Care Act (ACA) set the minimum number of weekly hours at 30 to receive full-time status, employers can lower that threshold as they see fit.

Finally, Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC) plans provide a cost-effective solution to providing basic healthcare benefits to part-time workers. While not as comprehensive as standard plans, they can provide part-time employees who fall short of the eligibility threshold with coverage for a wide range of medical needs.

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Mineral Wrapped: 4 Ways We Made HR and Compliance Merry and Bright in 2023 https://trustmineral.com/mineral-updates/mineral-wrapped-4-ways-we-made-hr-and-compliance-merry-and-bright-in-2023/ Thu, 21 Dec 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=41824 “On the second day of Mineral Wrapped, a blog gave to me …” No, we aren’t going to keep this going for another 11 days. But we couldn’t settle down […]

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“On the second day of Mineral Wrapped, a blog gave to me …” No, we aren’t going to keep this going for another 11 days. But we couldn’t settle down for a long winter’s nap without sharing a few more Mineral 2023 highlights!

Yesterday’s post gave a holiday hooray to our more than 1 million small business clients, and their incredible commitment to HR and compliance via engagement with the Mineral Platform. Today, we’ll highlight the people behind the Platform—our HR Experts who supported making HR and compliance simple in four fa-la-la-fantastic ways in 2023.

Case closed—more than 150,000 times 

This year, Mineral’s HR Experts team helped resolve 156,000 cases—queries from our small and midsized business clients who reached out for answers to their pressing HR questions and needs.

With an average 18+ years of experience, clients knew they could count on our HR Experts for support, a listening ear, and guidance through workplace challenges. With 156,000 cases handled (that’s 427 cases each day), our dependable and experienced team helped resolve workplace conflicts, navigate employment relations, sort out worker classification, deal with harassment, and ensure employee safety.

Asked and answered

After resolving hundreds of thousands of cases and questions in 2023, three case categories were the most tricky HR subjects Mineral Experts tackled for our small business clients:

1. Benefits.   
2. Leaves of absence and time off.   
3. Wages.   

Family comes first

Among compliance questions, our Experts say three topics were the hottest for clients in 2023:

1. Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). 
2. Employee termination. 
3. COBRA compliance. 

Family matters were clearly top of mind for Mineral clients this year, as 2023’s top blog post this year addressed how to fairly treat pregnant employees and avoid non-compliance with laws designed to prevent pregnancy discrimination.

100+ laws a’launching

More than 120 new HR and compliance policies went into effect in 2023, and Mineral’s HR Experts were with our clients every step of the way to keep them informed and in compliance. Some of the top regulations updated in 2023 that we supported clients through included:

1. Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA)  
2. Pregnant Workers Fairness Act  
3. California Pay Transparency  

Be sure to check back with us in the coming year for other updates on what we expect to change in 2024, what to know and how to be prepared.

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How To Boost Recruiting And Retention Efforts With Employee Benefits https://trustmineral.com/newsroom/how-to-boost-recruiting-and-retention-efforts-with-employee-benefits/ Fri, 01 Dec 2023 22:14:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?post_type=newsroom&p=42028 What employee benefits should employers consider for boosting their recruiting and retention efforts? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand […]

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What employee benefits should employers consider for boosting their recruiting and retention efforts? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.

Answer by Angela Surra, Principal Benefits Expert at Mineral HR & Compliance, on Quora:

Since the Great Resignation, business leaders have placed increased importance on recruiting, retention, and engagement. Mineral’s 2023 State of HR Report found that 87% of SMB leaders view retaining and engaging talent as the most critical initiative for company success. While every employer would like to simply pay its talent more to keep them happy and on board, that is not a realistic option for every business. Whether or not a business can set itself apart from its competitors with salary, thoughtful leaders can create tremendous value for their employees by providing impactful benefits that directly address their workforce’s needs. Those who offer benefits that stand out from the crowd will be even better positioned to attract and retain their talent.

Childcare & Eldercare Assistance

Shockingly few businesses offer childcare and eldercare benefits to their employees, despite the clear need for both and the cross-generational appeal of these offerings. 82% of respondents to Mineral’s State of HR Report stated they do not plan to implement child or senior care benefits. Employers offering these benefits could gain a distinct advantage over their competitors by solving a major pain point for their employees.

