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00:00:14.135Hello everybody and welcome to Adjusted.
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00:00:20.452What would happen if, any time you needed a service, you didn't have to struggle for a response.
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00:00:22.807You immediately received what you needed.
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00:00:29.246Today, I'm excited to talk about responsiveness and especially responsiveness in the insurance sector.
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00:00:31.452So glad to have my guest with me.
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00:00:41.494I'm, of course, Greg Hamlin at Berkeley Industrial Comp and Senior Vice President here in beautiful Birmingham, Alabama, and with me are two of my favorite people on my team.
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00:00:44.465I have with me Luella, if you'd like to introduce yourself.
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00:00:46.149Hi there, luella Alcorn.
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00:00:49.360I'm a Senior Business Operations Manager here at Berkeley Industrial Company.
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00:00:54.484And she is in one of my favorite places in the world Lexington, kentucky, so close to my mama.
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00:00:58.273She lives there and we lived there for a bit, so I love, love Kentucky.
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00:00:59.344Yes, I do too.
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00:01:03.151And then my next guest, chris, would you like to introduce yourself?
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00:01:08.783Yeah, chris Drake, I'm a claims manager here in the Indianapolis area.
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00:01:15.147I will make a plug real quick that Indiana basketball is far superior to Alabama and Kentucky basketball.
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00:01:20.006I love what you're saying there and I want to agree because I am a Hoosier.
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00:01:26.388But it's been a rough ride, but I think better days are coming, so I can only hope.
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00:01:33.525But if I'm betting in Vegas this year, I probably would put it on UK or Alabama, but I'm there with you.
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00:01:34.709Basketball is king.
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00:01:41.552And Chris does come from Indianapolis, where I lived for almost 20 years, so it's definitely a special place for me.
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00:01:54.009So, excited for today's topic because one I'm getting to deal with, two of my team members and two, this is something that I feel really passionate about and I think we've all been there at different times.
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00:01:57.004I can remember when my father passed away.
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00:02:04.224He had an account for audiobooks with a company and my mom.
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00:02:14.682A year had passed and my mom recognized that they had been charging him for a year, every month, for these audio books and she couldn't figure out how to stop it.
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00:02:20.643And here my mom, a recent widow, is struggling with this and I'm trying to figure out well, how do I solve this for her.
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00:02:25.371And so I called that company and I was put on hold.
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00:02:32.051I was transferred, I was put on hold again, I was switched over, I talked to somebody, then I had to talk to somebody else.
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00:02:44.987It took me about an hour to get it not only taken off but also refunded, because I said you know, my father's been passed away, you've been charging a dead man for this, and they ended up solving that.
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00:02:58.425But the anger I felt going through that and part of it was it reminded me of my own loss and my dad reminded me of my mom who's struggling with trying to solve this, and it was so frustrating that I had to go through all that and eventually it was resolved.
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00:03:07.163But that hour obviously that was years ago stands out in my head so brightly, brightly because of all the things I felt going through that.
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00:03:13.550So I want to talk about the opposite end of that today, as we go into responsiveness, and I want to start with you, luella.
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00:03:16.080Why do you think responsiveness matters?
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00:03:18.891For our policyholders or for an agent?
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00:03:23.006Well, a lot of the things that they're contacting us for are time sensitive.
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00:03:30.241So if you had a month you know to wait to get the answer, then you might feel comfortable sending an email and waiting for that response.
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00:03:39.200But if your payment is due, or you're wondering about a quote or you're wondering if there's something that you know is within our appetite, then you need to just talk with someone about that.
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00:03:42.145Really, you know, quickly answer the question and then you can move on.
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00:03:45.569So again, some of the things just can't wait and you need a live answer.
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00:03:46.632You need to talk to someone live.
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00:03:47.854I think that's huge.
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00:03:49.281Chris thoughts on that.
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00:03:52.068Yeah, I think she hit it hard when I think about it.
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00:03:53.360Responsiveness what does it do?
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00:04:00.167It's going to build trust, it's going to help foster relationships and it's going to enable us to efficiently solve problems, right?
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00:04:02.953So I'm really really passionate about this.
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00:04:12.088There's a negative perception out there at times of the insurance industry, so there's a lot for me to unpack.
