In this episode of the ShiftShapers podcast, host David Saltzman welcomes Stephen Sokoler, founder and CEO of Journey, to discuss the importance of mental health care in the workplace. Stephen shares his personal journey, from entrepreneurial beginnings to discovering meditation and ultimately founding Journey in 2015. They delve into pressing mental health challenges including stigma, therapist shortages, and the inefficiency of traditional EAPs. Stephen outlines Journey's proactive and inclusive approach to mental health care, emphasizing the importance of early intervention, awareness, and cultural competency. Tune in to learn how Journey is making mental health care more accessible and effective, and boosting EAP utilization through innovative strategies.

Key Takeaways:

• Daily Integration: Embedding mental health resources in workplace tools like Slack improves accessibility.
• Cultural Competency: Providing multilingual and culturally relevant content ensures effective support.
• Confidentiality: Strong privacy measures are crucial for employee trust and usage of mental health services.
• Thorough Evaluation: Comprehensive assessments help tailor support to individual needs.
• Awareness: Increasing awareness and reducing stigma around mental health resources is vital.

More From Journey

In this episode of the ShiftShapers podcast, we're joined by Daniel Cobb, Vice President of Sales and Strategy at Strategic Benefit Resources, to discuss the evolving landscape of Stop Loss Self Funding and the tech and data solutions supporting it. Cobb shares his journey from the mortgage business to insurance, emphasizing the significant changes and opportunities in self-funded health benefits plans. We discuss how the expansion of self-funded plans is now reaching groups as small as 25 employees. Cobb also explains the role of artificial intelligence in pricing stop loss, as well as the increasing demand for transparency and flexibility in health benefits management. Cobb also offers insights into how advisors can help clients transition to self-funding, the importance of understanding client needs, and other future trends in the industry. Business owners and executives - from large and small firms alike - stand to benefit from the important insights in this business podcast.

Key Takeaways:

• The expansion of self-funded health plans now includes smaller groups, with as few as 25 employees participating.
• Artificial intelligence and advanced data tools are crucial in pricing stop loss and expanding self-funded health plans to smaller groups.
• Advisors need to understand whether their clients are savings buyers or quality buyers to effectively present self-funding options.
• Transparency and access to first-dollar claims data are key benefits of self-funding, allowing for better management of healthcare costs.
• The future of self-funding involves greater access to data, regional variations in plan management, and continued evolution of high-performance health plans.

Strategic Benefit Resources: https://www.strategicbenefitresources.com/

Thank you for tuning into this insightful episode of Shift Shapers. If you enjoyed our conversation with Daniel Cobb, please rate, follow, share and review our podcast. Stay tuned for more episodes where we explore the latest trends and innovations in the health benefits industry.

In this episode of the ShiftShapers podcast, host David Saltzman welcomes Steven Amiel, CMO at NextGen Benefits, to explore why marketing has become more challenging, costly and less effective in terms of ROI than ever before. They delve into the new regulations on tracking and targeting prospects, discussing how the move toward double opt-ins has changed the landscape of data collection. The importance of authentic communication is highlighted through real-world examples, emphasizing why marketing messages need to be genuine and aligned with personal branding. They also discuss the pitfalls of overextending marketing efforts, particularly on platforms like LinkedIn, and the need to focus on conversions rather than likes or opens. Steven provides insights on the shift from mass advertising to an account-based marketing approach and the crucial role of first-party data in effective marketing. He addresses how different strategies apply to small versus large companies and emphasizes the importance of building executive credibility and personalized engagement in sales. Steven also talks about future marketing trends, including interactive webinars and storytelling, as key strategies for 2024 and beyond.

Key Takeaways:

1. Government regulations have changed how health benefits marketers can track and target prospects, emphasizing the need for authentic communication.=

2. Authenticity is crucial in marketing communication to establish a personal connection and engage prospects effectively.

3. Emphasize conversions over likes or opens to drive meaningful results in marketing efforts.

4. Shift toward building first-party data through engaging strategies and personalized interactions to improve deliverability and lead quality.

5. Focus on differentiating yourself by understanding prospects, establishing executive credibility, and aligning messages with the target audience for successful marketing campaigns.

More from NextGen Benefits: https://www.nextgenbenefits.com/