Where efficiency meets empathy: Curology’s journey to better employee leave management

Curology is a personal prescription skincare service on a mission to make effective skincare accessible to all. Curology offers people a simpler path to healthier, improved skin, with clinically researched, dermatologist-designed products that address a range of skin concerns, from acne and rosacea to dark spots and early signs of aging.

Instead of sampling dozens of drugstore products or researching treatment methods on their own, Curology patients get paired with a licensed dermatology provider who first assesses their skin, then creates a custom prescription treatment plan for their unique skin needs and goals. The best part: patients get expert input at every stage of their skincare journeys, so they can keep what works and tweak what doesn’t.

Behind Curology’s millions of skin transformations is a lean team of 180 talented employees. To facilitate employee leaves, Curology relies on Sparrow.

Supporting employees in and out of the workplace

“Curology prides itself on being a people-focused, people-forward company,” said Emily Van Horn, Associate Director of People Operations at Curology.

“We recognize that work isn’t at the forefront of everyone’s world, so being flexible and supporting people in their personal lives is super important to us,” Van Horn explained.

One way Curology shows gratitude to employees is with a robust benefits package, which includes comprehensive health insurance coverage; mental health and wellness programs; flexible spending accounts; a 401(k); company equity; employee donation matching; generous paid time off; Curology VIP subscriptions, and paid parental leave.

“We also have a minimum time off policy,” said Van Horn. “We wanted to rebrand our unlimited time off policy, so employees knew we expected them to take a minimum of three weeks off every year—and ideally more.”

Curology is also committed to supporting employees through major life transitions, like expanding their families. “We’re proud to share that Curology is more than 70% female, and we have quite a lot of moms and parents on our team,” added Van Horn. “We do our best to accommodate them during leave and when they return to work as well.”

The challenge: Overwhelming admin and an underwhelming employee leave experience

Before partnering with Sparrow for full-service employee leave management, Curology used a different leave management vendor—but the experience didn’t quite meet their expectations.

One recurring issue was the documentation review process, which Van Horn said wasn’t as robust as she would have liked. “They didn’t review physician documentation for sufficiency, only for completion, which led to discrepancies,” she explained.

As a result, Van Horn had to review physician documentation herself to make sure employees’ leave dates lined up, a tedious task that ate into her time. The previous leave vendor’s customer service was also lacking. “We weren’t getting the level of support and hand-holding that we would have liked,” she said.

“Knowing the Sparrow team are experts in all things leave, and can help us maintain compliance, is very helpful.”

Because the vendor communicated primarily through email, Van Horn and her team ended up fielding frequent messages and calls from Curology employees who preferred to chat over the phone to ask questions about their benefits and pay.

The People Ops team quickly realized they needed more direct leave management support—for themselves and Curology employees taking leave. When they started researching alternate leave management vendors and came across Sparrow, they felt instantly excited.

“Along with reviewing employee paperwork for sufficiency instead of just completion, Sparrow also told us they would apply for state benefits on behalf of our employees,” said Van Horn. “Those were our two biggest selling points.”

“In the past, I’d often act as the middle man, communicating when someone was coming back or when a leave was getting extended. I don't have to do that anymore because our managers and HRBPs get the Sparrow notifications." 

The solution: Team up with Sparrow to streamline admin and simplify employee leave preparation

Partnering with Sparrow for end-to-end employee leave management has given Curology’s People Ops team more time and peace of mind. “With Sparrow, I don’t have to think about leave,” said Van Horn.

“Leave management takes up a very small part of my brain, which I prefer because I know it’s being handled—and I can turn my attention to my other responsibilities.”

Sparrow has saved Van Horn and her team a massive amount of time coordinating with employees, double-checking documentation, and managing Curology’s intermittent leaves. Now, all Van Horn has to do is input a new leave case into the Sparrow dashboard, and Sparrow handles the rest.

That includes tracking leaves, filling out and submitting state benefits paperwork on Curology’s behalf, coordinating with employees, and navigating different state leave laws and benefits paperwork.

“Employees on intermittent leave work directly with Sparrow to communicate the hours they've missed. That’s been one of the most crucial pieces of support, saving me so much time.”

“I’m familiar with California’s leave laws, but that’s where the knowledge ends,” said Van Horn. “Knowing that the Sparrow team are experts in all things leave, and can help us maintain compliance, is very helpful.”

Accounting for employee leaves when running payroll is also much simpler, thanks to Sparrow’s automatic payroll calculations and custom payroll reports. “I go in weekly and download Sparrow’s payroll report, which gives me all the information I need,” she added.

Sparrow has also taken over Curology’s intermittent leave management. “Our previous vendor wouldn’t manage intermittent leaves, so I had to track employees’ intermittent leave hours myself and coordinate their leaves outside of the system,” Van Horn explained.

With Sparrow, she doesn’t have to. “Employees on intermittent leave work directly with Sparrow to communicate the hours they’ve missed or call-outs they’ve had,” she said. “That’s been one of the most crucial pieces of support, saving me so much time.”

“It’s a super quick timeframe from when I complete an employee intake to when our employees personally hear from a Sparrow Leave Specialist.”

One-on-one leave guidance for employees

Part of what saves Van Horn and her team time is the hands-on help Sparrow gives Curology employees taking leave. Sparrow Leave Specialists schedule one-on-one calls with employees taking leave to introduce themselves, answer questions, and explain exactly what employees can expect when it comes to filing for state benefits and receiving their paychecks.

From there, Sparrow completes and submits benefits paperwork on behalf of Curology employees, then Sparrow Leave Specialists coordinate with health insurance providers and state agency representatives to make sure employees’ information is all in order.

“It’s a super quick timeframe from when I complete an employee intake to when our employees personally hear from a Sparrow Leave Specialist,” Van Horn said.

“When someone goes on a leave, it’s because they have a large, often challenging event happening in their life. The fact that applying for benefits is a quick process, and that our employees have resources, is invaluable.”

“When someone goes on a leave, it’s because they have a large, often challenging event happening in their life. So the fact that applying for benefits is a quick process, and that our employees have resources, is invaluable.”

At every step of the way, Sparrow sends key updates to Van Horn and her team, letting them know what’s going on with employees. “In the past, I’d often act as the middle man, communicating when someone was coming back or when a leave was getting extended,” she added.

“I don’t have to do that anymore because our managers and HR Business Partners get the Sparrow notifications, too.”

“Sparrow's Leave Specialists are all so friendly and accommodating. They've been wonderful to work with and I feel confident that our employees are getting the exact same experience.”

A unified leave experience

Teaming up with Sparrow has smoothed out all the wrinkles in Curology’s employee leave management process, reducing the workload for People Ops while giving employees a more straightforward, personalized leave experience.

“Working with the Sparrow Leave Specialists has been the best part,” Van Horn emphasized.

“They’re all so friendly and accommodating. They’ve been wonderful to work with, and I feel confident that our employees are getting the exact same experience.”

Sparrow saves companies time and employees stress—before, during, and after leave. Get all the details on our leave management services or book a demo now.