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00:04:13.836I think when you think of responsiveness, there's two things come to mind.
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00:04:14.519One, is there a timely response?
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00:04:16.322Two, is there effective communication?
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00:04:29.949And I think, if you look at it, responsiveness in itself really really ties well with empathy and this is a shameless plug for one of the podcasts that we recently had on empathy, right, like, I think you cannot overstate that.
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00:04:35.149It's one of the most simple concepts of trying on another person's perspective, right?
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00:04:48.420It's so underappreciated and so underutilized because it's so basic Just put yourself in somebody else's shoes, treating others with the way that you want to be treated and just provide the overall level of service that you would want and expect from others, right?
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00:04:50.045So I think that goes a really really long way.
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00:04:53.343If you think of it from a claims perspective, you're an injured worker.
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00:04:55.911You get up that morning or go into work that night.
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00:04:58.009You're not expecting to be injured, right.
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00:05:03.206This is an absolute disruption to their daily lives, whether it's medical or from a financial standpoint.
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00:05:08.254They're probably not related or familiar with the work comp process, so that's where we come in.
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00:05:10.884We're there to help shepherd them through the entire process.
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00:05:21.103That comes down to timely responding to their calls, effectively communicating what the expectations are, what their benefits are, and just shepherding them through the process.
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00:05:25.122Or, if you have our catastrophic claims, there's going to be an immediate need.
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00:05:28.389Do we need to be able to deploy resources out there to the hospital?
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00:05:34.591Are we going to be able to coach them on the discharge process to their normal daily lives?
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00:05:37.767And then you have, like, the overall effective communication piece.
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00:05:40.562That's where the relationship building, the trust, comes in.
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00:05:51.622It allows us to field their requests, to assess their needs, and then we can make informed decisions at that point in time and then, if their needs change in the future, we can use that agility right.
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00:05:54.810We can respond to their needs and adapt as we move forward.
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00:06:06.353So I think those really hone in on the fact that you know we're trying to build that trust, we're trying to build these relationships and we're trying to help people with their needs to bring it to resolution.
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00:06:25.714I love that, chris, and what you said there about empathy, I think is really important, because in the example that I gave at the beginning, you know, I think the reason I felt that way not only was the waste of time, but, you know, if somebody had just taken that step and said I'm so sorry to hear that that must be really hard, it would have meant a lot to me in that moment.
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00:06:29.598Obviously, mistakes get made by every organization.
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00:06:37.646I don't think they were intentionally trying to take money from my mom, so we make mistakes on our end too, but owning those mistakes and showing empathy goes a really long way.
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00:06:44.269Luella, I know you talked about the need for urgency and the need to be able to get answers when you need them.
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00:07:02.509Several years ago and we did an episode on this we created a whole new unit called the Business Engagement Unit, and the concept behind that is how do we redefine traditional admin roles and change that up so that we're hiring top talent and we're standing out with responsiveness?
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00:07:05.346Well, can you talk a little bit about that journey of creating business engagement and how it out with responsiveness?
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00:07:08.204Well, can you talk a little bit about that journey of creating business engagement and how it's addressed?
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00:07:08.987Responsiveness?
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00:07:09.889Happy to.
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00:07:10.982So.
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00:07:30.149Years ago we used to have a call tree where someone called our 800 number and it was a voice recording that would say if your question is related to whatever the topic is, press one and it would go through a group of individuals and then it would see if someone would answer and then go to voicemail.
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00:07:36.129And so I asked the question pretty quickly saying why don't we answer the phone calls live?
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00:07:44.798And so the main thing is that everyone had their area of expertise, and so if I'm in finance, I only know answers to the finance questions.
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00:07:45.925If I'm in claims, I only know answers to the finance questions.
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00:07:48.286If I'm in claims, I only know the answer to claims questions.
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00:07:51.221If I'm in underwriting, I only know the answer to underwriting questions.
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00:08:16.158So what we needed to do to be able to answer the phone calls live is do a lot of cross-training to make sure that the individuals that would be answering our phones would know the answers pretty basic but then sometimes into extensive questions so that when that individual calls us whether that's a claimant, whether that's an agent, whether that's a policyholder that they would be able to get the majority of their questions answered talking to one person.
