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HR Party of One is brought to you by BerniePortal.

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Did you know one of the earliest artifacts showing evidence of business trade is a

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complaint about a broker? …are you shocked?

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In the ancient Mesopotamian city-state of Ur, located in modern-day Iraq,

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a disgruntled merchant filed a complaint against the person acting as their go-between

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to purchase copper. Ea-Nasir was not the best precious metals broker of the year 1750 BCE.,

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which is almost 3,800 years ago. Many complaints were filed against him,

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some sarcastically remarking, “You are sooooooo good at this!”

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Keep in mind that these complaints are in cuneiform… on clay tablets. They were written

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by pressing a wooden stylus into wet clay to preserve the message as it dried, which is tedious

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and extremely time-consuming. One complaint, written by the disgruntled merchant Nanni,

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was written front and back. Nanni was so angry with his broker that he painstakingly pressed

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cuneiform figures into wet clay, waited for it to dry, and flipped the tablet over to continue his

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tirade. One notable line expresses Nanni’s dismay at Ea-Nasir’s response to the poor

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quality of his copper: “If you will take it, take it; if you will not take it, go away.”

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Even ancient copper brokers said, “Take it or leave it.” However,

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you have more options when choosing your broker than the unhappy business

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professionals of ancient history did. Fact is, businesses need brokers. They

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fulfill a critical go-between function that nets your organization better benefits,

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insurance against property and casualty damage, and more. Today’s brokers compete for your

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business, giving you incredible leverage when you are in the selection process.

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So, in this episode of HR Party of One, let’s discuss what you need to know about

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selecting the best broker for your business so you don’t end up like Nanni. We’ll cover:

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The Benefits of Having Brokers, A “Good” Versus a “Great” Benefits Broker,

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Factors to Consider When Broker Shopping , and ... Interviewing Your Potential Benefits Broker

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Let’s dive in! -The Benefits of Having Brokers.

The Benefits of Having Brokers

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Brokers are your go-betweens, liaisons, middlemen, or generally the person you should

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be able to trust to figure out a tricky or time-consuming problem. For example,

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a Real Estate agent is a broker specializing in finding you great housing, so you don’t have to

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spend time researching new neighborhoods, average housing pricing, HOAs, etc., all on your own.

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HR interacts with a few different kinds of brokers on behalf of their company. Let’s list some:

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A benefits broker works on health insurance benefits and

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designing a healthcare plan for your organization.

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A property and casualty broker is another kind of insurance

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broker who secures your physical locations and company vehicles.

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A business broker streamlines mergers and acquisitions,

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acting as the liaison if your company wants to purchase another business or vice versa.

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A credit broker can help secure credit loans,

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such as if your company decides to expand and needs to purchase a new location.

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A transport or freight broker may work alongside a company to transport goods,

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such as if your company produces items that are delivered to another location.

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These brokers, and many other kinds, serve the vital function of making

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your life easier. Their goal is to step in and take care of complicated,

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time-consuming responsibilities. Some of them have to become licensed. For example, insurance

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brokers pass intense qualifications to advise businesses or individuals. So employing one not

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only saves time but also saves you from a mountain of legal compliance regulations. Also, benefits

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may be your biggest expense after payroll, so brokers impact your budget big time.

What Separates a “Good” Benefits Broker From a “Great” Benefits Broker?

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Finding the best benefits broker for your organization requires thought, care,

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and planning. There are good and bad brokers out there. A bad one is easiest to spot—you see them

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the one time per year they do anything to help you, which is during open enrollment, and rarely

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otherwise. A good one responds reliably fast and tries to keep elections costs down when insurance

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premiums inevitably go up. But a GREAT one is going the extra mile to improve your HR role,

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your organization’s culture and trust in you, and your organization’s bottom line.

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What Separates a “Good” Benefits Broker From a “Great” Benefits Broker?

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You don’t just want a “good” broker. Benefits may be your most significant expense after payroll,

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so ensuring you offer the best benefits within your budget is incredibly important.

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There are some identifiable ways a great broker distinguishes themself from their competitors.

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Firstly, they offer fantastic service year-round. If you only hear from your

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broker when open enrollment approaches, you won’t get the service you deserve. They should

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be touching base with you throughout the year. A good broker checks in a few times a year,

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maybe offers to meet with confused individuals when they have a qualifying life event.

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A GREAT broker sends you regular communications, keeping you updated on news and trends. They are

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available to step in as the licensed expert to manage the worries of your workforce.

