Tag: Meet the Team

Hear from Jonathan Jimenez about his Compliance Analyst role, and the skills needed to succeed at BCS.

Q: What does a typical day at BCS look like for you?
A: On Mondays I work from home in my pajamas so that’s nice. Besides that though, everyday consists of issuing policies, whether it be Limited Benefits (LB), Accident Indemnity (AI), Hospital Indemnity (HI), and/or Critical Illness (CI)  products. I’ve recently taken on the mantle of CODE Commander, so it’s been interesting steering BCS into a new way to handle our regulatory obligations. Beyond that, I take on whatever is asked of me by my teammates, or the Wellness Committee.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in your role?
A: Focus, Memory, and Flexibility. I deal with lots of repetitive tasks that can vary wildly from group to group and product to product, so focus and memory go hand in hand with issuing policies. Having a good memory and remaining focused on the task at hand is imperative to maintaining a low-error, high volume output. Flexibility has come into play more recently now that I’m under the Operations & Services department; since we all share in each other workloads, we have to be prepared to step in when needed. In the past, I was only exposed to issuing Limited Benefit policies; now I am included in many differing projects, which I enjoy. You never know what the day will bring so you must stay ready for the unexpected.

Q: Describe your department in three words.
A: (1) Fluid – because we are constantly reshaping ourselves to fit the needs of the company. (2) Resolute – despite the challenges we face, we remain committed to getting the job done, and done with precision. (3) Funny – we all have a good sense of humor, and we aren’t afraid to share our lives with one another, even the embarrassing moments (who accidentally cuts their eyeball with a toothbrush?!).

Q: What’s the biggest risk you have taken?
A: Showing my wife Sasha my Pokemon card collection way too early in our relationship.

Q: In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, would you rather find a pot of gold or find a four-leaf clover that will bring you good luck?
A: Right in front of my house, I found two 4-leaf clovers in a span of 10 minutes. I got zero luck from them. So definitely the pot of gold. Not sure how I’d explain it to my bank or the IRS, but I’m willing to cross that bridge when I get there.

This month, we feature Assistant Vice President, Risk Management, Tim Medema. Read on for a day-in-the-life of the Enterprise Risk Management team.

Q: Describe your/your team’s role at BCS.

A: The Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) team is responsible for performing the risk assessment for BCS, monitoring the results and controls to ensure that the Company is prepared for each new challenge. We are also responsible for the company’s Quality Assurance (QA) / Internal Audit (IA) functions. In our QA/IA role we primarily monitor Compliance, Claims, Underwriting and Policy Administration activities at our outside business partners to provide support and insight to strengthen their operations. The ERM team also has many other responsibilities including several of our annual external audits, providing support in due diligence activities, and vendor management.

Q: What does a typical day at BCS look like for you? 

A: Different – No day is the same because we interact with all functional areas within BCS. As you can imagine, the diverse range of responsibilities require quick thinking, collaboration, and an opportunity to make a difference.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: The fact that each day is truly different. I have a team of three direct reports who are dedicated, intelligent, and hard-working.  Because the team and I interact with so many people within BCS, we are not pigeon-holed and never get bored.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in your role?

A: Good written and oral communication skills, attention to detail, dedication, strong subject matter knowledge and a sense of humor.

Q: Describe your department in three words.

A: Dedicated, cohesive and flexible.

Q: You assess risk for a living. What’s the biggest risk you’ve ever taken? 

A: I am generally a risk-averse person and while I may be on the slightly wild side of conservative, I would have to say driving up IL Rte. 83 to and from work each day is more that enough risk for me.

We are kicking off 2020 with a look into our Corporate Services Department. For many, Corporate Services Assistant, Carmen Maldonado is the first person they speak with when calling or coming into our office.

Q: Describe your/your team’s role at BCS.

A: My team’s role at BCS is to deliver the best service for all the company’s internal needs. This includes managing the front desk, answering phones, greeting guests, fulfilling print requests, ordering supplies, and so much more.

Q: Tell us about something new you are working on? 

A: To better assist my team members with print job orders I am currently training on how to run our printer/copier machine.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in your role?

A: The environment at the front desk can change from being extremely busy with guests checking in, incoming calls, lunch orders being delivered to being completely quiet. Skills I would say are most needed for my position in order to succeed would be to master the art of multitasking.

Q: How long have you been with BCS?

A: I have been at BCS for 6 years. What keeps me here is the inspiration I receive from my Supervisor Kevin Mitchell who encourages me to strengthen my skills and build confidence in my position.

Q: Did you make a New Years resolution?