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00:08:18.629That really doesn't exist most places.
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00:08:21.266So of course it was hey, let's do this.
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00:08:37.583We created the team, we did again have to train a lot and cross-train and make sure that we had materials available to those individuals that sometimes things come up every day that you know the answers to, and sometimes it's something that only comes up once a month or once a year.
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00:08:54.009We have to have that material available to those individuals so that they have access to get the answers, and then only in certain situations that it is extremely specific would we then have to transfer that call to another, more specific person in that department to get the answer.
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00:08:59.261And the feedback that we've received is wonderful.
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00:09:15.822They are surprised when we answer the phone and I actually just answered the phone right before this call, I was on our monitoring system, I took a turn and so it was like, oh hello, you know kind of surprised that it's a live answer and I was able to answer every single question that she had.
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00:09:17.267We resolved the issue.
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00:09:18.470She said thank you so much.
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00:09:19.580You know, have a wonderful day.
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00:09:22.042So that is the change.
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00:09:27.485You know where she had a concern, she had an issue that she needed and we're able to answer all of those questions.
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00:10:01.192We have new people that are coming in the marketplace now that so many people have gone to automation, and I think there certainly is a huge place for automation, but when we're dealing with people who have feelings and questions, having those answered in a way that's effective and creates relationships is really important.
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00:10:05.110I can think of a call that I had just in the last couple of weeks.
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00:10:12.166There was a new account that an agent wanted to write with us and they called me for whatever reason the underwriter didn't even know.
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00:10:15.024They called me Later, when I talked to the underwriter, they're like oh my gosh, I'm so sorry.
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00:10:15.907They called you directly.
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00:10:17.009I said no, it's great.
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00:10:26.264So the agent calls me directly to talk about this account, if we should write it and what kind of service the claims team can offer.
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00:10:28.048And I'm going over all of that with her and she's really impressed.
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00:10:34.472And then she said well, do you have like a designated person who can be our relationship manager for this account?
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00:10:45.957And I said well, you just called the chief claims officer of the company and I answered the phone and she kind of paused and I said so, if we answer our phones, do you really need that?
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00:10:48.149And she kind of stopped for a minute.
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00:10:50.174She goes you're right, this is unusual.
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00:10:59.666I said we're going to answer our phones and if that isn't happening, you need to let me know, because our goal is to get you what you need and if you call me and you need me, we're going to be available.
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00:11:02.149And we ended up finding that account.
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00:11:26.225Chris did the onboarding for that account, so I think there's a real opportunity in our space to stand out with exactly what you're talking about, of answering our phones phone call live.
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00:11:31.120So business engagement that we monitor those voicemails and we log them all as well so that we have track of who has left the voicemail and we call them back same day.
00:11:31.120 -->
00:11:33.929So that's another piece of this right is.
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00:11:54.057It isn't possible to every single time your phone rings, answer that phone call live, but that voicemail is just as important as the live call to us, where we have them log so we can keep track of that and then make sure that then we're making the note that we did return the call, who we spoke with, that it's resolved to its completion and then we're done with that particular voicemail.
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00:11:56.855So even voicemails are important to call that person back.
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00:11:57.537I love that.
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00:12:01.070Are there any other initiatives that you've done as a team to improve response time?
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00:12:10.874Sure, not only do we answer phones and log the voicemails and call those back, we receive emails, countless emails every single day with the same type of questions or concerns.
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00:12:16.634So we have the same rules for emails that we'd like to return that within 24 hours.
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00:12:31.052Some, of course, are a little bit more extensive, but we'll respond to them and say we've received your email, we're gonna work on this and then we'll let you know when it's done so that we can acknowledge and many of our email addresses that individuals will use for us.
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00:12:39.284They receive an auto reply saying thank you for your email and we kind of had some directional arrows like, let's say, they're checking a medical bill status.
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00:12:50.105In that auto reply we give some of the most common answers and many times in those auto-replies the answer is there and then we follow up with another email just making sure that they have that.
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00:12:59.466But we've learned from some of the common questions that we get that if we can just feed them that information when they send that email and that auto-reply, that has been a success as well.