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They ensure you know about big changes impacting your organization or industry. For example,

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did your current broker check in with you when the overtime threshold rule passed in April 2024? Or

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when the IRS stopped accepting paper filing and moved to electronic filing? BerniePortal told

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our users immediately so they could plan in advance to move ACA filing onto our platform,

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which can fill and file 1095-C forms with ease. For HR pros without a ben admin system

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or a broker who watches the news, their filing season was likely a nightmare.

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Secondly, they provide more than just benefits advising. Your broker should go above and beyond

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to help you learn about your role so you can more valuably impact your company. Many broker agencies

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provide HR consulting, so an HR Party of One like yourself can tap into the expertise of others.

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BerniePortal provides brokers who give their clients our platform thousands of resources

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to help you. For example, BerniePortal provides blogs, e-books, free courses, and the HR Party of

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One Community, a discussion forum designed for HR professionals. Or, ya know… this YouTube channel.

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A great benefits broker improves your business and your role, not just your benefits package.

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Thirdly, they provide a technology solution to administer benefits. The modern-day broker

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isn’t Ea-Nasir, who used clay tablets. But some brokers aren’t far off if they use pen and paper.

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A great broker should be tech-savvy, so your open enrollment and ben admin needs are streamlined.

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BerniePortal provides form mapping for all your needs, which does a few things you’ll love:

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Prevents employees from accidentally skipping a form or section they must fill out,

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like when adding dependents or waiving elections.

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Puts everything on the portal and removes paper from the process,

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so you don’t have to read chicken-scratch handwriting.

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Reduces the chance of error almost entirely,

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so you don’t need to reopen enrollment or hunt down people to fix something.

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Creates accountability, so no one can claim they filled a form when they didn’t, or that

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you never sent them something, or that something didn’t work; the evidence is all in BerniePortal.

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Would that cut down on the struggles of open enrollment or ben admin? It does for me!

Factors to Consider When Broker Shopping

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Now that you know what to look for in a broker,

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let’s discuss the factors to consider during your selection process.

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Factors to Consider When Broker Shopping. Brokers aren’t one size fits all. Neither

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are your needs. But if you Google “benefits broker near me,” you’re going to get hundreds

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of results to filter through. So, let’s narrow your search with these factors:

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the type of brokerage you prefer, the size of your organization, and your anticipated growth.

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Type of brokerage. Brokerage agencies can range from small,

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independent firms to massive national firms. If your workforce is spread across multiple

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states and needs a brokerage agency that can offer more generalized services,

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you may prefer a larger agency. If you desire a unique, boutique even, kind of healthcare

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plan to customize it to the specific needs of your workforce, aim for a smaller brokerage.

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Organization size. Some brokers only work with groups that have a certain number of lives,

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which is how the insurance industry frames how many of your employees utilize benefits.

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A broker may specialize in small group plans, which have under 50 lives or so. Some small

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groups have as little as five lives. If a broker tells you they only work with groups

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of 500 lives or more, but your org employs 50, then you’re not talking to the right people.

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Anticipated growth. If you plan to grow, you must hire a broker to scale your health plan to your

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current and future size. A broker who excels at compliance and cost-savings, and knows benefits

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trends will know when your increasing headcount factors into important decisions. For example,

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if you’re currently employing 80, but will have over 100 by the end of the year,

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your broker should tell you how that changes your premiums, compliance needs, and more.

Interviewing Your Potential Benefits Broker

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Interviewing Your Potential Benefits Broker. When interviewing a candidate, how many rounds

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must they pass before getting an offer? Submit a sample of their work? Provide

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references or recommendation letters? You put a lot of thought and care into each

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final-round candidate before making the ultimate decision that is best for your

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business. Why WOULDN’T you do the same when hiring a benefits broker???????

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Brokers are competing for your business, so they should go above and beyond to get

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hired. You should request references from current clients to learn how the

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broker has improved their organization or cut costs without reducing options.

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Describe your current health plan. What creative

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ideas does the broker have to improve your current offerings?

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One benefits broker I know told me he attends every prospective client meeting with a printed

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form. His goal is to leave the meeting with that form signed. That form is the only thing

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that separates a prospect from becoming a client. Hiring a broker is that easy.

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One signature on one document, and your new broker then sends it to the necessary parties.

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That’s also how easy it is for a broker to lose your business, so they should go the extra mile

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to keep you. If you’re interested in learning more about this process,

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our specialists are ready to help! Check out the link in the description for more information.

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And if you’re a group health broker watching this—we can help you, too. Let’s talk about how

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BerniePortal is what your employer groups need. Remember—your role is as strategic as you make it!