A: My New Year’s resolution is start doing yoga.

Q: In your role, you wear a lot of different hats. What is your best advice for balancing a multitude of tasks? 

A: My best advice for my role is to have a positive and confident attitude. Being the face of the company is an important role to have which is why it is critical to greet everyone, not just outside guests, with a smile!

We close out the year with a look into our Accounting department. Ami Starks, Senior Accountant, describes her team’s role at BCS, the skills someone needs to succeed, how she got started with BCS, and her favorite thing about the holidays.

Q: Describe you/your team’s role at BCS.

A: I am a Senior Accountant for BCS in the Program Accounting area. Our main role is to process reinsurance activity to outside reinsurers and inter-companies each month. These transactions and the timely settlement of balances between reinsurers are very important for BCS to ensure that we manage our net retained risk.  In addition, we are responsible to monitor all the different insurance product lines/management programs to ensure that they are running according to forecast. We analyze all the different components (gross written premium, claim activity, loss ratios, commission activity, etc.) that lead to the contribution to profit and overhead.   This work is very rewarding and challenging, and what I love the most about my job is that each product and each month is so different from each other.

Outside of accounting, I am also part of the Wellness Team. The team encourages employees to find healthy lifestyles. Some of the ways we have encouraged the company to take healthy steps was by creating a Wallyball league during lunch time, installing new vending machines with healthier snack options, bringing in massage therapists to help reduce stress, and hosting a chili cook-off.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in your role?

A: The two main skills needed to succeed in my role are organization and time management. By knowing what steps need to be completed first you get the most out of your time. There are a lot of tight deadlines that need to be met so if you have your work organized in the right flow, you’ll be good to go!

Q: How long have you been with the company?

A: I have been with BCS for a little over four years. I started as an accounting intern for six months, and then transitioned to a full-time employee. Since I was an intern, I feel I was able to get a “sneak-peak” of the company. With this sneak-peak I was able to see how friendly the staff was and the unique-ness of the work. These two things are what drew me to accept a full-time position.

Q: Describe your department in three words.

A: Efficient, detail-oriented, and reliable.

Q: What’s your favorite thing about the approaching holidays?

A: My favorite thing about the approaching holidays is the non-stop Christmas movies being played on the Hallmark Channel. Each movie has the same predictable love story, but I cannot get enough. I love watching!

Observed every third Tuesday in September, National IT Professionals Day honors all those in information technology who keep our businesses connected. To celebrate, we highlight Donte Lee, Manager, Network Administration.

Q: Describe your/your team’s role at BCS.

A: As the Network Administration Manager, my team and I handle all things helpdesk and IT Infrastructure.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Technology plays a big role in allowing flexibility. Being able to balance home and work life is very important to me. Also, I love the personal progress and lifelong learning within my job. My motivation is to be a little more sophisticated every day.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in an IT role?

A: Have patience, stay curious, and have a positive attitude.

Q: Describe your department in three words.

A: Talented, innovative, and inclusive

Q: What is one thing on your bucket list?

A: I would love to obtain my private pilot’s license.

Happy National IT Professionals Day to our entire IT team!

This month we meet Matt Gibson, Director, Business Development. Matt spends his days working with clients, so we asked him for his insights working on our Sales team.

Q: What do you like most about your role?

A: I love meeting new people and building relationships.  Some of the relationships have lasted for many years and will continue for many years into the future.  A close second has to be closing a big deal, and ultimately bringing new business to BCS.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in a sales role?

A: To excel in sales, one needs to have the ability to listen to each client and suggest solutions to their issues.  The solutions may or may not be something that BCS can bring to the table, but it shows that we are all collectively working toward a common goal.

Q: What drew you to BCS?

A: I have worked at BCS for about 3.5 years, and in my prior life, I worked at HCSC for just shy of 15 years.  What drew me to BCS was the chance to work at a smaller company with the goal of being better able to impact change.  Also knowing that BCS plays a major role within BCBS Plans made the decision a little easier.

Q: If you could swap jobs with anyone for a day, who would it be and why?

A: I would want to be a hunting guide.  I first started hunting when I was 8 and have done it ever since.  I love nature and being a guide would allow me to be outside watching the world go by.  It would also provide for the ability to meet new people from all walks of life.

Q: Rumor has it you have quite the sock collection. How many pairs do you think you own?

A: The rumor is true, I do have quite the sock collection.  The collection has grown over the years and I probably have close to 50 pairs of colorful dress socks.  Color and design are critical and the more color, the better in my opinion.  Believe it or not, the socks tend to be a simple way to open conversation.

