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Retirement specialist vs benefit specialist

The differences between retirement specialists and benefit specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a retirement specialist and a benefit specialist. Additionally, a benefit specialist has an average salary of $48,756, which is higher than the $40,474 average annual salary of a retirement specialist.

The top three skills for a retirement specialist include life insurance, HR and recordkeeping. The most important skills for a benefit specialist are customer service, HR, and patients.

Retirement specialist vs benefit specialist overview

Retirement SpecialistBenefit Specialist
Yearly salary$40,474$48,756
Hourly rate$19.46$23.44
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs24,91631,663
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age4545
Years of experience66

What does a retirement specialist do?

A retirement specialist is responsible for designing and implementing retirement packages such as benefits, savings, profit sharing, and pensions to the employees of a certain company. They work together with the human resource department to ensure that all retirees can access their benefits and pensions. Their duties and responsibilities include explaining the different retirement packages to the potential beneficiaries and working with HR to resolve any issues.

What does a benefit specialist do?

A benefits specialist is responsible for analyzing and processing the compensation package of an organization, ensuring that the salary and benefits received by an employee adhere to the current legislation procedures. Benefits specialists develop benefits programs, adjusting pension plans and insurance options as needed, and updating the employees on recent updates and changes. A benefits specialist responds to employees' inquiries, addresses their concerns, and manages benefits issues. A benefits specialist must have a clear understanding of benefits policies and processes to educate employees about the benefits structure.

Retirement specialist vs benefit specialist salary

Retirement specialists and benefit specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Retirement SpecialistBenefit Specialist
Average salary$40,474$48,756
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $56,000Between $34,000 And $68,000
Highest paying CityNewark, NJSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNew JerseyConnecticut
Best paying companyAmgenQorvo
Best paying industryFinanceFinance

Differences between retirement specialist and benefit specialist education

There are a few differences between a retirement specialist and a benefit specialist in terms of educational background:

Retirement SpecialistBenefit Specialist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Retirement specialist vs benefit specialist demographics

Here are the differences between retirement specialists' and benefit specialists' demographics:

Retirement SpecialistBenefit Specialist
Average age4545
Gender ratioMale, 52.0% Female, 48.0%Male, 21.1% Female, 78.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 7.7% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 7.5% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between retirement specialist and benefit specialist duties and responsibilities

Retirement specialist example responsibilities.

  • Manage and resolve participant escalations and requests from DOL.
  • Lead major initiatives in 3concurrent roles successfully manage affluent personal and business portfolio to proactively cross-sell additional products and services.
  • Review social security, Medicare, annuities and tax relate questions.
  • Process recalculations and payroll for retirees resuming their retirement benefits.
  • Utilize ASC and SRT recordkeeping systems.
  • Educate participants, clients and third party facilitators on various ERISA regulations and procedures.
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Benefit specialist example responsibilities.

  • Manage various employee program such as life, medical, dental pension, and HSA accounts.
  • Examine HMO documents to verify eligibility to process or reject into or from a manage care plan when necessary.
  • Input daily time and PTO, manage benefits, report new hires, input sales, oversee accounts receivable.
  • Create reports using SQL database and manage reports, perform from internet-base tools for research projects need for client insight.
  • Implement new vendor for FSA administration and manage outstanding issues through continuous follow-up and vendor accountability.
  • Analyze, process and manage FMLA claims to determine eligibility and certification in compliance with state and federal regulations.
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Retirement specialist vs benefit specialist skills

Common retirement specialist skills
  • Life Insurance, 11%
  • HR, 10%
  • Recordkeeping, 8%
  • Payroll, 8%
  • Medicare, 7%
  • Financial Products, 6%
Common benefit specialist skills
  • Customer Service, 13%
  • HR, 8%
  • Patients, 5%
  • HRIS, 5%
  • Life Insurance, 5%
  • Cobra, 5%

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