Benefits Broker Boost

About Benefits Broker Boost

Benefits Broker Boost is the show that gives employee benefits brokers actionable strategies to grow, scale, and streamline their business. We interview industry experts on how they have grown their agencies and their books of business. You can expect to see marketing strategies, technology successes and systems implementation best practices. Our goal is that every broker who takes time out of their day to watch or listen to Benefits Broker Boost will walk away with something actionable that they can apply in their business.

Publisher

Plansight

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

31 Oct 2025

Latest episode

9 Jul 2026

Latest episodes

25 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   9 Jul 2026

   The Fiduciary Advantage: How to Build Trust by Disclosing Everything

   Why Ethos Benefits Discloses Everything In this interview, Adam Smith, Plansight CMO, sits down with Donovan Ryckis, Founder and CEO of Ethos Benefits, to discuss why fiduciary responsibility and fee-only compensation are becoming the standard employers should expect from their brokers. Donovan shares his unconventional path from selling Medicare supplements to building an agency around full compensation transparency, and explains why disclosing exactly how a broker gets paid, before renewal instead of after, is the fastest way to build a level of trust competitors cannot undercut. From Medicare Supplements to a Fiduciary Standard Donovan’s path into benefits started far outside the industry, in financial services selling Medicare supplements and later structuring 401k and pension plans for business owners. When a client asked him to look at a 37 percent projected increase on a group health plan, Donovan applied the same fiduciary process he used in retirement planning and beat the increase without cutting benefits. That case became the foundation for Ethos Benefits, an agency built entirely around a fiduciary standard of care. Fee-Only Pay and the End of Misaligned Incentives The core of Ethos’s model is removing anything tied to a percentage of premium or carrier bonuses for retention and growth, structures Donovan says quietly reward brokers for recommending the wrong plan. He walks through what it actually took to hold that line, including having a carrier appointment canceled twice for moving business away from underperforming plans. The Compensation Disclosure Every Employer Should Request Donovan is direct about how little most fifteen-to-twenty page compensation disclosures actually reveal. He recommends employers request a 408B2, the same disclosure standard used for 401k plans, and explains how a broker’s reaction to that request tells an employer most of what they need to know. Growing by Subtraction Rather than taking on every client that would sign, Ethos capped its minimum account size and sold off 80 percent of its book of business by volume to serve a smaller group of employers at a higher level, a decision that Donovan credits with turning clients into a steady source of referrals. Brokers thinking about what it takes to build credibility through education and transparency will find a lot to take from how deliberately Ethos built its client roster. Building a Culture That Survives Its First Test Adam and Donovan also cover how Ethos documented its processes, brand, and ideal client profile early on, and why the real test of culture is whether leadership follows through once employees are watching. That kind of consistency lines up closely with how trust gets built through follow-through rather than a polished mission statement. What’s Ahead for 2026 Donovan closes by discussing why legislation and litigation tied to broker compensation and misaligned incentives are pushing plan sponsors to ask harder questions heading into 2026, and how Ethos is already using that shift to negotiate stronger data ownership and audit rights into client contracts. Ready to Streamline Your Strategic Presentations? Plansight is the only end-to-end benefits marketing platform that uses AI and automation to ensure every renewal and RFP is consistent, accurate, and fast. By taking the manual work out of benefit planning, Plansight helps you stay ahead of the curve and deliver faster, smarter results to your clients. Visit Plansight to learn more about making your brokerage more efficient.

2. 

