{"id":61,"date":"2015-11-20T21:15:31","date_gmt":"2015-11-20T21:15:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/?p=61"},"modified":"2015-11-20T21:23:44","modified_gmt":"2015-11-20T21:23:44","slug":"the-21st-century-benefits-broker-your-benefits-adviser-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/2015\/11\/the-21st-century-benefits-broker-your-benefits-adviser-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The 21st Century Benefits Broker: Your Benefits Adviser \u2013 Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my previous BLOG I described the employee benefits broker for the 21st<\/sup> century.\u00a0 In this BLOG I\u2019ll describe in detail what you should look for and expect from a broker, your employee benefits Adviser.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re hiring an Adviser \u2013So Ask the Hard Questions<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019re not purchasing insurance.\u00a0 You\u2019re hiring an employee benefits adviser, not a salesperson.\u00a0 When you make that shift in perception your perspective will change.\u00a0 I recently signed a new client, Marc, the CFO of a budding medical technology company.\u00a0 During the company\u2019s last renewal, the previous broker put all of Marc\u2019s employees into individual health insurance policies because the premiums were less expensive than a group health plan.\u00a0 It seemed logical to Marc until he learned the IRS would not allow either the company or its employees to pay for these individual policies pre-tax as they could with a group health plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy broker didn\u2019t tell me that.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have allowed this if I had known there was a risk.\u00a0 I just assumed that the person we were dealing with knew what he was doing.\u00a0 You expect that when you hire someone,\u201d Marc lamented to me.\u00a0 Marc\u2019s expectation was correct but his assumption was wrong.\u00a0 Let\u2019s start there.<\/p>\n

The broker was focused solely on price.\u00a0 He believed his job was just to recommend the least costly option.\u00a0 The broker didn\u2019t focus on the whole picture either because he had no concept or he simply operated in this limited role.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t advise Marc about the risks, most likely because he did not understand them or relied on the inaccurate advice of a third party.\u00a0 It\u2019s a sad fact that Marc\u2019s experience is not unusual.\u00a0 The vast majority of brokers have the same very narrow perspective.<\/p>\n

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Jack of All Trades or Specialist<\/strong><\/p>\n

Almost all insurance agencies, and, therefore, most brokers operate under an antiquated 20th<\/sup> century model.\u00a0 That model has the insurance companies at the center, not you.\u00a0 The current regulatory structure also serves this old insurance model.\u00a0 This means your interests are secondary to those of the insurance companies.\u00a0 In contrast, the 21st<\/sup> century employee benefits broker\u2019s business has you at the center.<\/p>\n

If they\u2019re a general agency they\u2019re not focused on your needs.\u00a0 A general agency sells to all comers, including individuals, Medicare eligibles, small, medium and large groups, and offers an array of insurance \u201cproducts.\u201d\u00a0 They think they\u2019re focused on your \u201cinsurance needs,\u201d but what that really means is they\u2019re in the business of selling insurance.\u00a0 They\u2019re a jack of all trades but a master of nothing.\u00a0 They might have different \u201cspecialists\u201d within their company but these \u201cspecialists\u201d are product focused, specializing in different lines of business.\u00a0 The general agent is simply an extension of the insurance company.\u00a0 Unfortunately, for you, these brokers currently represent about 98% of the marketplace.<\/p>\n

In contrast, the 21st<\/sup> century employee benefits Adviser specializes in employee benefits, nothing else.\u00a0 No other line of insurance is as heavily regulated as employee benefits.\u00a0 Tax and compliance complexity necessitates specialization.\u00a0 The Affordable Care Act (ACA) added fuel to the fire.\u00a0 Your Adviser doesn\u2019t have to be a CPA or an attorney, though it wouldn\u2019t hurt if they were.\u00a0 They just need to contextualize the insurance in this environment.\u00a0 There is an added benefit to this specialization.\u00a0 By focusing solely on employee benefits, the employee benefits Adviser gains valuable expertise, and you<\/em>, not the insurance companies, are the greatest benefactor of this expertise.<\/p>\n

How do you know if a broker specializes in employee benefits and has the necessary skills?\u00a0 The information you need is readily available on-line.\u00a0 Check out their web-site.\u00a0 A broker\u2019s web-site will tell you if they are focused on selling insurance product or focused on your needs.\u00a0 Is their content focused on the different lines of business or on providing you with useful knowledge and information?\u00a0 Do they offer ACA and compliance advice?\u00a0 Do they offer webinars on relevant topics?<\/p>\n

There are no education requirements for becoming a licensed insurance agent.\u00a0 You don\u2019t need a high school degree, let alone a college degree, so there is a great range of ability and expertise in the marketplace.<\/p>\n

