Denise O'Bara Email & Phone Number

*Accountable for the administration of the Federal Reserve System's qualified and non-qualified defined contribution plans*Support administration of the Federal Reserve System's qualified and non-qualified defined benefit plans*Research and respond to participant inquiries and requests for benefits plan information*Maintain effective relationships with.

*Seasoned individual contributor with subject matter expertise accountable for day-to-day operations of the Reserve System's qualified and non-qualified defined benefit and defined contributions plans.*Primary point of contact with outsourced service providers ad Federal Reserve Bank, Board, CFPB payroll and HR representatives.*Research issues and respond.

Newark, New Jersey, United States

*Directs all aspects of the day-to-day administration of the company's DB and DC Plans, including oversight of outsourced vendors to resolve escalated issues, implement plan changes and improvements, and monitor service levels.*Identify, analyze and implement process improvements.*Perform weekly reconciliation of HRIS and vendor data to ensure data.

Warren, New Jersey, United States

• Timely and accurate daily administration of health & welfare and cafeteria plans; support transition from ADP to Workday
• Monitor Benefits email; research and respond to employee inquiries regarding enrollment and plan terms
• Audit and process invoices, make payroll adjustments, workers compensation forms and complete mid-year enrollments
• Track employee deductions and administrative costs in Benefit Analysis spreadsheet

Parsippany, NJ

• Daily administration of three 401(k) plans and two non-qualified deferred compensation plans, including funding, auditing, resolution of issues, support open enrollment and response to participant inquiries
• Gathered weekly funding data, reviewed for reasonableness and accuracy, resolved errors, obtained approvals, and sent funding information to accounts payable within set timelines
• Enhanced and expanded audit of contributions, matches and loan payments, resulting in more efficient and timely resolution of errors and greater participant satisfaction
• Improved employee satisfaction by providing complete and accurate responses to employee inquiries via email, phone and in-person conversations
• Developed relationships with three record keepers (Merrill Lynch/Bank of America, BPAS, Voya), learned their systems, and utilized their data for inquiry resolution and auditing purposes
• Worked with internal IT team to improve employee data record accuracy and reporting, resulting in correct enrollment, fewer employee inquiries and more complete and useful reporting

Bridgewater, NJ

• Administered health and welfare plans for client with over 80,000 active participants; client plans included hourly and salaried plans for union and non-union employees; process owner for retiree and severance coverage
• Quality checked client data feeds and resulting updates on mainframe; early detection of erroneous data resulted in time savings, improved client and employee satisfaction
• Created standard operating procedures for pension payroll and severance processes; established process and reference documents for error reduction, cross-training, succession planning
• Improved existing audit reports to detect potential issues; enhanced reports ended severance and deceased retiree insurance coverage in accordance with plan provisions, reducing plan costs
• Detected defects in mainframe logic and worked with internal IT Development team to resolve; resolved defects reduced time spent on corrections, increased employee account accuracy and improved client satisfaction
• Researched and responded to client and employee inquiries and escalations in timeliness guidelines

Bridgewater, New Jersey

• Gathered data from plan sponsors, auditors, actuaries and record keepers; reviewed data for accuracy and reasonability and discussed concerns with stakeholders; completed Forms 8955-SSA, 5500 and supporting schedules.
• Filed 140 Form 5500s and 60 Form 8955-SSAs annually for pension, 401(k), health and welfare plans
• Coordinated deadlines and data gathering between plan sponsors, auditors, actuaries, insurance carriers and record keepers; regular follow up with stakeholders resulted in timely data collection and form completion.
• Subject matter expert for tracking software; trained team members for more accurate report results

Bridgewater, New Jersey

• Led new client transitions, improved team documentation, trained and mentored new colleagues, increased number of orders reviewed year over year
• Reviewed QDROs and QMCSOs for 12 clients, ranging in size from 50 to 100,000 participants, corresponded with internal and external counsel, state agencies, carriers, participants, alternate payees, recordkeepers and.
• Created data base enhancements, resulting in a more robust reporting and billing capacity
• Completed process flow reviews for all clients allowing for easy cross-training, creating best practices, improving efficiencies and succession planning
• Created ad hoc reports, coordinated special projects with internal and external departments and clients
• Promoted from Benefits Analyst and Senior Benefits Analyst

Princeton, NJ

• Led team of 5 analysts and an administrative assistant for a client with 200K+ participants
• Primary contact with client, plan managers and record keepers; interviewed and trained new analysts
• Monitored analyst caseloads and correspondence; audited billing; completed special projects
• Promoted from Benefits Analyst after one year
• Reviewed QDROs and supporting legal documents
• Kept current with plan provisions and Federal Code; calculated pension benefits

Ba, English Language And Literature, General

Certificate, Paralegal