The worldwide market for outsourced employee benefits administration (covering health and welfare and defined benefit and contribution pension plans) is set to double and reach reach $22 billion over the next five years, according to a study by NelsonHall, a business process outsourcing analyst firm.

Benefits administration outsourcing is increasingly driven by the need to improve flexibility of benefit plans to recruit and retain talent within highly competitive environments.

“The global benefits administration outsourcing market is set to grow across all geographies as companies seek to reduce costs while complying with emerging legislation and offering attractive benefits packages to their employees,” said John Willmott, CEO, NelsonHall.

Increasingly complex legislation, mergers and acquisitions, globalization of business and an aging workforce necessitate the need for organizations to take a more strategic view of benefits administration.