I'm in Little Rock, Ark., home of John Robbins' company DataPath, on a two-day mission to find out what makes him tick. During dinner, the answer begins to emerge.
An Early Start
Success takes a lot of hard work and dedication, but that's not a problem for Robbins. When he was a child, he suffered repeated bouts of pneumonia and other respiratory problems until, just before his 9th birthday, doctors discovered one of the lobes of his right lung was dead.
That was 1957. Robbins' doctor told him, "if you work hard enough, you can do anything any other kid can do." Eight years later, Robbins accepted the Corey Trophy for best athlete at his high school.
Robbins has a belief that everyone is born with a "void" they'll try to fill with any number of things until they finally hit a point in their life when they are willing to acknowledge that only one thing will fill it: "People long to be touched by positive affirmation, and if they don't get it when they're young; they'll keep going until they find it."
Robbins insists that relationships are crucial in the success of DataPath, and his convictions are evident in a statement from the company's Web site: "Our staff is a group of individuals with various backgrounds, interests, and beliefs. We have chosen to work together, day by day, for the single purpose of continual discovery of our true selves as we endeavor to know, love and serve God. This is our foundation, and our commitment is to grow as individuals and as a company."
Robbins admits that, over the years, many have suggested that the mission statement be toned down a bit. But his answer has always been, "This is what I am, and this is what this company is all about."
Everybody loves a success story. In 1984, two friends started a basement business, worked day and night, met and overcame unexpected adversity, and were rewarded for their efforts.
Robbins and now-business partner Glen Hoffman saw the writing on the wall. There was an outstanding opportunity in the field of employee benefits, specifically in the area of consumer-directed health care. The duo founded DataPath Inc., with an original focus to service the banking industry. Later their efforts were expanded to additional employee benefits customers. Robbins and Hoffman both worked day jobs but spent all of their free time developing software systems. A real paycheck wouldn't come for several years.
Robbins chuckles at the first piece of software they developed and marketed. It was for Section 89 of the Internal Revenue Code, a provision in the Tax Reform Act of 1986. The software was badly needed, but in March 1989, with 73 licensees ready and waiting to use the company's new product, Congress repealed Section 89 amid employer complaints that the law was entirely too complicated.
The little set-back only fueled Robbins and Hoffman's determination and strengthened their commitment to turn their business into something they could be proud of. Today, DataPath is a software company that offers systems and support for employee benefit plans operating under federal regulations, including premium only plans, flexible spending accounts, dependent care accounts, health reimbursement arrangements, health savings accounts, transportation and parking plans, COBRA and more. The company provides system design, development, distribution, installation, support, and fulfillment services - everything a company or provider would need to manage a full-scale employee benefits program. They've distributed more than 1,000 applications to customers across the United States and serve these clients with ongoing technical and management support.
DataPath's clients are many and varied, including employers, benefit consultants, and plan service providers such as CPAs, banks and insurance companies. But third party administrators make up the bulk of their client base. With a million TPAs to choose from these days, many of them offering their clients the moon, it's important to understand that a TPA is only as good as the software system they've chosen to support them. And while the end user may not know what software the TPA uses, DataPath works quietly behind the scenes to make sure their clients look good. To assist with this effort, DataPath relies on John Hickman with Alston & Bird, one of the nation's leading ERISA attorneys, to keep them in compliance with the complicated and frequently changing tax code and employee benefit laws.
Walking the Talk
When DataPath was founded back in 1984 - right in the middle of the managed care movement - nobody had heard of consumer-directed health care. But Robbins and Hoffman had a vision, and for the last 25 years they've helped create the industry that supports their company and their clients, an industry whose ultimate goal is to change people's lives.
Consumerism, as Robbins will tell you, is about making better decisions, healthy decisions. Easier said than done, for sure, but here again he's walking the talk. More than a year ago, DataPath implemented its own wellness program called MyPath, a point-based program that allows employees to earn cash rewards.
There's no "funny money here." Robbins explains. "Employees don't need a 20 percent discount on something they shouldn't be spending 80 percent on. I wanted our folks to be able to make a real difference in their health and turn that into real dollars on their paychecks."
Leading the Way
In turbulent times, some companies sit on the sidelines, waiting to see what their competition - or more recently, the government - is going to do. But that's not DataPath's style. The company has typically been first in line not only to develop new software to meet the needs of their clients but also to do what's best for the industry's overall well-being. And that translates to a lot of non-revenue-producing work.
Since 1986, Robbins has been an active member of the Employer's Council on Flexible Compensation, a Washington, D.C.-based lobby group for flexible benefits, and currently serves as the association's director of governance. He is also actively involved in several other groups and associations, both inside and outside the industry.
What does the future hold? Nobody knows for sure, but Robbins and Hoffman are obviously excited about the possibilities. With one test case under their belt, the folks at DataPath are now ready to roll out MyPath to all of their employer clients.
They're also turning their attention toward personal health records, exchanges, HR services, payroll processes, and payment solutions. Undeterred by the current economic and political environments, Robbins and Hoffman forge ahead, confident that any changes on the horizon will provide additional opportunities for both themselves and their clients.
Sharon Alt is the founder and president of Alt Benefit Consultants, a third-party administration company in Fort Worth, Texas. Sharon can be reached at 817-507-6409 or sharonalt@altbenefits.com.
