Broker blog

We attended the first-ever (and sold-out) HLTH Conference in Las Vegas this week and it was an impressive 4 days! The conference was touted as “the hottest, newest, largest and most important healthcare event creating a much-needed dialogue focused on disruptive innovation.” 

Remember the Amazon Fire Phone? Did anyone besides me own one?

I anxiously awaited my new phone’s arrival in July of 2014 – excited to be an early adopter of new, cool innovations. My excitement quickly turned to frustration once the phone arrived. 

• It didn’t have many of my favorite apps – including Starbucks and Uber (what!?)
• Importing my music was annoyingly difficult

Six months later, it went back in the box and I went back to owning an iPhone.

Did you make it to San Diego for the BenefitsPRO Expo? From machine learning to the Broker of the Year Panel, it was a terrific 3 days of connecting with benefits experts from all over the country.

If you were there, maybe your mind is still swirling with ideas. If not, we believe sharing is caring and hope this recap helps to fill you in.

Below is a compiled list of 10 takeaways from our team....

I was recently asked, “What word would you like to see eliminated from the healthcare industry?” I chose the word “cheaper.” And because I’m not a whiner who just brings problems, my solution is this article.

I KNOW you’re implementing strategic ideas to contain skyrocketing out of pocket costs. While you continuously strive to care for your clients, the realities of healthcare in our country make it more challenging each year. As I’m sure you’re VERY aware, unfortunately employees and their families are paying for more than ever before: click here to get our infographic with current stats.

How many companies do you work with that have Millennial decision-makers? 

Whatever your answer, it will certainly increase. “Mature Millennials” are in their mid-30’s and are beginning to take on leadership and management roles in their organizations. By 2025 they’ll represent a whopping 75% of the workforce. In just a few years, the majority of business leaders will be Millennials.  

How does this impact you as a broker? How will this generation function as leaders of companies and managers of the generation coming behind them? 

Has Alexa changed your life yet? Vacuum the floor, start the dishwasher, feed the cat, clean the litter box, order more paper towels and lower the thermostat. That’s just a few items from the to-do list I handed over to Artificial Intelligence today – and all without one manual click or key stroke. Whew, no more straining my index finger to push all those buttons. 

Are you struggling to offer fun ideas to keep your clients (and their members) engaged? As a former HR Director, I remember the challenge well. Even with great benefits, helping employees understand how they work and the best way to use them is like getting someone to use their gym membership…or is that just me?