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00:12:59.886I love that.
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00:13:04.833I know you're always trying to teach people how to fish as well, so I love that about you.
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00:13:24.755I really believe that the responsive piece is important and there are so many different ways we tackle it and one of the benefits that we've seen in the business engagement team is we've hired a lot of recent college grads to step into that role and they get exposure to all the departments in the company.
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00:13:49.116Step into that role and they get exposure to all the departments in the company and they really get an idea where they think they fit best so that when those roles open up in claims or underwriting finance, they already know the culture, they already know the claim systems, they already know a lot of the basics, which makes their spin up time so much faster and has really helped us kind of create a conduit to the future as we think about the next generation of insurance professionals.
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00:13:50.380Totally agree, it has.
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00:13:52.827So we've got folks in every department now.
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00:13:54.753That started out under Llewala's team there.
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00:13:57.246So super exciting, very proud of that.
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00:14:02.388So, chris, on the claim side, why do you think responsiveness matters when we start talking about claims?
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00:14:06.817So from the very first conversation you're really kind of setting the tone right.
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00:14:25.804So when a claim comes in the door, you may not have had a relationship with that customer before the insured Right there you're building that relationship, you're building that trust, you're communicating with them to see, I mean, do they have light duty availability, just what does their program look like and how can we think big picture and work ahead right.
00:14:25.804 -->
00:14:33.850And then, once we're moving to the conversations that are injured workers, they may not have a knowledge of the work comp system right, as I mentioned earlier.
00:14:33.850 -->
00:14:36.798They're probably frustrated at that point in time.
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00:14:38.971They're injured, their life is completely disrupted.
00:14:38.971 -->
00:14:43.028So how can we intervene in that period of time and help give them the reassurance?
00:14:43.730 -->
00:14:45.712It comes down to the effective communication piece.
00:14:45.712 -->
00:14:51.792We just want to be able to hear them, to explain to them, and you're really setting up a cadence for future communication with them.
00:14:51.792 -->
00:14:58.597They know that they can contact us and Luella made a really good point on this about being there, being present as soon as they call.
00:14:58.597 -->
00:15:07.458They can get you on the other end and if they're not, if we're on the phone, call somebody else quickly getting back to them and continually keeping that open line of communication.
00:15:07.458 -->
00:15:11.913So if they go to an appointment they can provide us an update.
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00:15:19.076If there's a need for additional treatment authorization, we can authorize that right on the spot or review it to get it authorized so there's least disruptions possible.
00:15:19.705 -->
00:15:23.669I think you both hit on something that sometimes gets forgotten about, and that's setting expectations.
00:15:23.669 -->
00:15:25.851Both hit on something that sometimes gets forgotten about and that's setting expectations.
00:15:25.851 -->
00:15:44.379So, when you get that response, if it is going to take some time to work on setting those expectations, that I need to do some research and I need to do some work on this and I will get back to you within X amount of time but I think that really helps because when you feel like something's fallen into a black hole, the result is frustration and anger.
00:15:44.379 -->
00:15:48.190Like something's fallen into a black hole, the result is frustration and anger.
00:15:48.190 -->
00:15:48.551And it could be.
00:15:48.551 -->
00:15:51.658We're working on that very thing right now, but it's complicated and it takes a little more time.
00:15:51.658 -->
00:15:53.870So I think you both hit on that and those are.
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00:15:55.254Those are really big deals.
00:15:55.725 -->
00:16:05.177Well, the other thing, too, that I'll add Greg to that is that if you're not acknowledging it, then that could potentially result in a second email saying did you get my first email?
00:16:05.177 -->
00:16:09.211And then a third email saying did you get my second email?
00:16:09.211 -->
00:16:26.951So to your point is if we can quickly and early on, set that expectation of what we need to do to be able to properly respond to you with the actual answer that you're needing, if you can just acknowledge that you received it, then they know that you've seen it, they know that you're working on it, and then they can be patient.
00:16:26.951 -->
00:16:32.312It makes them nervous if they don't hear anything like well, it's falling on deaf ears, and I now need to escalate this.
00:16:32.312 -->
00:16:36.413So it makes more work for us if we don't just acknowledge it from the beginning.