Check out their profile on LinkedIn.\u00a0 Focus on a couple of key areas: client testimonials and published content.\u00a0 Are testimonials from business clients?\u00a0 Client testimonials, and references, are the best indicator of performance.\u00a0\u00a0 Do they publish their own relevant content?\u00a0 Someone who publishes their own content, even just on LinkedIn, demonstrates a much deeper understanding of their subject matter than someone who simply shares an article or another post.\u00a0 It takes a lot of thought and hard work to write your own content.\u00a0 This tells you a lot about your potential employee benefits Adviser.<\/p>\n

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Breadth of Services<\/strong><\/p>\n

You should focus on those employee benefits brokers that provide extensive services, including payroll, third party administration and technology tools that help with onboarding and compliance.\u00a0 There are a vast array of technology tools that can simplify managing human resources and employee benefits.\u00a0 Your trusted employee benefits Adviser needs to not only have extensive knowledge of these tools, but optimally should be offering them to you as part of their services.<\/p>\n

An employee benefits Adviser\u2019s decision to offer these tools and services is important.\u00a0 It demonstrates a broader understanding of the employee benefits management process.\u00a0 It also shows a willingness to address concerns that may have little or nothing to do with the insurance products.<\/p>\n

As equally important is how their services are delivered and managed.\u00a0 .\u00a0 Do they have a system and well-established service levels for responding to client inquiries and service requests?\u00a0 Do they use a customer relationship management tool to track open issues and communications with their clients? It is important to note, however, that technology should enhance and improve their services, and not be used as a cheap replacement for them.<\/p>\n

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Beware of<\/strong> Technology without the Advice <\/strong><\/p>\n

Not everything can be automated.\u00a0 Have you ever called a company for assistance with what you thought was a simple question only to be greeted by a seemingly endless automated phone system, and when you finally do get to someone they don\u2019t know the answer or they refer you to a different department?\u00a0 We\u2019ve all experienced this model of customer service.\u00a0 I\u2019ve never known anyone who likes it.<\/p>\n

A number of heavily financed startups have recently entered the employee benefits marketplace.\u00a0 The model of these companies is the same: employ technology to automate as much of the employee benefits management process, just like payroll companies have automated payroll.\u00a0 They think that if they throw technology at it and put a sexy startup name on it they\u2019ll attract clients.\u00a0 Sure they\u2019ll get business, but you\u2019ll get an inferior product.<\/p>\n

Doing this makes these companies more \u201cprofitable\u201d but at your expense.\u00a0 One insurance carrier executive flat out told me they were considering cutting the compensation they pay one of these companies because the carrier has to do so much more work for their clients; work that is usually done by a broker.\u00a0 \u201cThey don\u2019t know what they\u2019re doing,\u201d said the executive.<\/p>\n

This model doesn\u2019t add any value to your business, and, on the contrary, it may cost you.\u00a0 By substituting a combination of technology and lower paid inexperienced workers for highly skilled employee benefits professionals, they\u2019re taking value from you and giving it to their shareholders.\u00a0 What they don\u2019t tell you is that not every interaction can be replaced by technology.\u00a0 You\u2019ll eventually have to pay someone for the advice and guidance you\u2019re giving up.<\/p>\n

The technology of these companies is also not unique.\u00a0 We offer the exact same tools, automation and convenience to our clients without sacrificing the advice on matters the technology can\u2019t address.\u00a0 That last part is most important to you.\u00a0 Technology can\u2019t help you when you need specific advice.\u00a0 You don\u2019t simply want access to a library of relevant forms and information because you don\u2019t have time to do extensive research.\u00a0 You want access to an expert who can provide advice tailored to your specific situation.<\/p>\n

Wouldn\u2019t it be better if you could have both?\u00a0 The 21st<\/sup> century employee benefits Adviser flies in the face of companies that are trying to commoditize the employee benefits management experience.\u00a0 Yes, there are things that can be automated, but wouldn\u2019t you rather have your cake and eat it too?<\/p>\n

Get Some Cake<\/strong><\/p>\n

Does all of this sound good to you?\u00a0 If you want to learn more about the trusted employee benefits Adviser call me at (952) 237-6956 or e-mail me at mdmowski@comprehensivebenefitservices.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In my previous BLOG I described the employee benefits broker for the 21st century.\u00a0 In this BLOG I\u2019ll describe in detail what you should look for and expect from a broker, your employee benefits Adviser. You\u2019re hiring an Adviser \u2013So Ask the Hard Questions You\u2019re not purchasing insurance.\u00a0 You\u2019re hiring an employee benefits adviser, not\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-61","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.comprehensivebenefitservices.com\/Blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}