Bruce Bahn, Vice President, Product Development shares a day-in-the-life of the Product Development team at BCS, and provides additional insights into the recent launch of our EssentialCare Accident and Critical Illness policies.

Q: Describe your/your team’s role at BCS.
A: The Product function at BCS Financial contributes to the growth and profitability of the organization by leading the selection, development, and maintenance of the BCS product portfolio. We are involved in a wide variety of projects which can range from strategic investments and partnerships in new businesses to new and improved features of our current product portfolio. Our key value-add is (to collaborate with business and a functional leaders) to ensure that BCS makes the best decisions in selecting and developing new and improved products incorporating a fact-based view of the customer, the marketplace, competitive set and industry environment.

Q: Tell us about a project you are working on now.
A: While I’ve had the opportunity to work on a very diverse set of projects in my first four years at BCS, the most significant project I’ve been involved with is leading the development of our new portfolio of supplemental health products including Hospital Indemnity, Critical Illness, and Accident Insurance. Like BCBS health insurance, these are products that are sold via expert agents and brokers to employers who in turn offer them to their employees as part of their benefits package. Over the last couple of years, a BCS cross-functional team has worked diligently to develop, file, and launch market-leading products that offer innovative benefits, product features, and broker / customer support capabilities. The effort to design comprehensive and flexible products for a broad range of employer sizes and needs (100-10,000+ employees) and obtain approval for all three products in all 51 states and jurisdictions has been a significant undertaking. July 2019 is the milestone month for our formal market launch with approved products in as many as 75% of country with the expectation for full nationwide availability by the end of the year. Because we are a relatively new competitor, I suspect it will take some time for the market to recognize everything BCS is bringing to the market with this new portfolio. However, given the scale of the opportunity and continued growth of the supplemental health benefits market, I see tremendous future opportunity for BCS and its’ owners.

Q: What’s your favorite project you’ve worked on?
A: For me, the most rewarding aspects of new product development are those somewhat rare occasions when you can meaningfully add to the value that a product provides a customer in new or unique way. In reviewing numerous critical illness insurance product filings from established competitors, it was apparent that they all did a very good in providing customers with the essential financial support in the event of a serious physical ailment. However, none of the products I reviewed included a benefit for those inflicted with a serious mental illness. To me this was a clear gap in the coverage that BCS had the opportunity to address. So with the help of our actuarial partners, we developed a special rider that provides a benefit when a BCS EssentialCare critical illness policyholder is diagnosed with the three most common kinds of serious mental health conditions: Major Depressive Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and Schizophrenia. This new-to-market solution can provide a needed financial support if a person’s mental illness disrupts their life in the same way as a physical condition.

Q: Describe the perfect day off.
A: A walk along the Lake Michigan shore on a beautiful summer day with my family and our dogs.

Q: What’s one non-insurance product you can’t live without?
A: The amount and pace of innovation is the greatest it’s ever been. So many new products will be emerging in the 5-10 years that will address needs we didn’t even know we had. The process of exchanging information will be at the heart of many of these new solutions for daily living, health care delivery, financial services, etc. So while it’s a predictable answer, I’m going to say the product I couldn’t live without is the smartphone. It is and will continue to be at the very center of information exchange at a personal level.

Our June Meet the Team post features Michele O’Doherty, Manager, Policy Development and Issuance. Read on as Michele gives us a peek into the Compliance Department.

Q: Describe your/your team’s role at BCS.

A: The Compliance team’s role in the organization is very diverse. We provide direction and support in the development and filing of new products to ensure product forms are compliant with federal and state laws, and approved by the applicable state regulatory agencies. In addition, the Compliance Department is responsible for review of managed care requirements and reporting, state annual reporting and data calls, coordinating state market conduct exams, tracking and responding to consumer complaints, and disseminating new laws and regulations to maintain and ensure existing products are in compliance. We work with all internal operational departments and external business partners to provide support, guidance, and oversight.

Q: What does a typical day at BCS look like for you?

A: Busy – Every day brings on new challenges, opportunities, and collaboration in seeking solutions to situations that need to be dealt with.

Q: What skills does someone need to succeed in your role?

A: Strong interpersonal skills such as team work, dependability, and flexibility; good written and oral communication skills, analytical skills, and attention to detail.

Q: What do you like most about working at BCS?

A: The people, the opportunities, and the collaboration with a group of dedicated people.

Q: The Compliance department ensures the company follows insurance regulation and rules. What’s the “golden rule” you live by? 

A: Always do what is right.