   25 Jun 2026

   How to Vet AI Vendors and New Strategies Without Getting Left Behind

   How to Vet AI Vendors and New Strategies Without Getting Left Behind In this episode of the Benefits Broker Boost Podcast, Plansight CMO Adam Smith sits down with Chris Vanderwolk, Director of Compliance and Innovation at OneDigital, for one of the most practically useful conversations the podcast has produced. Chris brings deep legal and compliance expertise, along with a genuine passion for innovation, and the result is a framework that every broker can apply immediately. The Compliance and Innovation Tension Chris's title pits two forces in direct tension, and that tension is intentional. As he explains it, innovation asks what we should do next, while compliance asks how we do it right. Brokers who lean too far toward innovation without compliance expose their clients to real risk. Those who lean too far toward compliance without innovation show up with outdated solutions and lose clients to competitors who are moving faster. The goal is to hold both, and this episode is a roadmap for doing exactly that. Why Polish Is No Longer a Signal of Legitimacy One of the most important shifts in the current environment is that a professional-looking website or demo no longer means anything on its own. With AI enabling the creation of a polished product in hours, brokers need a sharper filter. Chris's advice is to stop evaluating the pitch and start asking for the source documents. For software, that means the actual SOC 2 report, not the badge. For strategies, it means the statute, the tax code section, or the legal analysis behind the claim. Brokers who are pressure-testing AI before the demo ends are already ahead of most of the field. The BAA as an Instant Disqualifier For any software vendor operating in the benefits space, the Business Associate Agreement is the first test. A vendor who does not know what a BAA is, or who refuses to sign one, is probably not serious about working in benefits. A vendor who says they will sign whatever you put in front of them is also a red flag. A legitimate partner will already have one ready. Chris also reminds brokers that PHI is broader than most people assume. It includes enrollment data, billing inputs, and communication materials. Every system that touches that data needs coverage. Brokers who are serious about choosing the right AI for their stack need this kind of filter in place before they ever get to a contract conversation. Plansight is the only end-to-end benefits marketing platform that uses AI and automation to ensure every renewal and RFP is consistent, accurate, and fast, and it is built to meet that standard from the ground up. Two Red Flags That Should Stop You in Your Tracks Chris outlines two filters for evaluating any new strategy or vendor. First, if it feels too good to be true, go look harder. The ERC wave, VA disability schemes, and double-dip tax pitches are all examples of legitimate programs that got weaponized by bad actors. Second, if the only people calling it a great idea are the ones who profit from your agreement, that is a serious red flag. The answer is to build a trusted council of advisors with no financial stake in the outcome. NABIP chapters, LinkedIn connections, and general agency relationships are all good places to start. Brokers who are focused on moving beyond the status quo will find that the vetting habits Chris describes here are the foundation for everything else. Moving Fast Without Breaking Things The anxiety brokers feel about falling behind in AI is real, but Chris offers a perspective worth holding onto. The benefits industry has never seen a second mover go out of business. The self-funding wave, the ACA transition, every major shift in the industry rewarded brokers who vetted carefully and moved with confidence, not just those who moved first. His framework: do not panic, be a fast follower, run a pilot with one innovative client, and build the case study before you roll it out broadly. Brokers who are r

3. 

   14 May 2026

   The Human Advantage: Bridging the Gap Between Modern Tech and Real Connection

   The Human Advantage: Bridging the Gap Between Modern Tech and Real Connection In this interview, Adam Smith, Plansight CMO, and Dennis Walker, Producer at USI, discuss the evolving landscape of the benefits industry. Drawing on his experience as a sales trainer and agency builder, Dennis explains why the most successful brokers are those who combine digital marketing proficiency with old-school, in-person prospecting. The conversation highlights the need to "sound different" in a market saturated with AI-generated outreach and the critical importance of engaging CEOs as strategic partners. The 14 Areas of Carrier Profit Padding A key theme of the episode is the need for brokers to understand the intricacies of policy design. Dennis reveals that there are 14 specific areas where carriers review rates, and they can "pad profits" in nine of them. By mastering these details, brokers can identify where risk truly exists and help clients transition smoothly from fully insured to self-funded models. Controlling AI and Preventing Hallucinations While AI is here to stay, brokers must learn how to control it. Dennis shares how he builds "compression restraints" into his prompts to ensure his AI models don't make up case studies out of thin air. The discussion emphasizes using internal, secure models to maintain HIPAA compliance and using AI to reclaim time for strategic consulting rather than just sending more automated emails. The CEO as a Strategic Peer Dennis challenges brokers to treat executives as their equals. Because CEOs understand finance and budgets, they are often the most receptive to creative benefits strategies when educated properly. By calling CEOs into the room and speaking their language, brokers can move beyond being a vendor and become an indispensable part of the company's long-term strategic plan. Mentorship and the Future of Care The industry is seeing a divide between legacy brokers and newcomers. Dennis advises younger producers to seek out grit and discipline by learning from veterans who built their businesses before the era of cell phones and text messaging. Looking forward, the conversation touches on the rise of subscription-based care and the return of "concierge-level" services that bring the comfort of the 1950s doctor visit into the modern era. Ready To Streamline Your Strategic Presentations? Plansight is the only end-to-end benefits marketing platform that uses AI and automation to ensure every renewal and RFP is consistent, accurate, and fast. By taking the manual work out of benefit planning, Plansight helps you stay ahead of the curve and deliver faster, smarter results to your clients. Visit Plansight to learn more about making your brokerage more efficient.