This week's episode is all about recognizing our inner leadership gold. Roxanne Kaufman, CEO of ProLaureate, discusses how to find and cultivate these skills, as well as how they might affect the company's future. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:54 The leadership gold in everyone. 3:34 The importance of building good relationships. 9:55 The importance of soft skills and why they are the most difficult to master. 15:06 How leadership skills influence the company’s success. 16:28 Honing the...
Apr 04, 2022•21 min
This week's episode is about effective communication. Deirdre Van Ness, a keynote, speech, and story artist talks about the importance of connecting at the emotional level, especially in a sales setting, as well as some proven techniques to establish that connection. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:27 The difference between talking and communicating and why that is so important. 04:28 The 4-step formula for effective communication. Quotes: 1:48 “Just because you can talk doesn’t mean you ...
Mar 28, 2022•24 min
This week’s episode gives insight into benefits and healthcare solutions from employment to retirement. Carrie Espinosa, principal advisor at Horizon Benefit Services talks about the comprehensive solutions that they offer to employers, as well as employee education to help them make informed decisions and how to do that effectively. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:46 What hire to retire means. 5:06 How Horizon Benefits Services started and how they are helping companies and employees. 12...
Mar 21, 2022•22 min
This week’s episode is about the importance of creating a good culture within the company. Peter Drucker once said that “culture eats strategy for breakfast.” And in this episode, Nikki Fielding, chief culture fairy at Conscious Culture Fairy discusses how to spot a bad culture, as well as tools, and ways to bridge the gap. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 2:06 Nikki talks about the heartbeat of a company. 4:36 Employee pulse survey tools to help analyze the gaps in the company. 6:28 When to...
Mar 14, 2022•23 min
This week’s episode is intended to help brokers and advisors understand how automation tools work and why it’s worth the expense of their time as Tonya Sowles, founder and CEO at Sowles Consulting talks about the pain points of managing a small business and how these tools can help make a business workflow more effective and efficient. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 2:19 Tanya’s background and motivation for assisting small businesses. 4:17 Making a list of things that are outside your zon...
Mar 07, 2022•22 min
This week's episode gives insight into what it takes to live a legendary life. Tommy Breedlove, a mindset coach, Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author, and featured keynote speaker talks about how you can find your purpose in life and shares some valuable techniques to conquer your time and start living a meaningful life. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:47 Tommy’s background and what lead him to this journey of helping other people live legendary lives. 6:26 Simple ways t...
Feb 28, 2022•25 min
This week's episode of the ShiftShapers Podcast talks about how companies are shifting the way they do business. According to Gleb Tsipursky, an internationally-recognized thought leader and the CEO of Disaster Avoidance Experts, this shift has begun even before COVID-19 and will continue even after the pandemic ends. In this episode, we talk about the challenges of managing the workplace, more specifically, what leaders need to know in terms of adapting their corporate culture? What You’ll Lear...
Feb 21, 2022•26 min
This week’s episode is about supplemental health benefits. Mike Zarrillo, Chief Revenue Officer at Brella Insurance discusses the market's current state, what's new, and what's on the horizon. We'll dive into understanding what makes a good supplemental benefit and what opportunities exist in this market for advisors. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:46 Supplemental health plans: market size and scope, as well as opportunities for advisors. 05:44 Why would a company want to offer supplemen...
Feb 14, 2022•22 min
This week's episode delves into alternatives to musculoskeletal surgeries. In an effort to reduce costs while improving patient outcomes and satisfaction, Mark Testa, Executive Vice President of Regenexx talks about some cool stuff their company is doing to help employers save money on their orthopedic spending and patients avoid elective surgery. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 2:17 How much do musculoskeletal surgeries cost? 3:17 Why do a lot of people end up having musculoskeletal surger...
Feb 07, 2022•22 min
This week's episode is about small group businesses. Our guest, Nancy Giacalone, is the president of Olympic Crest Insurance, a locally owned and operated insurance brokerage firm. In this episode, she discusses the difficulties that small business owners face, as well as some strategies and opportunities for advisors. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:21 What drew Nancy to specialize in small group business? 5:53 What impact did the ACA have on her practice. 13:22 Other vendors in the sma...
