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R&R Insurance Blog

The Benefits of Knowing Your Benefits

Posted by Jeff Sewell

Family-BenefitsGrowing up, my mother would test the patience of my father with a common statement, “If there’s checks in the checkbook, there’s money in the bank.” While I’m not certain if my mother ever bounced any checks, I am certain that my father didn’t find humor in my mom’s lack of ownership with managing money.

 

This same notion of, “If there’s checks in the checkbook, there’s money in the bank,” is one that my wife had with healthcare spend. Now I do need to make a disclaimer, my wife is a very intelligent woman who manages our finances extremely well and is a disciplined, frugal spender, yet when it comes to the money we spend on healthcare, her keen sense to where each dollar is spent goes right out the window.

 

The blame here, though, isn’t on my wife; it lies solely, square on my shoulders. As an Employee Benefits Consultant, it’s my job to understand healthcare spend. It’s my job to teach other people where their dollars are going. And it’s my job to promote consumerism in healthcare. There’s an adage that you should leave work at work, yet I don’t think the meaning was intended to ignore the realism in exerting your strengths when they support your home life.

 

For years, I have made our family’s annual benefit elections and just told my wife if there was a change. For years, I let her take the kids to the doctor and I managed the EOB’s (explanation of benefits) and doctor bills. And for years, my wife and I never talked about our healthcare spend. True ignorance on my part and a disservice to our family, my wife, and the notion of practicing what I preach.

 

Acknowledging that I missed the mark, this open enrollment, we tried something different – I didn’t make the decisions regarding the healthcare for our family, rather, my wife did. Sure, I had done the math, examined whether our company funded HSA or HRA would best suit our needs, and I came up with a suitable selection for our family, yet if I am truly going to get my wife engaged into where our healthcare dollars are going, it starts with the ownership of making our benefits selection.

 

As expected, my wife put on her “frugal spender” hat and dove right in. She forecasted our Brady Bunch like family (3 boys + 3 girls + My wife and I – the Alice) expenses and calculated estimated costs for what for sure needs to be medically accounted for and the “what if’s” of healthcare spend. Once her due-diligence was completed, we regrouped and had a really good conversation about, of all things, healthcare. Our decision was made together and started additional discussions about our healthcare spend and maximizing our consumerism.

 

So what did this teach me, to enhance what I excel at, communication. Having the support of my company, R&R Insurance, behind me, we developed a 12-step progressive communication process (12-PCP) which gets families talking about healthcare spend with a true focus on consumerism and maximizing both employer and employee dollars disbursed on healthcare.

 

I invite you to share in our 12-PCP. It’s worked so well for my family that now my wife says, “So, now that we’re interlocked with our healthcare spend and committed to understanding where our dollars are truly going, maybe we can look into completing the Brady Bunch and add an Alice.”

 

“Sorry, Honey, I didn’t hear you, guess I need to fine-tune my listening skills, too.”

 

For more information on R&R's Employee Benefits Practice, contact Jeff Sewell or visit www.myknowledgebroker.com/health-insurance.

Topics: Employee Benefits, benefit package, health care benefits

Career Opportunities at R&R Insurance Services, Inc.

Posted by Bonnie Tulach

Are you looking for a career opportunity in Southeastern Wisconsin that offers a competitive salary and benefit package? Are you searching for a family friendly company that only requires employees to work 37.5 hours per week? Would you like to be employed by a business that has opportunities for part-time work, job-sharing or flexible work arrangements? Then R&R just might be the right place for you!

Find a promising career with one of the midwest's largest privately owned insurance agency. We are continuously looking for qualified individuals to enhance our staff and provide value to our customers. Sales and customer service are two areas that are always growing. Are you concerned that you don’t have the necessary experience or qualifications? No worries! We have positions ranging from administrative support and entry level customer service agents up to experienced sales executives.

Here is a glimpse of what R&R can offer new candidates:

  • Generous compensation package including profit sharing
  • Comprehensive benefit package
  • Salary plus commission for Sales Executives for the first three years
  • Paid insurance licensing, continuing education fees and tuition reimbursement
  • Family-friendly environment with a 37.5 hour work week (excludes Sales Executives)
  • Business casual attire with casual Fridays
  • Mileage reimbursement and auto allowance
  • Exceptional technology support
  • Unparalleled advertising and customized marketing support from our website and internal marketing department
  • Career advancement based upon personal career goals
  • Every other Friday afternoon off
  • Fun company-wide events throughout the year benefiting United Way
  • Locally owned, family-run business (3rd generation on staff!)

See a full listing of current career opportunities.

Watch video R&R: A Great Place to Work.

Topics: Career Opportunities, profit sharing, benefit package, marketing support, auto allowance, paid insurance licensing, salary plus commission, flexible work arrangement, tuition reimbursement, qualifications, promising career, privately owned, Competitive Salary, mileage reimbursement, locally owned, career advancement, experienced sales executives, business casual, Life at R&R, job-sharing, family friendly, continuing education, experience, generous compensation, Career, family run business