What are we going to leave behind? A Q&A with Justin Leader
Justin Leader of BenefitsDNA strives to meet employers where they are and help them get where they need to go.
Paul Wilson: How did you get started in the benefits industry?
I studied pre-medicine in undergrad and got a Master’s degree in Exercise Science with a focus on injury prevention and corporate wellness. I really wanted to get a job as a personal trainer, but it turns out that career is really cool for dating but not for paying the bills. So I ended up working in an area that we deal with every day: the pharmaceutical industry. I won Rookie of the Year for my company, but I didn’t feel good about what I was doing. Looking for something more entrepreneurial, I joined Morgan Stanley, although I didn’t end up feeling great about what I was doing there, either.
Related: How and why I became a benefits advisor
In 2011, I met an older gentleman who had built a fantastic business working with Fortune 500 companies regarding ancillary benefits. He said, “Kid, I want to teach you about this business. I think you’d do great.” He took me under his wing and empowered me with tools to work with his partners or prepare for the future.
I started my own benefits agency in 2014. Around that same time, I was at a Tough Mudder in New Jersey and started chatting with another participant. After the race, we realized we were both in the benefits industry, around the same age, and so we started collaborating. I ended up joining his family’s firm to oversee business development for a few years and we both learned a lot. We did a lot of great work for clients and then launched a national direct contracting program and have had a lot of fun.
Ultimately, I knew my goal was to grow a high-end consulting agency with a unique employee-owned model. I have since stepped back into the agency I started, BenefitsDNA, bringing on some thought leaders and experts who have become partners.
PW: How has your background shaped your mindset and the way you do your job today?
In both my personal and professional life, it all comes down to relationships and doing the right thing. I look at this problem that is the U.S. health care system, and whether I’m talking to an individual who’s uninsured, an executive at a big company or someone on a political level, I get to change that person’s life with the knowledge I’ve acquired. We get to touch so many lives, which comes with a lot of responsibility. It’s all about relationships. I like doing good for people and that’s why I couldn’t stay in those other industries.
PW: How are you adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic? How has it affected your business and your life?
The world came to a screeching halt and we had a few options: One, we could stop, as well. Or two, we could pivot and continue to pursue opportunities to expand on what we’re currently doing or do something different. Aside from the chaos, sadness and financial ruin that so many are facing, I’ve found balance in spending time with my wife and seeing my 14-month-old learn to crawl and walk and become this little human being who has provided us with so much joy. But I also look at him every day and think, “What world am I going to leave for him?”
In our business, my partners and I have taken it upon ourselves to reevaluate our philosophical goals and alignment to continue to deliver innovative solutions. We’ve also started focusing on a huge problem in America: the working poor. How do we solve these major problems regarding health care access for folks who maybe don’t have insurance or are out of a job? It’s turned into a personal mission. Yes, we’re all going to earn a living, which is good, but what are we going to leave behind for our kids?
PW: How will this change your planning and communication with clients?
I think everyone has had a massive wakeup call about things like remote work, overhead expenses, and office space as we’ve had to pivot and shift. But I also see a ton of employers that have reevaluated their relationships, not only with consultants and advisors, but also the vendors and other people they’ve trusted for years or even decades.
I have never been busier in my life and am having fantastic conversations. There’s a lot of struggles for folks; this is a mental marathon right now. What will bring us back to normal? There’s also the reality that we may never return to what was, for a number of reasons. I think this has been a litmus test for the sustainability of our current health care system. And there are people who are scrambling, who are scared, who don’t know what’s to come in the form of health insurance increases, renewals and that type of thing. Organizations are pivoting to try to get ahead of something they never thought would happen in their lifetime.
From an employee perspective, I see two things that people are struggling with right now: the affordability and accessibility of care, which presents some opportunities around virtual primary care; and mental health care services, which presents another huge opportunity. I see a lot of folks dealing with the uncertainty, the isolation. If you have a solution to present, I encourage everyone to do that.
PW: What are the hardest and most rewarding parts of being an innovator?
You look at the past 10 years, with the introduction of HDHPs, increasing premiums, wage stagnation and the fact that health care literacy is at something like 12%. People are struggling to understand the basics, let alone the concept of what could be done. I work every day for that “aha” moment. Because employers are in the driver’s seat, they just don’t know it.
PW: Are you seeing more employers having “aha” moments and becoming more open to innovative ideas and strategies?
It’s one of two things: There are forced revelations, where some people have nowhere else to turn and they’re between a rock and a hard place. They have to come up with something else, because this line item on their P&L is damaging their business and their employees are suffering. They’re walking around functionally uninsured and they can’t afford to access their health plan.