Dual-income households have been more common than single-income households with children 18 years and younger for half a century, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but the lack of childcare benefits often makes it difficult for these households to manage childcare. Parents need childcare if they work full time, both in person and remotely. The same is true for older generations who need to care for aging loved ones and worry about taking time off of work to do so. They can’t consistently rely on FMLA leave to attend doctor’s appointments or pay wellness visits.

Failing to provide these benefits could be the difference between hiring top talent and losing them to a competitor. It could also be the difference between an individual’s decision to take a job or not work at all. Engage with an HR professional to understand the rules and implementation process for crafting a childcare and eldercare assistance program for your workplace. Adding these programs reinforces your commitment to employees and their families.

Health & Wellness

Both physical and mental wellness benefits are sorely needed, and employees rightly consider them necessities in a comprehensive benefits package. The pandemic shed light on mental health issues, and physical conditions such as obesity, heart disease, and respiratory diseases that demand excellent health care. Fortunately, employers are increasingly meeting employee demands for these benefits, and they’re sure to reap the benefits of a grateful workforce. In Mineral’s State of HR Report, business leaders stated that “improving health and wellness benefits” was the #3 initiative their businesses were planning over the next 12 months to improve recruiting and retention.

For businesses deciding which health and wellness benefits to include, a few of the most impactful benefits to consider are telehealth plans, access to mental health apps, and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) agonist medication access.

Employers may want to consider providing telehealth plans, which are vital because they remove geographic barriers to great care. Especially for employees who live in remote locations, a visit to a quality physician could take an entire workday (or more). In contrast, telehealth access can help patients see their doctor in an hour or two.

Mental health apps are also a fantastic value add to a benefits plan. While not as effective as seeing a professional therapist, psychiatrist, or psychologist, mental health apps can offer employers a low-cost benefit to improve their employees’ mental wellness.

Finally, GLP-1 medications (i.e., Ozempic and Wegovy) have received much media attention for their weight loss benefits. While the cost of providing access to these drugs may be high, employers should consider the value they can give employees and the relative cost of obesity as a disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states one in five children and one in three adults struggle with obesity, which costs the U.S. healthcare system nearly $173 billion per year. Talk with your broker to determine if a self-funded plan could have more leeway to include these drugs.

Benefits for Part-Time Employees

As the percentage of part-time employees increases, offering benefits to part-time workers could help SMBs reduce the talent gap. This is especially true for industries like hospitality, manufacturing, and retail that rely heavily on part-time and variable-hour workers. The struggle of these businesses to attract and retain part-time talent has created a domino effect, as businesses lose much-needed help and consumers lose reliable options for where to spend their dollars. Benefits for part-time employees can help solve these problems by providing more incentives for part-time workers. There are three main options I would recommend for part-time employee benefits: individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements (ICHRAs), lowering the eligibility threshold, and minimum essential coverage (MEC) plans.

ICHRAs represent a great option to help employees pay for individual health insurance premiums and/or reimburse eligible medical expenses. Because of their flexibility, employers can customize the plan eligibility requirements for their organization, including making part-time employees a designated class to offer them the benefit. After consulting with their insurance carrier, employers might also consider lowering their eligibility threshold (the hours worked criteria for employee benefits eligibility).

Though the Affordable Care Act (ACA) set the minimum number of weekly hours at 30 per week to receive full-time status, employers have the option to select a number more suitable for their needs. Businesses that need part-time employees may receive more interest if their benefits are available at 20 hours per week.

Finally, MEC plans can provide coverage for primary care physicians and specialists, urgent care clinics, some diagnostic services, and generic drugs. Though not as comprehensive as traditional plans, MEC plans are still a strong option for part-time employees who fall short of their employer’s eligibility threshold for traditional benefits.

FSA & HSA

Considering inflation and the rising cost of living, flexible spending accounts (FSAs) or health savings accounts (HSAs) are extremely valuable employee benefits. An FSA is attractive to younger workers because it provides immediate access to the full amount in the account, and the funds are withheld pre-tax over each payroll to pay for copays, deductibles, prescriptions, and more. Especially now that student loan repayments have restarted, an FSA is a great vehicle for saving money and will be attractive to millennial and Gen Z part-time workers. Older generations, conversely, are frequently the largest contributors to HSAs. An HSA allows employees to lower their healthcare costs by saving pre-tax money for qualified medical expenses, such as copays and deductibles. Employers should consider adding an FSA option to their benefits package to attract younger talent, and comparing HSA-compatible plans at their next benefits renewal to ensure the needs of their seasoned talent are met.