00:16:36.855 -->
00:16:41.910Well, and I think, unfortunately, the default setting for most people now is to jump to.
00:16:41.910 -->
00:16:52.191It got lost, it wasn't heard, nothing happened with it, because that's happened so many times to everybody in their personal life that they're actually a little bit surprised when we do that.
00:16:52.191 -->
00:16:53.234And that's what we want to do.
00:16:53.234 -->
00:17:01.337We want to surprise our insureds, our injured workers, with our ability to handle their problems and listen and work through them.
00:17:01.337 -->
00:17:07.228Chris, in your perspective, what are some of the negative consequences when we fail to respond?
00:17:08.049 -->
00:17:09.894I think one you're starting off.
00:17:09.894 -->
00:17:11.436You're ruining your trust.
00:17:11.436 -->
00:17:16.356The trust is there, the credibility is ruined and you're going to fracture some of those relationships.
00:17:16.356 -->
00:17:34.669I think, if you take it from a claims context, if you're waiting, if an insured is waiting to hear what a work status is from us and just to go over the accommodation piece to see if they can bring somebody back to work, the longer we delay it, the more it could cause delay in that injured worker getting back to work, which has increased TDD cost.
00:17:34.669 -->
00:17:37.942That doesn't only impact the insured but that impacts the injured worker.
00:17:37.982 -->
00:17:38.846That's money too.
00:17:38.846 -->
00:17:46.430If they're a max wage earner they're tied to that amount and for every day that passes that could be additional money that's out of their pocket.
00:17:46.430 -->
00:17:49.622So it really comes down to the responsiveness there.
00:17:49.622 -->
00:17:56.625Then, also from an injured worker standpoint, if they're not hearing from an adjuster, they may want to litigate.
00:17:56.625 -->
00:18:02.608They feel like they have no other option to go to an attorney who will be the voice for them to connect with us.
00:18:02.608 -->
00:18:10.816So that lack of response into this, you know it could really impact not only from the insurer but in the injured workers perspective.
00:18:11.684 -->
00:18:11.965I agree.
00:18:11.965 -->
00:18:18.830I think that it, you know, it can definitely drive the cost of the claim up in so many different ways and hurt our reputation.
00:18:18.830 -->
00:18:20.796So there's a lot there in our trust.
00:18:20.796 -->
00:18:21.557You know.
00:18:21.557 -->
00:18:22.708I think it's interesting.
00:18:22.708 -->
00:18:26.144I heard this on a book I read, if you think about it.
00:18:26.144 -->
00:18:29.152In high school most of us had to go to speech class.
00:18:29.152 -->
00:18:36.272We always talk about that part, like the message, communications, all the speech part.
00:18:36.272 -->
00:18:52.510There's a self-help book section in the bookstore but there aren't really listening classes and there aren't really help others sections of the bookstore and a lot of what we're talking about is putting other people first and when we do that, that creates trust.
00:18:52.510 -->
00:19:10.026It creates a partnership that can result in a much better result than when we only focus on us, which is, I think, the default setting that we have to fight us, which is, I think, the default setting that we have to fight Lolo.
00:19:10.026 -->
00:19:12.342From your perspective, what are some more negative consequences that can happen if we don't respond?
00:19:12.342 -->
00:19:12.724You've hit on some.
00:19:13.545 -->
00:19:30.846Well, yeah, and it's also like, if we can think about those that we partner with, you know we have bills that we pay, or you know people that we have relationships with, you know, and I know the ones that are going to answer the phone when I call them and the ones that aren't Right, you just have that reputation about that company in your mind, right?
00:19:30.846 -->
00:19:34.862So it's very hard to then rebuild trust.
00:19:34.862 -->
00:19:38.074It could be great, great, great, great, great, okay.
00:19:38.074 -->
00:19:48.330And then one bad experience completely wipes out all the good experiences, and so then they feel that now, okay, so it takes a long time to then get back to.
00:19:48.330 -->
00:19:49.836Oh, they're back to great again.
00:19:49.836 -->
00:19:52.670And additionally, who do they turn to?
00:19:52.670 -->
00:20:01.376A coworker or another relationship that they have and then give their take on who we are because of their bad experience?
