Global Benefits Lead

About the role

Appian is seeking a proactive and execution-oriented Global Benefits Lead to help scale and optimize our global benefits programs. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Benefits, this role will serve as a key operational partner supporting day-to-day U.S. benefits administration while contributing to benefits delivery across EMEA and APJ.

Responsibilities

• Support the administration of U.S. health and welfare programs, including medical, dental, vision, HSA/FSA, life and AD&D, disability, leave programs, and voluntary benefits.
• Aid in the daily administration of the U.S. 401(k) program, including employee inquiries, compliance coordination, and partnership with plan administrators and financial advisors.
• Partner with internal stakeholders and leave administration vendor to support employee leave programs, including FMLA, STD, LTD, parental leave, and state-specific leave programs.
• Ensure timely and accurate processing of enrollments, life events, audits, and payroll-related benefits activities.
• Support the administration and delivery of benefits programs across EMEA and APJ regions in partnership with local brokers, vendors, and HR teams.
• Aid in global renewals, implementation activities, employee communications, and benefits data management.
• Maintain accurate global benefits documentation, enrollment workflows, and reporting.
• Support compliance efforts related to ERISA, ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, nondiscrimination testing, and other U.S. regulatory requirements.
• Partnership with regional stakeholders to support compliance and governance activities across international programs.
• Assist with vendor management activities, including implementations, renewals, invoice auditing, issue resolution, and ongoing performance monitoring.
• Identify opportunities to improve benefits operations, streamline processes, and enhance the employee experience globally.
• Analyze claims data, utilization trends, and vendor reporting to identify insights and support recommendations.
• Support key annual initiatives including Open Enrollment, systems testing/configuration, employee education, and benefits communications.
• Leverage technology and AI-enabled tools to improve operational efficiency, reporting, and communication workflows.

Qualifications & Skills

• 5+ years of experience in benefits administration with demonstrated ownership of complex benefits programs.
• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Strong working knowledge of U.S. health and welfare benefits and retirement plans; international benefits exposure across North America, EMEA and/or APJ preferred.
• Experience partnering with external vendors, brokers, and cross-functional internal stakeholders.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with experience working in spreadsheets, reporting, and data audits.
• Experience with benefits administration systems; Workday experience strongly preferred.
• Comfort leveraging AI and automation tools to improve workflows and productivity.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities independently in a fast-paced, evolving environment.