Borislow Insurance
The Next Stage of Evolution in Employee Benefits - The Health & Wealth Connection

The story of Borislow Insurance (BI) began in 1982 when Jennifer Borislow—an industry leader in the life insurance business diversified her business by entering the small group employee benefits market. Her approach to small employers moved them away from an annual ‘check box’ renewal process, to something that would truly serve the employees and help small employers attract and retain high quality people. Twenty-two years into her journey (2005) and with a team of thirteen, Jennifer became business partners with Mark Gaunya, a visionary in the healthcare space. Together, they assembled a highly skilled team of experts in multiple disciplines (eleven now) to help evolve their business model to serve the middle market and large group segments of the employee benefits market. Empowered by a clear vision to make healthcare and benefits easier and more affordable for their clients, BI is experiencing rapid growth in New England and now across the U.S.

Today, in line with its culture of constant creativity and innovation, BI and its middle market healthcare platform Captivated Health (CH), build and deliver employee-centric strategies with clients that help them create a culture of physical and financial health and wellbeing in the workplace. The firm leverages the individual and collective wisdom of their team in collaboration with their clients to tap into the power of sophisticated data analytics and leading technology that educates and empowers decision-makers and employees about how to unlock the full potential of their employee benefits program.

It has been an exciting journey for Jennifer Borislow and Mark Gaunya, who are changing the status quo in the healthcare, employee benefits and financial wellbeing landscape one step at a time. In an exclusive interview with Manage HR, Gaunya, Principal at Borislow Insurance, Founder & CEO of Captivated Health, shared his insights on how the firm has positioned itself to solve the healthcare and employee benefits challenges of clients. He was joined by Michaela Scott, Strategic Benefits Consultant, and Travis Horne, Director, Health & Wellbeing. They spoke in depth about the current state of employee benefits and how their firm is educating businesses and transforming the way employers and employees look at and interact with their benefits.

Can you give us a brief overview of your firm?

Mark: Headquartered in the Boston, MA area, our firm has a long and tenured history, which is built on the bedrock of mutually empowering partnerships with our clients and strategic partners. Since Jennifer and I joined forces in 2005, Borislow Insurance has witnessed 800 percent growth. Today, BI has more than 300 clients across the U.S., served by a team of seventy-two Benefits Superhero’s – special people that go deep and wide in their area of expertise. In 2014, we expanded our operation by creating Captivated Health, a group health purchasing eco-system for middle market organizations who individually and collectively partially self-insure their healthcare and employee benefits. Over seven years, Captivated Health has grown to serve 30 organizations in 6 states with over 10,000 members and growing for their health and wealth connection needs.

To help our clients understand and adopt best practices, we authored several books on Consumer-Driven Health Plans, Health Savings Accounts and Workplace Culture, each crafted to make theory better understood through the practical application of our clients and their case studies. Our membership in the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU), Million Dollar Roundtable (MDRT), Top of the Table (TOT), United Benefits Advisors (UBA) and the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers (CIAB) has also contributed to our success in the health and financial wellbeing space. Owing to this unique environment of trust at the firm, we have been named Boston Business Journal’s ‘Best Places to Work,’ and earned the title of Massachusetts’ Best Small Employers to Work seven times in a row.

In your interactions with CFOs as it relates to their medical benefits and retirement plan, what sense do you get of the challenges they face in delivering healthcare and financial confidence for employees? How are Borislow Insurance and Captivated Health addressing these issues effectively?

Michaela: A primary concern for the C-suite is the financial bottom-line of their organization and how to retain and attract top talent. In most cases, the employee benefits program is the 2nd biggest item on expense side of the profit and loss statement after payroll that grows 4-5x faster than any other. The challenge is how to capitalize on that investment, save time and money and maximize the use of benefits dollars.

And, in the process of delivering on the promises of the benefits program, to not burn out their teams. Our benefits advisory model is unique because we work collaboratively rather than in silos to create a strategic roadmap for our clients that helps them achieve their vision. We take the time to understand the whole picture, incorporating health, wealth, and overall wellbeing, putting the puzzle pieces of their plan together so we can help them eliminate dangers, seize opportunities and maximize strengths. Clients enjoy solutions that tie-together derived from having their benefits advisory, retirement advisory, and centers of excellence including health & wellbeing and risk management sit across the table from each other as the clients’ passionate advocate. And this is what Borislow offers.

For employees, we provide communication and education support to create a holistic experience which includes resources that promote informed decision making. The individualized experience we create for our clients and their employees inspires them to make informed decisions that benefit themselves, their families and the organization’s that employ them. We partner with business leaders who agree it is a strategic imperative to ensure that health and financial wellbeing programs are tied together and aligned for everyone to deliver measurable results.

Mark: Further, we help employers create a vision for improving the performance and the overall value of their employee benefits and total rewards program. We believe it is critical that all stakeholders possess an ownership mindset and embrace the principles of consumerism, health and wellbeing while committing themselves to constant creativity and innovation. With an open mind, employers can create a sustainable health and wealth connection for their employees. This is where the financial wellbeing of an employee becomes even more important. Financially healthier employees are more likely to be happy, physically well, and more productive, which can translate into greater business success for the organization. The financial health and wellbeing of our clients and their employees is our “why” – and in our experience, when you align physical and financial health with the business objectives, you create a culture that connects the health and wealth of the organization and its employees.

“Today’s business owners and managers are dealing with complexity that was unthinkable just a few short years ago. From compliance issues to Health Savings Accounts, we meet each client where they are.” Please walk us through this statement and shed some light on your health & wellbeing Solution based on its methodology, features and benefits involved?

Travis: Our solutions are grounded in the questions that truly matter: Are the employees happy and healthy? Does the culture offer sustainable programs or solutions that address employee’s health & wellbeing wholistically? Do they have the necessary tools and resources to make informed decisions?

To answer these questions, we focus on the five essential elements of health & wellbeing: physical, financial, workplace, community, and mind-spirit. This five-element construct is the cornerstone of our client approach to developing and deploying a Culture of Health & Wellbeing. We do a complete assessment based on these elements and evaluate their entire business from a cultural, risk management, and compliance perspective. Based on the obtained insights, our team of cross-disciplinary experts develops a three-year roadmap that addresses the pain points and business needs of the client organization, which assists them in bolstering their wellness strategy with ease. We act as an extension of our clients’ wellness teams, helping them revisit their delivery models and fully execute on their health & wellbeing programs, whether it is focused on the employee’s physical health, financial wellness and/or their workplace environment.