Jan 31, 2022•22 min
This week's episode focuses on the healthcare supply chain. We've been hearing a lot about it, but what exactly is it? Phil Hamburger, risk advisor at Ellerbrock-Norris provides insights about this system and highlights how they can improve benefits while simultaneously lowering costs. He also offers advice on how to start the conversation with the clients and how to educate employees. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 1:54 Phil explains what the health supply chain is and how it works. 5:15 ...
Jan 24, 2022•21 min
This week’s episode is about bringing your A-game every day. Machen MacDonald, founder and lead strategic business coach at ProBrilliance talks about what it truly means to bring our A-game and what holds us back when we have those days where we don’t. We’ll dive into understanding self-awareness and how that affects our ability to perform at our best. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 2:59 What does bringing your A-game mean 3:59 Self-awareness and how that affects our ability to bring our a...
Jan 17, 2022•23 min
This week’s episode goes over how Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a major driver of high claims costs, but we don't often see it at the top of claims reports. Kimberly Langford, a registered nurse and the director of Business Development - Specialty Care Management, discusses the major causes of kidney disease and how businesses can mitigate the risks associated with it, particularly in terms of reducing high-cost dialysis claims. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 2:27 What keeps companies fr...
Jan 10, 2022•21 min
This week’s episode explores the tools and techniques used to level up employee communications especially around benefit plans. Joel Daniels, Chief Advocate of Revolution Benefits Group, explains how they utilize CRM and create workflows for employee engagement. He also shares his take on choosing the right software for your business and overcoming perceived barriers in the insurance industry. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 04:38 CRM as an engagement tool for employees 06:40 On creating wo...
Jan 03, 2022•23 min
This week’s episode describes what separates successful, high-performing individuals from everyone else. Michael Zipursky, CEO of Consulting Success and author of Elite Consulting Mind, discusses the importance of taking action and having a deeper understanding of our limiting beliefs and intentions. He also touches on the common behaviors that prevent people from making progress in their business. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 01:47 The difference between having a wrong mindset and a rig...
Dec 27, 2021•22 min
This week’s episode offers interesting insights on how we can leverage Telehealth to close healthcare gaps. Justin Davis, CEO at Congruity Health, describes how transforming the Telehealth industry can lead to proactive care and decreased healthcare costs. He also identifies the central friction points throughout the shift and ways to handle them. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:02 The current state of Telehealth 04:41 Telehealth can help fill these particular healthcare gaps 11:50 ‘Cont...
Dec 20, 2021•23 min
This week’s episode features a group fostering a unique collaborative environment to help benefit consulting firms excel. Scott Smith, president and CEO of True Network Advisors, shares how his group builds a collaborative process across different agencies and the challenges that lie beneath it. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:22 Introduction to Scott and how True Network started 07:06 How collaboration is done within the True Network 14:14 How the group creates and fosters relationships...
Dec 13, 2021•21 min
This week’s episode explains why it takes both art and science to make a health benefit plan work for all stakeholders. Allison DePaoli, founder of Altiqe Consulting, shares their process in creating a health plan that affects all constituents positively while helping people work through the setbacks in these plans. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:13 Allison on the rebranding of her benefits firm, Altiqe 06:24 What’s their process for building a health benefit plan that works for all con...
Dec 06, 2021•21 min
This week’s episode focuses on the use of improvisation as a valuable training tool for business professionals. Peter Margaritis, author of Improv is No Joke, describes what improv can do for your career and organization. He also introduces the effectiveness of the "Yes, and..." principle in sharpening your leadership and communication skills. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 03:06 What is improv? 05:35 Improv in action and the ‘group mind’ mentality 09:06 The “Yes, and…” principle as a help...
Nov 29, 2021•20 min
This week’s episode looks at how having a marketer’s mindset can make a difference to your business. Kate Colbert, author of Think Like a Marketer, explains the importance of stories in today’s competitive world. She also shares the common pitfalls of DIY marketing and why companies should avoid them. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:04 What it means to think like a marketer 06:22 How stories can save lives and make someone stand out in a competitive world 10:14 Knowing your differentiato...