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A Hispanic Mineralist Reflects on the Culture and Legacy Woven into Hispanic Heritage Month https://trustmineral.com/culture/a-hispanic-mineralist-reflects-on-the-culture-and-legacy-woven-into-hispanic-heritage-month/ Wed, 18 Oct 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?p=41248 By Kelley Butler & Jessica Castellana   You ever connected with a stranger and left thinking, “I wish we were friends”? That’s how I felt after just one chat with Jessica […]

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By Kelley Butler & Jessica Castellana  

You ever connected with a stranger and left thinking, “I wish we were friends”? That’s how I felt after just one chat with Jessica Castellana. She is open, engaging, funny, kind, and empathetic. Jessica, in a word, sparkles.  

Although we aren’t friends (yet?), we are fellow Mineralists as well as active culture leaders and allies within Mineral’s ERG network. In addition to her other wonderful traits, Jessica is fearlessly vulnerable; she is launching Mineral’s first racialized ERG—one for Hispanic/Latine Mineralists and allies. I was delighted to talk with her as she reflected on Hispanic Heritage Month, which concluded Oct. 15, but for Jessica (and millions of Hispanic and Latine Americans) is lived and celebrated year-round.  

It’s in the spirit of that year-round celebration and honor that we’re posting the transcript of my chat with Jessica after Hispanic Heritage Month. I hope the joy and pride Jessica gains from her culture inspires you to celebrate it year-round as well.  

What is the earliest memory you have of being celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month? 

The first time that I was really exposed to Hispanic heritage was in school. I think kindergarten was the first time that I was really exposed to the celebration and the colorful things that come with Hispanic Heritage Month, aside from just leaving it on my day to day.  

That’s so wonderful. I know that for me, Black History Month in school was very limited to like three people, right? MLK, Rosa Parks, and Thurgood Marshall. And then racism was over and Barack Obama was president, haha.  

Exactly, very limited in scope. And so it’s so great to grow up in an area so rich in Hispanic culture that it just sort of became like this natural and organic thing that, you know, Hispanic Heritage Month was just like, “Oh, that’s just another opportunity to really just live it up.”  

That’s awesome. So, how can non-Hispanic non-Latine people best observe Hispanic Heritage Month? How can we appreciate without appropriating?  

I think learning as one feels comfortable about Hispanic heritage and where it comes from, to build your allyship in an authentic way. So, I think learning about each other through cooking and maybe exchanging recipes is a great way of learning about Hispanic heritage and history—beyond what you know and love about Mexico! We have so many great Latin countries, and I think one of the things that always stuck out to me when I left South Florida was, for the most part, Hispanics were Mexican. So I think educating yourself on the different cultures and countries and knowing that Hispanic doesn’t mean Mexican. Mexico is great, but it shouldn’t define an entire culture. Really learning about the culture and history really can saturate you with good information on what Hispanic heritage is.  

I love that. And that there’s so many different entry points because Hispanic culture is all around us every day. I mean, everybody who rocked out to Bad Bunny at the Grammys, you know, to how everyone loves Taco Tuesday!  

This is true. I can’t you know, the food is this is just great Hispanic food. You just can’t debate it. It’s amazing.  

No doubt! I also wanted to ask, who is someone or someones in your life that helped you really grow up with a sense of pride in your culture?  

Definitely my parents. My parents are immigrants to this country, so I’m first generation [Hispanic American]. My parents are Cuban. They grew up and were raised in Cuba; as you know, or most people know, Cuba is a dictatorship. And getting out of Cuba is very, very difficult.  

So my parents had to go through a lot of sacrifices just to come to this country. One of the biggest ones was my dad had to leave the country without my mom and my older sister and flee to Panama trying to seek refuge. My dad was able to leave with a visa because he was in the Cuban military. So he left my mom and sister in Cuba, then was finally able to get them visas to Panama.  

The ultimate goal was to come to the US, but they got stuck in Panama through the Panamanian war, which was absolutely horrific from all my parents have shared with me. It was just really, really scary. And thankfully they had a small group of Cuban refugees that were in Panama with them, so they all kind of came together and were able to live off each other and resources and try to stay as long as they could and try to stay safe. Finally, and I don’t know this person’s name, but there was a Cuban in Miami who had a good amount of money and heard that there were Cubans stuck in Panama. And he sent a plane to get them all and bring them to the US. My parents were able to come to the US, seek refuge, and become residents. And just a couple of years ago, they became citizens.  

