To effectively do the bestpossible job for your clients during these times of economicupheaval emanating from the pandemic, you need a process formanaging change. Because change will be the only constant for theforeseeable future. You need a process and a methodology to helpyour clients plan their benefit's decisions and expenditures. Yourclient's need a roadmap, a strategic plan, to guide their tacticaldecisions; both their actions and reactions. And it needs toinclude contingency plans because of all the possible changes thatare completely out of their control.

To do this, you will need to become much more consultative in your approach. And youwill need a formalized process that's replicable, as well astraining and tools to make this transition successful. But yourclient's need you to do just that, and they demand their advisor(s)provide this kind of counsel and expertise, or they will findsomeone who will. All of this will be independent of how they gainaccess to life and health insurance products in the future. Yourprimary value proposition cannot be as the access point toproducts. Your clients need your expertise and you need to reinventyourself to remain relevant.

You may be asking yourself: "I get it, but where do I start?" Itseems clear you need to start with first analyzing your clients andprospects. You need to focus in a very real and meaningful way onwhat they need now and over the next three to five years. What dothey want to accomplish with their benefits program? Do they evenwant to offer benefits? Will their competition offer benefits?These are all real-world strategic questions that any thinkingemployer should be considering. Whether you acknowledge it or not,they will be thinking about these questions. So you need to embracethe process and lead the discussion.