Adviser profile

“The fire is on right now to say, ‘Why can’t I do that?’” says Marilyn Espinosa, vice president of employee benefits at HUB International.

These candidates have moved through the last year and a half with empathy, thoughtfulness and a dedication to innovation.

Ben Conner, CEO of Conner Insurance, knows that benefits is a relationship-based business.

We have extended our deadline. To nominate a Rising Star please fill out the online form by Feb. 5, 2021.

When the pandemic hit, Benny award winner Bryan Aycock expanded his firm’s benefits programs and ramped up new initiatives to support Zynga employees.

COVID-19 has forced changes in work behavior as employees adjust to a new reality. Here’s how the Advisers of the Year did it during a year of massive disruption.

“I’m on track in saving for retirement because from a young age I learned these things,” says Adviser of the Year winner Julie Yusko. “I hope my experience can help others be in the best position so that we have fewer people who are approaching retirement age and wondering how they're ever going to retire.”

“She has this unique perspective, based on her legal background, her advisory background,” says Marah Funder, director of marketing at EBS. “She has always been the one to identify a need or a deficit before anyone else does.”

Kieran Pittman is director of strategic growth at BeniComp Health Solutions, a position that allows her to draw on her background in technology and health science to help clients.

Before the pandemic changed the way brokers work with their clients, Danielle Capilla was making a name for herself as an adviser who gets things done.

“I didn't want to have to work my way up. I wanted to start at the top,” says Aida Swanson, one of Employee Benefit Adviser’s Top Women in Benefit Advising for 2020.

Our Top Women in Benefit Advising for 2020 are making their mark on the industry with their ambition, innovation and leadership.

The annual Top Women in Benefit Advising list showcases a diverse group of professionals making a difference in the benefits industry.

"No one has ever asked me, 'What’s your journey been like as a black woman financial adviser? How can I help you?'" says adviser Zaneilia Harris.

Deadline extended: Who will join the ranks of the Top Women in Benefit Advising? The deadline to nominate an outstanding adviser elevating the status of women in the industry is Monday, June 1.

Capital Insurance Agency’s David M. Moore, Sr., (1940-2020), led with his “heart, passion and grace.”

This year’s group of standout advisers represent a new generation of leaders from around the country who are tackling issues of wellness, healthcare and new benefit offerings.

“Finding a way to rebuild in that environment, while starting a family, was challenging. You just put one foot in front of the other and figure it out as you go,” says adviser Lisa Talcott, one of EBA’s Rising Stars of 2020.

Rising Star Alex Dampf left his job at a traditional benefits brokerage firm to start his own business and find new ways to manage benefits.

A new generation of Rising Stars tackles wellness, increasing healthcare costs and new benefits offerings.