June 2015

Ep #64: Lessons Learned From Retailers Deliver a Better Client Experience – With Kara Trott

By   Shift Shapers Podcast   Add new comment

ShiftShapersCoverArt

It often seems as though the world of employee benefits is exempt from many of the forces that impact other industries. Kara Trott, Founder & CEO of Quantum Health, knows that is not true, and that much of what happen in other industries – especially retail sales – can help us to improve our industry and the client experience we provide.

We invited Kara to share her experience with using strategies from retail store design and product intercept to help lower healthcare costs and improve experience. She also talks about how these strategies apply to managed care companies, insurance companies, and patients. Kara believes that today’s consumers often feel like Dorothy, dropped into the land of Oz: confused, disoriented by a consumer experience unlike any other and with a multitude of simultaneous decisions for which they are unprepared.

She shares the lessons she has learned and techniques you can master to make those clients feel like they are back in Kansas again.

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

  • Her journey from retail and commercial enterprise to the health industry.
  • Strategies and lessons learned from Citibank, Ford, Walmart and Kmart.
  • Where disconnects happen.
  • Why today’s consumers feel like Dorothy, dropped into Oz.
  • The widely-held theory that the physician is at the center of the trust relationship.

Featured On The Show:

Listen To The Full Interview:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Enjoy The Show?

Subscribe-with-iTunes-small Subscribe-with-Stitcher-small

Ep #63: Is Today’s System Like Organized Crime? – With Hobson Carroll

By   Shift Shapers Podcast   Add new comment

ShiftShapersCoverArt

We try to include a lot of different voices on the ShiftShapers podcast, and we have been missing an actuary’s perspective.  Our guest on this episode, Hobson Carroll, is the president of the Medrisk Actuarial Services. As you guessed from the headline, Hobson is a bit unorthodox and creative, but that is what makes him an intriguing and provocative thought leader in the industry – and a great podcast guest!

Hobson joins us today to explain why he describes a part of the current system as “organized crime” and why networks are like “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. He also shares his views on self funding, reference-based pricing and transparency in the marketplace. We will explore strategies that you can use to help your clients navigate  the current healthcare system.

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

  • Why today’s insurance system is like organized crime.
  • Why precision in language is critically important.
  • Whether self-insurance is viable for small employers.
  • What networks have in common with “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”
  • What’s coming in the near-term.

Featured On The Show:

Listen To The Full Interview:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Enjoy The Show?

Subscribe-with-iTunes-small Subscribe-with-Stitcher-small

Ep #62: Understanding and Positioning Captive Insurance Arrangements – With Mark Gaunya

By   Shift Shapers Podcast   2 Comments

ShiftShapersCoverArt

Mark Gaunya returns to ShiftShapers to discuss the use of Captive Insurance Arrangements as an alternate funding mechanism for your clients. More and more advisors are considering different types of self-insured financing mechanisms for clients – especially in the mid to large market space. A Captive adds a few components that help to create a comfort level with clients making the change to self insurance.

Before we discuss the actual ins and outs of Captives, Mark takes us through what he believes are a couple of critical conversations advisors should have with those prospects and clients. You will learn how to explore and understand your client’s buying philosophy, how to understand the three mindsets of a purchaser and how to help them move from being a purchaser to being an in-control owner.

Mark explains how captive insurance arrangement works, how it differs from a traditional insurance purchase and what type of organizations it is best suited for. Tune in to learn about the benefits of this model as well as how to find captives for your clients.

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

  • How to find your client’s buying philosophy.
  • The three mindsets of a purchaser.
  • The difference between purchasers and owners.
  • How to help clients determine a strategy.
  • The difference between homogenous and heterogeneous pools.
  • 3 component layers of a captive.
  • Why brokers might want to consider a segregated cell group captive.

Featured On The Show:

Listen To The Full Interview:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Enjoy The Show?

Subscribe-with-iTunes-small Subscribe-with-Stitcher-small

Ep #61: A Futurist’s View on Healthcare – With David Houle

By   Shift Shapers Podcast   2 Comments

ShiftShapersCoverArt

As change accelerates all around us, most aspects of human life are undergoing dramatic amounts and various rates of shift. With that in mind, who better to ask about the myriad changes surrounding healthcare than a futurist?

Our guest on this episode is David Houle, is a not only a futurist who lectures worldwide, he is also the author of a number of books, including on that is aimed directly at our wheelhouse: “New Age Health: The Future of Health Care in America”.

David reminds us that the shift in today’s healthcare started long before the Affordable Care Act. In this wide-ranging discussion, we end by looking at the past to give us a clearer indication of the future, including some thoughts about initiatives, technologies and new ways of thinking that have the potential to lower costs and increase its efficiency. Don’t miss this informative episode.

What You’ll Learn From This Episode:

  • The true beginnings of today’s industry change.
  • How Gutenberg began a chain of influential events.
  • Why Dr. Devi Shetty is a perfect example of one possible future.
  • The role telehealth plays in today’s health care and where it’s headed.
  • Medical Miracles.
  • Why payers, patients, and providers are at war.

Featured On The Show:

Listen To The Full Interview:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Enjoy The Show?

Subscribe-with-iTunes-small Subscribe-with-Stitcher-small

Back to top