Announcing EBAs 2015 Advisers of the Year
Published August 17, 2015 11:56 AM
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Updated August 30, 2017 6:06 PM
1 Min Read
From an unbridled passion for inspiring workplace wellness to unique employee benefit service models that stand apart from the rest, the 2015 Retirement, Technology, Voluntary, Wellness and overall Employee Benefit Advisers of the Year are making waves in todays benefits industry. Meet the men and women who are receiving EBA's top honors.
Wellness Adviser of the Year
Michelle Spehr
Director of Wellness Consulting
The Benefit Services Group Inc.
Passion and purpose are words that come up a lot when speaking with Spehr. Thats because a little over a decade ago she made a conscious decision to leave behind a successful career in marketing and communications to pursue what she calls her purpose-driven life of helping others work toward healthier lives, starting with workplace wellness.
I look at my role as somebody who teaches and guides and creates the conditions so the employer can work independently at developing a program thats right for their organization and aligned with their business objective, Spehr says of working with clients.
Director of Wellness Consulting
The Benefit Services Group Inc.
Passion and purpose are words that come up a lot when speaking with Spehr. Thats because a little over a decade ago she made a conscious decision to leave behind a successful career in marketing and communications to pursue what she calls her purpose-driven life of helping others work toward healthier lives, starting with workplace wellness.
I look at my role as somebody who teaches and guides and creates the conditions so the employer can work independently at developing a program thats right for their organization and aligned with their business objective, Spehr says of working with clients.
Retirement Adviser of the Year
Kathleen Kelly
Managing Partner
Compass Financial Partners
Kelly says meeting unique client needs is one of the challenges of the benefits industry that she and her team prefers to consider an opportunity to affect change.
Every one of our clients is different. We do not have a plan in a box, she says. We know there are certain things from a behavioral finance perspective that will help increase and improve participant outcomes, but not every client is the same. We spend a considerable amount of time and energy studying the unique needs, the culture and the philosophy of the organization to help drive the right message so that especially when changes occur, they are perceived with a positive perspective from employees.
Managing Partner
Compass Financial Partners
Kelly says meeting unique client needs is one of the challenges of the benefits industry that she and her team prefers to consider an opportunity to affect change.
Every one of our clients is different. We do not have a plan in a box, she says. We know there are certain things from a behavioral finance perspective that will help increase and improve participant outcomes, but not every client is the same. We spend a considerable amount of time and energy studying the unique needs, the culture and the philosophy of the organization to help drive the right message so that especially when changes occur, they are perceived with a positive perspective from employees.
Technology Adviser of the Year
Chris Costello
Principal and Founder
CBG Benefits
After spending his first 10 years in the insurance industry with Unum, Costello, in 1999, started CBG Benefits with his brother Steven.
We try to look at each client from a 30,000-foot level and address the pain points and the needs of the day, he says. That includes everything from tackling a traditional health insurance redesign and benefits spend to using technology to try to automate things.
Principal and Founder
CBG Benefits
After spending his first 10 years in the insurance industry with Unum, Costello, in 1999, started CBG Benefits with his brother Steven.
We try to look at each client from a 30,000-foot level and address the pain points and the needs of the day, he says. That includes everything from tackling a traditional health insurance redesign and benefits spend to using technology to try to automate things.
Voluntary Adviser of the Year
Heather Garbers
Vice President, Voluntary Benefits and Technology
HUB International Insurance Inc. Western Region, U.S.
For Garbers, working in voluntary benefits is the opportunity to match unique solutions to employer client needs.
I feel we work in a very under-served marketplace. So its exciting for me to place a product that is truly a promise that will help generations to come, she says. What I truly like about it personally is that every day I get to work with a different client with different needs. I try to find a unique solution for them, so Im not just selling a product with a rate.
Vice President, Voluntary Benefits and Technology
HUB International Insurance Inc. Western Region, U.S.
For Garbers, working in voluntary benefits is the opportunity to match unique solutions to employer client needs.
I feel we work in a very under-served marketplace. So its exciting for me to place a product that is truly a promise that will help generations to come, she says. What I truly like about it personally is that every day I get to work with a different client with different needs. I try to find a unique solution for them, so Im not just selling a product with a rate.
Employee Benefit Adviser of the Year
Tim Olson
Managing Partner
The Olson Group
Chosen from dozens of applicants in a month-long online nomination process, Tim Olson, managing partner of The Olson Group in Omaha, Neb., stands out as EBAs Employee Benefit Adviser of the Year for his holistic approach to employee benefits, genuine character and trendsetting business practices.
Being an employee benefit firm with a deep history in the retirement field is a differentiator for Olson and his company. We feel that brings us to another level, because your normal employee benefits consulting firm is not going to have a single [retirement] adviser, Olson says. We think we have a great service model that will stand the test of time.
Managing Partner
The Olson Group
Chosen from dozens of applicants in a month-long online nomination process, Tim Olson, managing partner of The Olson Group in Omaha, Neb., stands out as EBAs Employee Benefit Adviser of the Year for his holistic approach to employee benefits, genuine character and trendsetting business practices.
Being an employee benefit firm with a deep history in the retirement field is a differentiator for Olson and his company. We feel that brings us to another level, because your normal employee benefits consulting firm is not going to have a single [retirement] adviser, Olson says. We think we have a great service model that will stand the test of time.