Nov 22, 2021•24 min
This week’s episode presents key insights into where the rising musculoskeletal claims are coming from and how we can prevent them. Melissa Gill, owner and CEO of On-Site Solutions, highlights the significant intervention of physical therapy in minimizing the risks of work-related injuries and in creating a proactive, positive, and engaging workplace culture. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:35 Where the issue on high musculoskeletal claims stem from 06:27 Being preventive with physical t...
Nov 15, 2021•23 min
This week’s episode highlights the tools and techniques to be effective and confident in building a referral base. Bill Cates, president of Referral Coach International, provides an in-depth discussion on the "Perpetual Revenue System" and what should be covered in order to successfully turn referrals into introductions. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:39 An overview of Bill’s books: “Get More Referrals Now”, “Don’t Keep Me A Secret”, “Beyond Referrals”, and “Radical Relevance” 06:44 The...
Nov 08, 2021•24 min
This week’s episode looks into the prevalent chronic conditions that women suffer from and the main reasons why they're unable to have access to proper care. Joe Connolly, founder and CEO at Visana Health, explains how a tech-enabled, high-touch care model can provide solutions and make a difference to women's healthcare. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:11 Introduction to the Virtual-First Healthcare model 06:58 What caused the challenges in women’s healthcare 10:53 How the care model ha...
Nov 01, 2021•23 min
This week’s episode covers the significant decision factors that every patient must have in this current state of healthcare. Dr. Sanjay Prasad, surgeon and author of Resetting Healthcare, explains the need to reform the industry and how transparency can also help raise the quality of care. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:17 How COVID19 has impacted the state of healthcare 06:03 Avoiding the ‘Patient Trap’ 11:10 Success Rate: One of the deciding factors in choosing a healthcare professio...
Oct 25, 2021•22 min
This week’s episode introduces a self-care tech platform for Diabetics. Integrated with AI and Machine Learning, this new approach to healthcare is believed to enhance consumer experience. Lonny Stormo, CEO of Pops Diabetes Care, describes what these tech advances would offer as we lean toward consumer-driven healthcare. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:51 The concept and practical sense of “Democratizing Healthcare” 06:16 On-Demand Healthcare: What drives this trend? 09:15 Lonny on reaso...
Oct 11, 2021•22 min
This week’s episode suggests how employers can optimize their recruitment process to hire top talent and set them up for success. Robert Nickell, founder and CEO of Rocket Station, delves into the 3 foundational steps critical for the hiring and success of every individual or outsourced talent. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:13 The top 1 mistake that people make when hiring 04:20 3 Steps to Successful Hiring: Alignment, Documenting, Hiring 13:07 What defines an outsourced talent? 16:39 ...
Oct 04, 2021•22 min
This week’s episode looks into the problem areas of every regulation that puts industries through expensive endeavors and tons of paperwork. Sarah Borders, co-founder and principal consultant at Benefits Compliance Solutions, gives interesting tidbits that clients can do right away to mitigate some of the risks. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 03:23 About COBRA: What are its problem areas, loopholes, and opportunities? 08:41 About ACA: Misclassification of employees is identified as the big...
Sep 27, 2021•23 min
This week’s episode introduces a next-level type of healthcare that people can already receive in the comfort of their own homes. John Young, SVP Growth at Nice Healthcare, explains why it's going to be a growing demand for employers and members. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:39 How Nice Healthcare’s business model had come to fruition 08:03 Scope of healthcare services being offered 10:35 On the affordability of provided services 15:11 Time allotted for virtual and in-person visits 16...
Sep 20, 2021•21 min
This week's episode gives profound insights into how insurance advisors can drive sales and win relationships using the psychology of persuasion. Brian Ahearn, author of Persuasive Selling for Relationship Driven Insurance Agents, talks through the different methods that need to be applied at every step of the sales cycle in order to create long-lasting client relationships and close sales without coming off as a "salesy" person. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 02:24 Brian on his then caree...
Sep 13, 2021•22 min
This week’s episode discusses the best strategies that business owners must do to preserve their most important asset: focus. A Managing Director of Trinity Blue & Taylor Insurance, Trey Taylor defines the practice of growing your organization’s culture, the revolutionary steps in recruiting people, and the important components to include when tracking your KPIs. All of these are based on his book, A CEO Only Does Three Things. What You’ll Learn From This Episode: 01:47 Introduction to Trey’...
Sep 06, 2021•21 min
