BENEFITS CONSULTING

Benefits Consulting actually deals with three things – the business, the business owner and the employees. Some plans focus on just one or two of these, but addressing all three is the only way to ensure that the business is well-served, the needs of the business owner are respected, and the employees are cared for appropriately.

Group Benefits has two categories – group insurance and group retirement. Because of this, we’ve built and organized our firm to have the true depth that a benefits consulting firm should have.

As a result, our team has impressive experience. From former group insurance managers and HR professionals, to regulatory officials and insurance carrier staff, we have had visibility into every element of the entire group benefits field.

The result? Our clients are served by benefit consultants who know when and how to advocate on their behalf in the most effective way – and they have the credibility with the insurers and suppliers to back it up.

Group Insurance

The real purpose of group insurance is to protect the business, and it does that by protecting the employees.

On the surface, group insurance seems relatively simple – and on the surface it is. The challenge is that, as your business grows and there’s more at stake, operating at the surface won’t cut it.  More and more clients come to us to help them design group insurance programs that help them maintain their competitiveness, keep great people on their team, and truly look out for the well being of their staff. The simple fact is that when employees don’t have to worry about health and insurance issues, they have more attention that they can bring to their work. That serves everyone.

We take a systematic approach to our client projects, and leverage the skills of an experienced team that includes:

• dedicated benefit consultants with extensive experience who know how to design plans that are relevant and cost effective
• former group insurance managers from large insurance carriers who know the inside story and can fine tune programs to leverage the best from the plan and the carrier
• HR professionals with backgrounds in plan administration who know how to increase efficiency
• service coordinators from insurers, and benefit assistants who know how to get things done in a timely and effective manner

Group Retirement

One of the challenges that smaller and larger businesses share is developing ways to find and keep good people. While culture is important, and the type of work a person does is important, the current and future benefits that are available to an employee are also very important. This is especially so when you need to keep specific skills or knowledge in your business over a long period of time.

This is where Group Retirement plans pay an extra dividend. They can help secure the business from the future risk of staff departure, while also allowing employees to keep their attention on the work they have in front of them, rather than worrying about how they are going to be able to afford retirement.

As employees approach retirement, the issue of succession becomes increasingly important. If an employee isn’t prepared for retirement, the business may encounter difficult decisions that can be tough for everyone to face. But a solid retirement plan can provide flexibility and choices for everyone.

Our retirement planning model is direct and efficient.

Because of our team, we’ve been able to infuse our Group Retirement plans with expertise that flows from:

• leadership in providing employee-level guidance in financial planning (so that we can truly help at the employee level)
• real-world expertise in communicating retirement plans to employees in a way that is relevant and meaningful
• years of working for and with insurance carriers (giving us visibility and understanding of pricing approaches and efficiency opportunities)
• governance experience at a large actuarial consulting firm
• the regulatory understanding of a former assistant superintendent of pensions