What We Look for in Benefits Counselors
August 22, 2019 | Curry Bradley, Chief Marketing Officer, Principal
Choosing your benefits can be a daunting, stressful process — but it shouldn’t be. In fact, it should be anything but, and at Winston Benefits your employees’ peace of mind is our top priority.
To help ensure it, we provide benefits counselors who speak with employees in person during the open enrollment process. It’s a point of pride for our business, but more importantly it helps make the enrollment process easier for your employees so they can make the best decision for themselves and their families.
Here’s how we identify and select benefits counselors, the star players on our team.
The Hard Skills
Our benefits counselors have experience in the benefits sector, and diverse backgrounds even within the sector. Some have worked for carriers or brokers; others have had their own insurance practices. Additionally, we require our counselors to maintain their continuing education so they stay up-to-date on advancements in our industry.
We also recognize that the U.S. workforce is changing, and it’s important that we’re able to meet employees at a level they’re comfortable with. That’s why we provide bilingual counselors for client populations when needed. After all, peace of mind is crucial, no matter what language you speak.
The Soft Skills
We value interpersonal skills in our counselors so they can put employees at ease and instill confidence in their benefits decisions. Effective communications skills are also a must, because our team must be able to communicate material effectively and answer any questions.
Finally, there’s problem-solving skills. Benefits decisions can often be complex, and our team often has to navigate out-of-the-ordinary issues. Being a good problem-solver is essential to making sure our clients’ employees get the benefits solutions they need, no matter the complications.
Education
In addition to industry licensing, we prefer for our benefits counselors to have completed a bachelor’s degree, at minimum. It’s not just for the educational aspect; we have found that college diplomas are a signifier of soft skills as well.
However, we know education doesn’t stop in the classroom. We provide in-house training for our counselors so they can be confident educators, subject-matter experts and trusted partners for your employees.
Disclaimer: This content is strictly informational and should not be used as specific advice on insurance products, legal, accounting, and/or tax related matters. Insureds should always contact the appropriate licensed professional for their insurance, legal, accounting, or tax needs.
