Every morning when Ed Oravetz, president and senior benefitsconsultant at Visicor, walks into his office, he sees a picture ofhis son, Justin — who died in 2007 — on his desk.

That tragic life event led to what Oravetz describes as his"Jerry Maguire" moment “where I sat down and re-evaluatedeverything.”

“Justin was 6’4 and 300-plus pounds,” Oravetz says. “He was anintimidating teddy bear. Heart of gold. If someone needed help, youcalled Justin.

“He was all about family, it was his top priority,” he adds. “Itwas not until we lost him that I realized he was a better man thanI was. I want to be more like Justin and want to honor him as Igrow as a person.”

That’s what led Oravetz to found the Friendswood, Texas-basedVisicor in 2007.

“I wanted to create something different, unique,” he says. “Ireally took a hard look at the industry and where it was going withhealth care reform projected at that time, and I wanted a differentapproach with clients, so we sat down and really mapped out wherewe would like an agency to be.“A lot of times in this industry, wetry to find that silver bullet,” he continues.

“We say, ‘It must be wellness, or having a clinician on staff,or ancillary or voluntary benefits.’ But I don’t think there is asilver bullet. I think it’s a broad picture of this thing we callemployee benefits. I think the difference is, we cannot look at itas just going in and performing a duty. We really have to becomeengaged. We have to partner with our clients, understand where theywant to be — what’s worked, what hasn’t worked, the long-termvision for their employee benefits package — and then we have todig deep and find long-term solutions.”

That philosophy has created a company that’s known for itsunique approach to client management; Oravetz conceived of theagency’s philosophy specifically because he wanted to approach hisclients in a new way.

“We’re a value-based organization with a unique set ofprinciples, grounded in transparency,” he explains.

He describes Visicor’s strategy as a pyramid, and at the bottomof the pyramid is all the compliance-related components ofinsurance sales and maintenance.

“We’re not just educating on compliance,” Oravetz explains.“We’re educating and then providing all the solutions — not for anadditional fee, but truly protecting our clients.”

Further up the pyramid is consulting, where Oravetz and hiscolleagues at Visicor help clients proactively build a long-termstrategy that might include ancillary or voluntary benefits,depending on the workplace. Then come communications andadministrative concerns.

“We have our own in-house enrollment and education team,”Oravetz says about communications. “We educate our clients aboutthe core set of benefits and really teach employees at the baselevel how to get the most of their plan and how to utilize it.

“We want to shoulder the burden in all four areas of employeebenefits: compliance, consulting, communication and administration.So all employee and employer questions, billing reconciliation,qualifying events, new hires, terminations—we want to manage thatfor the client. We just want to be really engaged and walkshoulder-to-shoulder, side-by-side, and guide them through the mazeof employee benefits.”

Oravetz acknowledges this is more difficult than simplyproviding clients with information, but it’s how Visicor operates —and it’s what sets Oravetz and his colleagues apart from theircompetition.

“We don’t want the most clients; we’re not looking for numbers,”he explains. “We’re looking for high-quality, high-touch clients wecan actually deliver value to on a daily, weekly, monthlybasis.

“I understand being profitable,” he adds. “In this business,we’re not selling widgets. Whatever we’re doing is resonating inthe market — we’re getting the attention of some of the largestfirms in the country. And we’re very transparent. When we go inwith a new client, we let them know about every dollar of revenue,so there’s no wondering. There’s no hiding behind that revenuenumber. And then we can show them: ‘You’re generating $5,000 amonth for Visicor.’ Now we have to create enough value for that tobe a positive transaction for you.”

And that means focusing on the client, not the almightydollar.

“As a business owner, we must be profitable in order to takecare of our employees and continue providing value to our clients,”Oravetz acknowledges. “However, if we focus on the money, it’snothing more than a business transaction. And we’re in the peoplebusiness, so that’s not a long-term strategy. Our objective is toretain clients for more than 10 years, and in order to do that, wemust deliver a tremendous amount of value on a weekly, monthly andannual basis. By doing that, the profits will be there.”

That’s one of many reasons why Visicor will be named as one ofHouston’s fastest-growing companies by the Houston BusinessJournal — the employee benefits brokerage and consulting firmis a healthy, thriving business that shows how Oravetz’s philosophyworks in action.

“Long-term profits are best created by delivering value andfocusing on the clients’ needs,” he adds. “We’re in this businessfor the long-term, so what we do today will matter in five, 10, 20years.”

It’s a concept outlined in “The Go-Giver,” a book by Bob Burgand John David Mann that Oravetz has made required reading forevery employee at Visicor.

“The book talks about creating value and focusing on the needsof others while eliminating the ‘what’s in it for me’ attitude,” heexplains. “At Visicor, this is at our core. We go all in with ourclients and partner with them. We have the same attitude toward ourinternal team members. It is not about our job, it is about the job— taking care of clients. And we treat our carrier partners andvendors in the same manner.”

Given Visicor’s success, it’s not surprising that Oravetz isoptimistic about the future of the insurance industry.

“There just seems to be a lot of ‘gloom and doom’ in ourindustry right now, and I simply don’t see things that way,” hesays. “I realize there are many changes in the industry, and thereis no business as usual, but that’s a good thing. The changes inthe market are pushing our industry forward and raising the bar onprofessionalism, which is great for employers.

“I always say, ‘It’s time to get better or get out.’ If we’renot willing to raise the bar and position ourselves for the changesupon us, it’s probably time to find a new way to make a living,” hecontinues. “However, if we’re not afraid of change, and we’rewilling to do whatever it takes to serve our clients and growprofessionally, the future looks bright. I believe the agents andagencies that embrace change are the ones that will gain marketshare.”

He focuses on hiring agents that feel the same way.

“This is not a business that you can just say, ‘I’m coming inbecause I know I can make a lot of money, and I’m just going tofocus on revenue,’” he argues. “You have to figure out a way thatyou’re willing and capable of serving others, because you’re notgoing to be successful until you do. It’s finding those individualswho are taking a long-term approach, not a short-term transactionalapproach, but who really want to dig in, help others, provideknowledge and establish a long-term stable career.”

And for Oravetz, it’s what he thinks Justin would have wantedfor him. The picture on his desk is “a reminder that there’ssomething bigger out there, and we can approach this in a differentway. And like-minded people with the same philosophy — those peopleend up coming to us, whether they’re vendors or carrier reps. Otherpeople in the industry who actually see us walking that walk willcome to us in terms of wanting an opportunity to work with us.”