How to Run Global Benefits Without Firefighting

Benefits technology was meant to reduce administrative burden. Across most global organisations, it has done the opposite.

Ticket volumes don’t settle. Payroll corrections recur. Global expansion increases operational strain faster than headcount can absorb it.

In this 30-minute executive discussion, Carl Chapman (Ben), John Whittaker (Workday) and Mark Kelly (Well Humans Thrive) examine why firefighting has become normalised — and what “working” should look like in practice.

What You'll Take Away

✅ Why firefighting is a systems problem, not a team capability problem — and why that distinction matters

✅ The specific points at which HRIS, benefits platforms and payroll integrations typically break down at global scale

✅ How operational noise erodes strategic capacity — and what it's costing your wellbeing agenda

✅ The operational signals that tell you whether your benefits infrastructure is actually working

✅ A practical standard for evaluating your own setup — and the questions worth asking your vendors