They are definitely an inspiration, and I think [their story] teaches you to not take for granted this great country that we live in. We’re truly blessed.  

Wow. The courage, the determination, the faith it takes to think, “We don’t really know what’s on the other side of this, but we’re going to do our best and find out like.” What an incredible spirit to have in your life. So then with that, what is one thing that you wish people knew? I know that you mentioned that Hispanic means something besides Mexican. What else? If there’s one thing someone could take away knowing or believing about Hispanic culture, let it be ‘blank.’  

I think that we are willing to learn and grow from each other. I think sometimes Hispanic heritage, not that it could be intimidating to others, but it could be looked at like, “Oh, that’s weird or questionable.”  

But I think it’s more important to know that we can all grow from each other. Like I told my friends and family, “My Spanish is here for all of you.” And I think sharing in that community mindset, and taking away that at the end of the day, we’re all people. We’re all in this together.  

I know we’re living in hard times, but just lean on each other and embrace each other’s cultures because there are so many good things about every culture that we can share—food, traditions, and fun things that we can share from each other.  

So I think it’s important to, I think, know we’re willing to learn, and to be willing to learn yourself. We’re all different, but we can all work together for the greater good.  

I speak very little—like maybe fourth-grade—Spanish. I only mention it because like you said, engaging with Hispanic culture can feel intimidating, because I definitely don’t want to come across as like some ignorant American trying to speak Spanish. And so a lot of times I don’t, but maybe I’ll be brave in your honor and give it a try more often. 

Please do! I married an Italian, and my parents speak no English, so I’m the translator! But I tell my husband all the time that he should try and if he messes up it’s okay. Definitely give yourself grace; you’re trying, which is what’s important.  

I love that. And I think that that’s the perfect way to just kind of capture all of this. We all have something that we can learn from one another. And now, if no other time, is when we can and should be leaning on one another.  

 Yes, and open minds. I definitely think open minds to hearing each other is super important to learning.  

So wonderful. Thank you so much. This has been the highlight of my day. Please give my best to your parents; I’m so blown away by their story and inspired by the incredible legacy that they’ve built and are passing along to you.  

Thank you for your time. Thank you for hearing my story.  

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Submittable Enhances HR Operations and Ensures Compliance with Mineral https://trustmineral.com/resources/submittable-enhances-hr-operations-and-ensures-compliance-with-mineral/ Thu, 12 Oct 2023 18:54:22 +0000 https://live-mineral-marketing-website.pantheonsite.io/?post_type=resources&p=40963 The post Submittable Enhances HR Operations and Ensures Compliance with Mineral appeared first on Mineral.

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CLIENT CASE STUDY

Company

Submittable logo

Challenge

Submittable is a rapidly expanding, multi-state operation. It must empower its workforce while maintaining compliance and competitive employee management best practices — all with limited internal HR resources.

Key solutions

Submittable leverages the Mineral Platform™ in multiple ways to ensure its HR operations and employment practices are fair and compliant. By leveraging the Smart Employee Handbook, Mineral’s extensive content library, and live discussions with HR experts, Submittable can focus more of its resources on the good work it does.

Results

  • Mineral’s capabilities allowed a new HR hire to grow into a confident, capable HR professional.
  • Smart Employee Handbook ensures that the company can swiftly and compliantly expand employment into additional states.
  • The use of the Mineral Platform saves the company from hiring at least one additional full-time HR employee.
  • Mineral Experts™ provide one-on-one professional advice on sensitive, nuanced questions
  • Weekly communications from Mineral provide relevant insight on timely topics.

Submittable is in the business of making good things happen — its tagline is “Get to the Good Work.”

At its core, Submittable is a social impact platform — a place that helps nonprofits, government agencies, organizations, businesses, and individuals through the busywork of launching, managing and reporting on social impact programs (scholarships, employee volunteering, grants, corporate giving, etc.). In one shining example, the State of Minnesota leveraged the Submittable platform to distribute a one-time payment to frontline workers during the pandemic.

Founded in 2010, the company has grown to over 200 team members and has employees in 27 states. It shouldn’t be surprising that a company built around sharing good things would also want to share some good with its employees. Mineral® is one key way Submittable is paying it forward.

