I love this time of year, all the birds are chirping andeverything is starting to bloom.  It always inspires me tolook at my business and start incorporating some new ideas andstrategies, many of which I have learned from some of these amazingwomen in this article series.

The annual BenefitsPRO Broker Expo was a lot of fun andfull of great content, giving me even more ideas to kill it insecond quarter.  I met a lot of great women at theconference and am excited to introduce you to some of them thisyear, too. I got to meet so many of them in person that have beenfeatured in the past, which I find both personally andprofessionally rewarding.

This month, I'm excited to introduce you to some new friends,Cindy, Jessica and Jeanne.  They are not only thriving intheir business world, they are all looking to connecton anassociation level and to help educate not only their clients, buttheir peers.

Cindy Duick, CLF®, LUTCF®  Senior RegionalMarketing Strategist, Principal®

“Reflecting on two decades in theinsurance business, I realize how passionate I am about helpingothers learn and grow.  So, I've focused on two areas ofself-improvement: (1) being a more effective communicator and (2)collaborating with like-minded professionals. First, I joined alocal Toastmaster Club and subsequently earned my CompetentCommunicator (CC) and Advanced Leader Bronze (ALB) designations in2018.  Currently, I serve on as Vice President PublicRelations for the chapter. I continue to learn and improve mycommunication and leadership skills at the weeklymeetings.  Toastmasters helps me improve my in-personpresentation skills, as well as phone/Skype communicationskills.

My second focus has been to surround myself with like-mindedprofessionals. To this end, I joined the local chapter of Women inFinancial Services (WIFS).  Through WIFS, I have met andbeen reunited with many amazing women in our industry. Theirsupport is phenomenal.  For 2019, I am serving as theDirector of Public Relations for the Gold Coast of Women in Insurance& Financial Services. I continue to see personalprofessional benefits in the skills and relationships I'm buildingby participating in these two organizations.”

Jessica Waltman, Principal, Forward HealthConsulting

“This year, I expanded my practice helping health insurancebrokers with compliance concerns by working on several bigprojects with an educational component. Of these, I'm most proud ofthe 10-part certification program I authored for the National Association of HealthUnderwriters. Called “Employer-Sponsored Plans in a Post-ACAWorld,” it is an online continuing education series about privatehealth insurance market changes now that health reform is engrainedinto our public policy, insurance policies, and publicexpectations. Working with the NAHU professional development team,I created the outlines, slides, notes and final exam, and Iinstruct most of the online course segments. There is also a4-credit classroom version.

I am proud of the course in its entirety, but to me, the mostsignificant achievement was writing the accompanying course book. What began as a 20-page study guide became a ten-chaptertextbook that is now marketed to university-level insuranceprograms. Writing a book was a life-long dream; although I alwaysimagined a novel, not a tome about the ACA! The good news is, nowthat I know it is possible for me to write a book, I'm crafting awork of fiction in my free time, and health reform is barelymentioned!”

Jeanne Moore RN, BSN, MBA, Connections Healthcare CostContainment

“Essentially, I fix health careone employer at a time.  Over the last six years, I've hadthe opportunity to work with employers of all shapes and sizes andgenerally found that the lack of process integration andinappropriate use of niche vendors were the two key factors infailed outcomes.  With over 21 years' experience in thehealth care product development and insurance space, I believe myexpertise leading product development initiatives (creating theproducts and services employers are purchasing) gives me keeninsight into quickly identifying what's working and what's not forany employer group.  From clinical and financial dataanalytics to product selection and design that drives measurableoutcomes, my experience encompasses the entire spectrum of thehealthcare industry.

Using Continuous Process Improvement and Change Managementtechniques, I take immediate action on any low hanging fruit. ThenI set a course of action to customize an infrastructure thatprovides hassle free, high quality care at affordable prices.

Most recently, I started my own consulting firm working withregistered nurses who have mastered the two most complex ecosystemsin America today: the health care delivery and health insuranceindustries.  I help employers find the “hidden streams ofrevenue” impacting their total cost. I effectively and efficientlymanage a customized health care benefit design that moves withtheir population. I also build collaborative teams between theproviders of care and the health insurance entities. My goal issimple: a zero-dollar contribution plan for all full-time Americanemployees.”

As always, if you know of great women in the field who areworking hard to make this this industry even better, send an emailintroduction to [email protected]. I'd love to connect!