Large employers that contract with numerous health and wellness plan vendors increasingly are bringing those providers together to streamline inefficiencies and improve services.

Vendor summits—at which companies ranging from health insurers to employee assistance program providers to pharmacy benefits managers meet to get better acquainted with the employer and each other—are gaining popularity, benefits managers and consultants say.

"Vendor summits are a way of getting people together, getting them on the same page and addressing any issues where things may not have been as integrated or well-coordinated," said Dr. Bruce Hochstadt, a Chicago-based national health management practice leader for Buck Consultants L.L.C.

Benefits managers say coordinating resources helps vendors enhance programs. For example, when a disease management program provider realizes a vision plan vendor offers tests that indicate the onset of diabetes, they can work together by sharing information.

While protecting a patient's privacy, the vision plan provider can pass an employee's diagnosis to the health plan provider, which can follow up and enroll the patient in a disease management program. Such integration cannot happen unless vendors are aware of each other's services, experts say.

Helen Darling, president of the National Business Group on Health in Washington, said vendor summits are a best business practice. She said exchanging data, brainstorming and collaborating at these meetings often result in more effective, efficient delivery of health benefits.

Tammy Schoenert, manager of corporate benefits for HEB Grocery Co. in San Antonio, said vendor summits have positively affected its health benefits delivery system. She said HEB has been hosting annual meetings for its approximately 15 to 20 vendor companies for about five years with success.

"The summit allows vendors to step out of their silos and begin to solve our problems as a unit," Ms. Schoenert said.

At the heart of the summits is the desire to create a more seamless and effective experience for employees, Ms. Darling said. In return, employees are less likely to become frustrated with the often overwhelming web of vendors and services related to their health and wellness, she said.

"The last thing you want is to spend a lot of money on benefits and then have employees not value them because they can't figure out how to use them," Ms. Darling said. "You want employees to value what you're doing for them, and the only way that is going to happen is if the service is excellent."

Lilly Maisel, vp of wellness and human capital management for Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York, said the company intends to have its first vendor summit later this year. She said improving employee satisfaction is a fundamental reason to bring the company's multitude of vendors together.

"At the end of the day we want to offer programs that are well-thought out and meet the needs of employees," Ms. Maisel said.

Improving employee satisfaction is just one reason to encourage vendor integration. HEB's first vendor summit focused on cutting health care costs. Ms. Schoenert said meeting attendees brainstormed cost-cutting strategies in small groups. The groups then shared their plans, which HEB considered and, in some cases, implemented.

Strategies included everything from changing pharmacy and medical plan designs for immediate cost savings, to better connecting employees with the employee assistance program for long-term savings. Ms. Schoenert said implementing the suggested strategies has cut health care costs dramatically. She declined to specify the savings.

Ensuring vendors understand the employer is another common focus of the summits.

Avery Dennison Corp., a manufacturing company in Pasadena, Calif., hosted its first vendor summit last August in part to make certain its approximately 20 vendors identified with the company culture, said Suzanne Elken-Rickards, Avery's director of benefits for the United States and Canada.

To achieve this, Avery Dennison kicked off its vendor summit with an orientation emphasizing its business strategies, culture and stakeholders. Vendors then gave presentations on their financial, clinical and operational performances. They touched on opportunities for improvement and invited group discussion on possible action plans.

Ms. Elken-Rickards said Avery Dennison gained insight into its vendors' effectiveness—making it easier to assess their performance. The meeting also gave vendors a glimpse into their counterparts' functions, allowing them to measure their performance against others. It was beneficial for all, she said.

"(Vendors) felt it was worth the investment because they got to know the client better," she said. "By having the vendors understand the company, we end up focusing our efforts where it makes sense."

To get such positive results, time and care must be put into planning and facilitating a vendor summit, benefits managers and consultants say. Ms. Darling said the meetings typically last about two days. She said the first day often is dedicated to determining the direction for a company, while the second day is devoted to generating action plans.

Both Avery Dennison's and HEB's summits lasted about one-and-one-half days. Both companies hosted their meetings onsite, thus keeping costs down. Ms. Elken-Rickards of Avery Dennison and Ms. Schoenert of HEB said the meetings were inexpensive ventures.

As for their time resources, planning from start to finish took two to three months, they said. Determining the agenda was a big part of the planning process, because the focal point of the summits changes each year.

Whereas HEB focused on cutting health care costs during its first summit, it focused more on vendor integration and specific targets such as health fairs and diabetes during its most recent summit, Ms. Schoenert said.

Avery Dennison targeted health and welfare at its first summit, but likely will incorporate wellness at its next meeting, Ms. Elken-Rickards said. While the focus of vendor summits might change, the goal of fostering a true partnership between employers and their vendors is constant.

"The purpose is not only to utilize your vendors and leverage all of their knowledge," Ms. Schoenert said, "but also to solidify the partnership you already have with them."