The tenuous market conditions and slow economic recovery in which today’s brokers and consultants operate is only the beginning of their challenges. Healthcare reform presents another major change on the horizon. Yet many remain optimistic about the growth potential of the benefits industry. According to the inaugural MetLife Broker and Consultant Study, nearly 40% of respondents are optimistic about growth potentials of their firms despite being wary about the future of their industry.

This optimism paradox highlights the fact that many brokers and consultants see potentials for growing their businesses, and are actively exploring these new avenues as their world evolves. Seventy-one percent of brokers and consultants surveyed are unsure if their clients will continue to offer and pay most of the cost of medical insurance for their employees after healthcare reform. Despite this apparent threat to their traditional income stream, brokers and consultants clearly see a new emerging role. When asked how their roles might differ three years from now, overwhelmingly those surveyed see themselves consulting clients on legal and compliance related issues, as healthcare reform unfolds. Brokers and consultants willing to explore new avenues during this time of change in their profession will be essentially redefining their roles and helping to reshape their industry.

“The challenges faced by employers during this time offer new opportunities for those brokers and consultants who can bring innovative solutions to the table. While wary of how healthcare reform might change their firm’s business models as well as those of their clients, the optimism expressed by brokers and consultants about their own futures indicates confidence in their ability to successfully meet these challenges,” says Anthony J. Nugent, executive vice president, U.S. Business, MetLife.