Then there are folks out there who are fighting the way things have always been done in our industry. I just got off the phone with the CEO of a 155-life company. I met with her two years ago but she’s now realizing that the broker who said they could deliver certain things didn’t actually deliver. I’d say the knowledge and education that’s becoming available to the general population and forced decisions are the biggest things driving change right now.
PW: How do you meet employers and employees where they are but also gently move them to where you think they need to be?
I used to be a personal trainer. When you meet with your trainer or your consultant or advisor, you want to be a little sore at the end of the day. But I also don’t want to work out a client so hard that they pass out and fall over. I offer an a la carte menu of resources and try to understand the risk tolerance of each employer, as well as the employee population, so I can introduce solutions that meet them where they are and help them get where they need to go. It doesn’t mean you don’t push them a little bit, but I’ve found that anything you force down their throat isn’t going to be met with open arms and can cause some serious issues.
When I was a trainer, I had different strategies for an 18-year-old kid or a 65-year-old exec that would keep them motivated to come back the next day. It’s the same in our business. People can smell BS a mile away. They want to work with someone who cares.
PW: How do you stay motivated?
My Aunt Gwen, who was the toughest person I’ve known, passed away in July. A year ago, she’s working in the town where I grew up, where the average median income is about $30,000. She’s working at Denny’s and trying to take care of her family, her kids and grandkids. She has a high-deductible health plan, she can’t afford time off work, she can’t afford her out-of-pocket expenses. She ignores symptoms for a year, collapses, discovers she has stage 4 cervical cancer. And do you know what her first thought is? It’s not, “How can I beat this?” It’s “How can I afford this?” I will do everything I can to change that in this country. That’s what drives me.
PW: How is transparency changing the industry?
I think we’ve made things a lot more complicated than it needs to be, and a lot of it has been done intentionally to keep people in the dark. An uneducated buyer isn’t going to make the best decisions. Transparency is the right thing to do and has to happen, but it’s fighting against an industry that makes money in a lot of places where it probably shouldn’t. So as we pull back the layers, it goes back to the idea of re-educating people who’ve been lied to in a lot of ways.
It’s important to be open with employers. A lot of benefits advisors are moving toward what happened in the 401(k) and wealth management industry after the financial collapse: fee-based arrangements and realigning incentives. And while there hasn’t been a legal precedent since Sarbanes Oxley that’s forced that, with the health care spending bubble that we’re quickly approaching, there’s probably going to be some regulation that ensures everyone is on a level playing field.
PW: How do you keep up with all the change in our industry and determine what you need to focus on?
If you work in or run a nimble organization, you can adapt quickly to changing legislation, to great ideas and to innovations that hit the market. But you will never be an expert on every aspect of benefits; it’s far too broad. So I spend the majority of my day with other individuals across the U.S. who are philosophically aligned with me, who want to do the right thing, but who are also way smarter than I am.
It’s about networking, reading publications and keeping your eyes, ears and mind open. Otherwise, it’s easy to get jaded and miss opportunities that are right in front of you. That’s how I try to live day to day, and it’s pretty exciting.
PW: How can the industry do a better job of innovating, adapting and bringing in younger and more diverse candidates?
I think it’s the responsibility of everyone in the industry to change the old mindset. In the new mindset, I see people of color, people from different backgrounds, more women, and we’re all working twice as hard to overcome the stigma of how insurance people look and act. I see it going from the negative stereotypes to a trusted advisor like a financial advisor or legal counsel. There’s just as much value and responsibility in what we deliver.
I’m also seeing a shift in the older demographic toward a place of mentorship that I haven’t seen before. That gets me excited because people are realizing that there needs to be a changing of the guard, a torch-passing. The more effectively we can do that and encourage it on an organic level, rather than organizations checking boxes, we’re going to succeed and then hopefully move to a point where you can be proud to say, “I work in the insurance industry.”
PW: What struggles have you faced as a leader? How have you built the right team around you?
My grandfather told me, “Listen to those who have been down the path before you; you’ll learn something and avoid making the mistakes that they’ve made.” You have to be open-minded and willing to accept advice. Be understanding and empathetic and know that you can’t be all-seeing or omniscient.
Remember you can refine yourself and become better. Invest in people and recognize what they bring. It’s not easy; I fail every day as a father, a husband, a friend and in my business, but you have to be willing to learn and move forward.
PW: Finish this sentence: The key to success in this industry going forward is…
Just keep doing the right thing.
Read more from our Face of Change series: