As we approach the beginning of the NFL season following the protracted collective bargaining debacle, I thought I would provide some commentary about business mergers.

Most industries change over time, but the insurance and financial services industries change every day. While it is imperative that brokers and advisers perform their due diligence prior to entering these sectors, it is even more important that they keep up with the ever-changing trends, rules, regulations and laws. Understanding and adapting to these changes is important not only for our clients, but also for protecting ourselves. This is an industry where making a small mistake or oversight, or not fully understanding something, can cost our clients thousands of dollars.

McKinsey & Co. caused quite a stir not only around the insurance world, but all the way to Washington, when it recently revealed that 30% of employers will "definitely or probably" drop their coverage when the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act takes effect in 2014.

If you're looking to build your revenue sources and help your clients introduce or expand their health benefits, voluntary benefit discount programs might be the perfect fit.

In 2012 the rate of medical inflation will continue to rise, PricewaterhouseCoopers reports. Employers are frustrated - not so much by the high cost of the medical as by the apparently intractable upward cost trend that is making benefits plans unsustainable.

The clock is ticking. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's health insurance exchanges are targeted to come online in 2014, which means open enrollment must begin in the fall of 2013. Every state is determining its approach, and everyone in the industry is strategizing on how to tap into a projected market of 25 million enrollees by 2016. The states will take different approaches, but the common denominator is technology. This month we'll look at how technology will be utilized in exchanges and identify other corresponding services that will be necessary to make the exchanges a success.

I started reading September's EBA by picking the article on page 20, "What construction teaches us about wellness." This article compared building a wellness plan to building a house, and it got my mind running. What a great illustration - I kept thinking about that as I read the rest of the issue. This article made a great point that no two clients are alike, just as no two houses are alike, and our job is to learn the needs and build the best plan for our client.

Crossing the value gap should be a top priority for benefit sellers. The value gap is a chasm that exists between how most advisers sell, which buyers view as ho-hum, and a wonderful place where relatively few sellers travel, but buyers love. Taking your buyers across the value gap lands you in a place where buyers are more frequently willing to buy and where you'll have more fun than a kid in a candy store.

After 10 years as a sales coach to benefit professionals - both core and voluntary - I have had an epiphany of sorts. My epiphany was this: Sales success is really very simple, regardless of your product or service. It boils down to this:

It is certainly not news that most Americans are ill-prepared to retire with 70% income replacement. We can blame high fees, which the press and regulators seem to focus on, and a decade of low or negative returns, but the real problem is that most participants are not saving enough and are not actively engaged in the process of preparing for retirement. Then, some industry professionals are still implying that their services are free. But with sweeping disclosure regulations about to become law, that myth will be quickly debunked. It's time to debunk other myths and tell plan sponsors and participants the hard truth.

The top benefit advisers take their clients' needs very seriously. But Anthony (Tony) Madera, winner of this year's EBA Retirement Plan Adviser of the Year award, seems to take them personally.

After going through all the normal marketing steps for his firm - direct mail, email and referral promotions, among others - benefits broker Jim Edholm has added another: videos.

The U.S. health care payments industry is undergoing changes as it grapples with inefficiencies in how patients, payers and providers exchange information and money. At the same time, it must respond to economic pressures, government reforms and other dynamics while it focuses on quality, value and cost reduction.

There's a lot of strategic talk in Big Sky Country these days about the power of biometric screenings, health care analytics, value-based pharmacy benefit management, captives insurance and state-run health cooperatives under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

EBA Advisery Board brings diverse backgrounds, experience.

As a new mom with an 18-month-old and a one-month-old, I'm only beginning to scratch the surface of what it means to feel parental pride. However, I definitely experienced something akin to it as I was reading through the nomination forms for EBA's 2011 Employee Benefit Adviser of the Year.

In these days of increasing reliance on electronic communication and high-tech Internet applications, in-person meetings have never been more important for Darrell Phillips. By holding regular face-to-face meetings with the 4,000 employees at his 41 501(c)(3) and governmental hospital plan clients across the state of Kansas, Phillips' mission is three-fold: 1) Build trust with the employer; 2) Serve the purpose of the programs by helping employees take advantage of their benefits; and 3) Let employees know they have access to a resource who truly cares about them.

Recently, I was asked to present in a sales seminar for one of our clients. The topic was something near and dear to me: "Changing from a product-based sales approach to a solutions-based approach."

Longer life expectancies and the individual responsibility for retirement savings are combining to challenge conventional thinking and to re-shape the relationships between employers and their older employees. Check out five significant practical benefits for plan sponsors.

With investors falling in and out of love with Wall Street at a rapid pace, some financial advisers are finding themselves playing a new role — that of marriage counselor. As financial markets remain in turmoil, couples are getting more anxious as they watch their nest eggs wither.