Employee assistance programs are becoming increasingly more common in today's worksites, and as the field grows, the responsibilities of employee assistance professionals are expanding as well. But many EAP experts have expressed deep concern over the numerous ethical and quality issues existing in the field today.
The devaluation of EA services, dilution of the image of EA and pricing are among the threats facing the EA profession, according to EA managers who responded to Employee Assistance Program Management Letter’s EAP Leadership Survey.
"We need to adhere to professional standards, ethics and licensure requirements and do what is in the best interest of the client/client organization rather than lower services to be able to adapt to pricing that is so low it cannot fulfill contract requirements without lowering standards and services," an EAP manager said.
Another issue that emerged was some indications that "EAP professionals are disparaging each other with employers," and "infighting and undercutting our own pricing" that could be damaging to the profession.
Despite the threats to the EA profession, significant too is that the number of organizations offering EAPs is continuing to grow. And EA professionals continued to strengthen their program offerings in 2006 even as their duties and responsibilities continued to evolve. New programs and services include focusing on wellness, work-life balance and getting back to basics such as fine tuning communication skills among employees and management.
What are the opportunities and challenges for EA Professionals in the year ahead?
Join Employee Assistance Program Management Letter and EAPManger.com for a review of the multiple forces shaping the EA industry in the 90-minute audio conference on CD-ROM, “What’s Ahead for EAP in 2007.” This executive-level program took place on March 1, 2007.
Agenda:
- The critical issues facing the EAP industry today
- A vision for the EAP industry's future
- Combating the “free EAP” crisis
- How to educate senior management and employees about the value services EA provides
- New opportunities in the EA marketplace
- The potential of performance measurement as a counterforce to market pressure on price
- How to be competitive while remaining profitable
- How to make the case for the alignment of better outcomes to better payment
- What is the appropriate cost for a decent quality EAP?
- Guiding principles for the future EAP industry
- Live question and answer session
Listen in to this program with your staff members to hear about the multiple forces shaping the EAP industry.
Who Will Benefit From This Audio Conference?
Employee assistance professionals, both internal and external
program facilitators, EA service providers, EA advisors, employee and
family assistance, work/life executives, human resources professionals,
wellness program directors
©2007 Health Resources Publishing