“It’s the reason I have my job.”

Mineral provides a comprehensive library of resources, including legal updates, industry insights, and HR best practices. This invaluable knowledge repository empowers HR professionals to proactively address compliance issues and adapt to shifts in the regulatory landscape. But for Jacki Odgren, HR Generalist for Submittable, it offers something additional — entry into a new career.

“I initially applied for two different jobs at Submittable, one being this position in HR. I wasn’t hired because I didn’t have HR experience with multi-state compliance, but they did offer me the other position. Within a few months, though, the HR position opened up again, and I was invited to apply for the HR role. The manager knew we had Mineral through our company’s HRIS, Rippling. She said she felt that I didn’t need to necessarily have the experience, just the resourcefulness and the right tool — which is Mineral. So, you could say that Mineral is the reason I have my job.”

Smart Employee Handbook builds confidence.

When Odgren joined the department one year ago, her first task was to update the employee handbook. “I was brand new to HR and was honestly a bit nervous at the start,” she recalls. But the Smart Employee Handbook builder made it easy for her to confidently dive into her new position. “The Mineral Platform is super user-friendly,” Odgren adds. “We had expanded our operations to additional states, and the handbook builder walked me through all the steps I needed to update our handbook for compliance.”

As the company continues expanding to additional states, Odgren frequently revisits Submittable’s Smart Employee Handbook to ensure it remains current. “When I add a new state, Mineral offers up all the local laws and policies,” she says. “I could simply accept them all and be done, but I always compare our corporate policies to see if ours are already compliant. Another thing I appreciate is that whenever a rule or law changes, the handbook references an alert number that links to text showing us the differences between the old and the new. I can simply click to accept the changes. It gives us confidence that our handbook is always accurate and compliant.”

“We had expanded our operations to additional states, and Smart Employee Handbook walked me through all the steps I needed to update our handbook for compliance.”

— Jacki Odgren

HR Generalist, Submittable

Mineral Experts add the personalized touch.

For more complex or nuanced issues, Odgren often turns to the Mineral Experts, certified HR experts who provide personalized guidance. “I reach out to the Mineral Experts a couple of times a month,” Odgren says. “Most recently, they helped me with a parental leave question and some changes we were considering to our corporate travel policy. It is super helpful to talk to a real person, explain our situation, and get professional advice specific to our circumstances.”

Tapping into a library of resources.

The complexities of HR compliance can be overwhelming, even for large, experienced HR teams. Mineral simplifies this process for Submittable by providing a comprehensive library of resources, including legal updates, industry insights, and best practices. “The HR Compliance Library is my first stop with any questions I have or to help answer our management team’s questions,” explains Odgren. “From issues like relocation assistance to separation laws, I turn to Mineral first because I know I’ll get the correct answers with minimal effort.”

For example, Odgren recently tapped Mineral to learn about anti-harassment training rules for the states it operates in. “The Mineral Platform has resources that broke compliance down by state,” she says. “Right there, I got my answers.”

As Odgren embraces her new role, she’s enjoying another offering from Mineral — weekly communications that Mineral sends to users who opt-in, covering common HR questions and providing platform links to answers and related resources. “I learn a lot from these email alerts and newsletters,” she says. “And I feel like it keeps me more in touch with the HR industry overall.”

Growing with confidence.

Submittable is growing quickly, and the growth places additional demands on Odgren. “I feel confident,” she says. “Having Mineral is like having additional team members in our HR department, simplifying and streamlining the tasks involved when a company is in growth mode. Without Mineral, for example, ensuring state compliance and maintaining our employee handbook could be a full-time job in itself. Without Mineral, I’m sure we would need to hire additional HR staff.”

Odgren says she would definitely recommend Mineral to other HR professionals and frequently sees her peers making the same recommendation. “I was recently in a LinkedIn meetup where someone asked about HR resources to help a multi-state employer, and someone recommended Mineral. And I completely agree – it’s a powerful tool, and I can’t imagine doing my job without it.”

“Having Mineral is like having additional team members in our HR department, simplifying and streamlining the tasks involved when a company is in growth mode. It’s a powerful tool, and I can’t imagine doing my job without it.”

— Jacki Odgren

HR Generalist, Submittable

For more information on the Mineral Platform or how to expand your HR and compliance offering with certified HR expert advice, contact our Mineral team.

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