SAMARAH JOHNSON, CPSP
Benefits Professional
Houston,Texas
Summary
Benefits professional with 9+ years of experience managing employee benefits, retirement plans, and leave administration for large employee populations. Dedicated to driving operational efficiency, exceptional team work, providing cross-functional collaboration and achieving measurable results. Skilled in strategic plan management, decision-making, and implementation, ready to meet evolving needs of any organization.
Overview
12
12
years of professional experience
2017
2017
years of post-secondary education
1
1
Certification
Work History
Retirement and Leaves Specialist
Pappas Restaurants, Inc.
Houston, TX
07.2022 - Current
- Manage 401K and Deferred Compensation retirement plans, COBRA, and employee benefits eligibility, annual enrollment, payroll file management, plan communication, policies and employee engagement across the organization
- Manage and maintain Paid Time Off and Sick leave policies and oversee administration of FMLA, ADA accomodations, Short-Term Disability and state leave programs, ensuring compliance with federal and state regulations.
- Lead weekly and quarterly 401K and Deferred Compensation plan committee meetings with investment advisors, recordkeepers and committee members to review plan performance, compliance updates and strategic initiatives
- Serve as a 401K plan fiduciary, overseeing decision making and plan governance, compliance and operational administration in accordance with the plan document, SECURE 2.0 legislation, and ERISA regulations for a company population of 15, 000
- Administer 401K and Deferred Compensation plan annual match, bi-weekly funding, compliance and auditing requirements
- Develop and deliver employee education initiatives, including company wide in person and virtual learning sessions to increase awareness and participation in employee and retirement plan benefits
- Partner cross-functionally with benefits brokers, plan administrators, investment advisors and retirement plan recordkeepers to manage plan performance and resolve operational issues
- Administer COBRA processing, benefits life events, and ACA eligibility determination to ensure compliance requirements
- Generate and analyze reporting across retirement plans, employee benefits and leave administration to support compliance, leadership insights and plan management
- Led full-cycle Request for Proposal (RFP) and implementation for 401K and Deferred Compensation retirement plans
- Supported benefits broker RFP process and full employee benefits plan review, providing internal analysis and recommendations for plan enhancements
- Led benefits, 401K plan, and leave integration during an asset purchase acquisition of 5,000 employees
- Identify plan issues, ensure operational accuracy, implement plan changes and resolve administrative discrepancies
HR Service Center Lead and Benefits Specialist II
Rice University
Houston, TX
07.2021 - 07.2022
- Managed day-to-day activities of 5 employees responsible for processing employee onboarding, auditing and reporting
- Supervised and mentored direct reports for Federal Form I-9, background checks and benefit carrier files
- Collaborated in decision-making and implementation of HR policies, procedures, programs and functions
- Partnered on annual open enrollment for employee benefits, including communication, digital resources and one on one meetings with employees
- Participated in full cycle Payroll implementation by creating and maintaining processes and procedures of Oracle Cloud absence module
- Addressed high priority employee inquiries regarding employee onboarding and complex benefit issues with appropriate urgency, following all company procedures
- Collaborated directly with plan vendors and employees effectively and efficiently to to resolve all benefit conflicts and inquiries pertaining to retirement and employee benefits
- Processed Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, FMLA and all other employee leaves
Benefits Specialist I
Rice University
Houston, TX
07.2019 - 06.2021
- Communicated effectively via email, phone and face-to-face with plan participants and vendors to resolve inquires pertaining to employee benefits and 401k
- Provided assistance to plan participants by explaining benefits information to ensure educated elections for plan year
- Processed Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, FMLA and all other employee leaves
- Reviewed and approved all employee retirement plan change requests in-house and through vendor sites to verify accuracy along with inputting all information into system database
- Provided audits and reports on active employees retirement deduction elections, changes and contribution code activity
- Conducted monthly reports on employees eligible working hours, commuter files and deduction files
Human Resources Coordinator
Rice University
Houston, TX
07.2017 - 06.2018
- Supported HR functions with emphasis on record keeping, data entry and general HR information into central databases
- Facilitated criminal background check process, on-boarding process, Federal Form I-9 and weekly and monthly audits of staff and faculty
- Collaborated with department managers throughout campus to assess onboarding and general HR needs by email and phone
- Created and advised hiring for temporary applicants through administration systems
- Completed employee employment verifications and unemployment paperwork prior to hire or termination
- Answered general HR questions pertaining to benefits, employee relations and recruitment
Human Resources Assistant
Rice University
Houston, Texas
05.2017 - 07.2017
- Updated tracking spreadsheets using Excel
- Copied, logged and scanned supporting documentation
- Analyzed departmental documents for appropriate distribution and filing
- Responded to over 30 customer requests via telephone and email per day
- Reviewed and scanned benefit vendor files and employee enrollment elections
Case Manager Intern
Bannum Halfway House
Beaumont, TX
03.2017 - 05.2017
- Administered assessments and developed academic goals based on specific disabilities and barriers to learning and employment
- Initiated, documented and measured case plan to meet individual's needs for 4 clients
- Collaborated with employers, administrators and guardians to determine required needs of individual clients
Office Intern
Jefferson County District Attorney Office
Beaumont, Texas
02.2017 - 05.2017
- Developed time management skills by prioritizing tasks effectively under tight deadlines.
- Provided administrative support to legal clerks and attorney's by duplicating and circulating documents, managing office mail, and handling individual requests
- Processed summons, subpoenas, motions and appeals to facilitate timely court proceedings
Resident Assistant
Lamar University
Beaumont, Texas
08.2014 - 05.2017
- Performed several administrative and office duties, mainly including answering multi-line phones, routing telephone calls, delivering messages to appropriate staff and students, incident reports and maintenance requests
- Facilitated conflict resolution among roommates and neighbors by mediating discussions and proposing fair solutions
- Created and implemented social, educational and recreational programs for residents
Education
Bachelor of Science - Criminal Justice
Lamar University
Beaumont, TX05-2017
Skills
- Proficient team leadership, teamwork and cross-functional collaboration
- Analytical and problem-solving
- Strategic planning and decision-making
- Time management and organization
- Process improvement and operational efficiency
- Strong written and verbal communication
Certification
Certified Plan Sponsor Professional (CPSP)
Systems and Technology
- Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote)
- Dayforce
- Oracle Cloud
- Benefitfocus
- Banner 9
- OnBase Imaging System
Accomplishments
- 2018 Rice Mile Award at Rice University
- 2017 Who's Who Among Students in American Universities & Colleges Award at Lamar University
- 2017 Senior of Significance Award at Lamar University
- 2017 induction into Order of Omega at Lamar University
- 2017 National Residence Hall Honorary at Lamar University
Timeline
Certified Plan Sponsor Professional (CPSP)
12-2025
Retirement and Leaves Specialist
Pappas Restaurants, Inc.
07.2022 - Current
HR Service Center Lead and Benefits Specialist II
Rice University
07.2021 - 07.2022
Benefits Specialist I
Rice University
07.2019 - 06.2021
Human Resources Coordinator
Rice University
07.2017 - 06.2018
Human Resources Assistant
Rice University
05.2017 - 07.2017
Case Manager Intern
Bannum Halfway House
03.2017 - 05.2017
Office Intern
Jefferson County District Attorney Office
02.2017 - 05.2017
Resident Assistant
Lamar University
08.2014 - 05.2017
Bachelor of Science - Criminal Justice
Lamar University