00:20:01.376 -->
00:20:06.926And now someone that didn't even have the bad experience is convinced they're going to have a bad experience with us.
00:20:06.926 -->
00:20:09.732So it's so important, right?
00:20:10.074 -->
00:20:15.911But the other piece of this is, let's say, we did not handle something accurately.
00:20:15.911 -->
00:20:26.037If we're made aware of it, we're going to dig into that, we're going to find out what went wrong and we're then going to come back to you and say this is where we went wrong.
00:20:26.037 -->
00:20:31.958We apologize for this situation, right, and then say now we're going to start rebuilding trust.
00:20:31.958 -->
00:20:41.527So, addressing the things that might not go perfectly, acknowledging them, apologizing for them and then continuing to move forward, that goes a long way, rather than.
00:20:41.527 -->
00:20:43.191You know it's not a big deal.
00:20:43.191 -->
00:20:45.277Oh, you know, I don't need to research this, we do.
00:20:45.277 -->
00:20:57.188And those that I've spoken with and you've apologized for, and then they really, really respect that, that you acknowledge what's happened, take responsibility and say I will assure that this doesn't happen in the future.
00:20:57.188 -->
00:20:58.430That goes a long way as well.
00:20:59.111 -->
00:21:02.357Those are such good points and I think we often forget.
00:21:02.357 -->
00:21:04.682We live in an industry where things go wrong.
00:21:04.682 -->
00:21:06.346We're an insurance company.
00:21:06.346 -->
00:21:07.068Things go wrong.
00:21:07.068 -->
00:21:08.071That's why we exist.
00:21:08.071 -->
00:21:17.507So when they go wrong, if we seize those opportunities and we own them and we acknowledge them, like you talked about it can actually be an opportunity to stand out.
00:21:17.507 -->
00:21:28.911Going back to that situation I shared at the beginning, if there was some ownership and empathy, I'd probably remember it positively for years later and I would be grateful that, hey, there was a mistake that happened.
00:21:28.911 -->
00:21:34.413You didn't know it, I didn't know it, but we made it right together and everybody stepped up.
00:21:34.413 -->
00:21:38.015Instead, I have a different feeling that came from it.
00:21:38.015 -->
00:21:40.606A lot of it is our feelings that we get in these communications.
00:21:41.107 -->
00:21:47.660Sure, well, and some of the things, greg, that we're doing now are because of the feedback that we've received.
00:21:47.660 -->
00:21:49.992We weren't always logging our voicemails.
00:21:49.992 -->
00:21:53.635We started logging them because of the information that we learned along the way.
00:21:53.635 -->
00:22:00.968We then started answering our phone calls live because we would get the feedback that, like no one's answering their phone, I've left voicemails right.
00:22:00.968 -->
00:22:07.174So if we didn't hear or experience some of those hardships, we wouldn't be making the changes that we have today.
00:22:07.174 -->
00:22:14.169So even the negative feedback is something that we can learn from and then change our procedures to make sure that we are better moving forward.
00:22:14.550 -->
00:22:22.648Well, I think that's a great example of our innovation culture is always looking at those challenges as opportunities and trying to figure out how do we get better from it.
00:22:22.648 -->
00:22:24.653That's huge, Chris.
00:22:24.653 -->
00:22:26.577What are some of the benefits?
00:22:26.577 -->
00:22:31.134That you've seen with making sure we communicate responsibly.
00:22:32.016 -->
00:22:41.031Well, just going back to what we said before, you're going to have better overall trust with all parties and that's going to lead to better outcomes and lower claim costs at the end of the day.
00:22:41.031 -->
00:22:46.646But with the change in technology, you think about what Luella's group has changed.
00:22:46.646 -->
00:22:55.060Something else that we've changed in the claims end is and they've been a big part of this too is helping with texting using the high Marley system, right?
00:22:55.060 -->
00:22:57.728So not everybody actually wants to communicate on the phone.
00:22:57.728 -->
00:23:02.878I always think it's weird when someone will call us and say I'm surprised I got a live person.
00:23:02.878 -->
00:23:06.505That to me is like an oxymoron, right, like that should be the expectations.
00:23:06.505 -->
00:23:10.953You pick up the phone, you're going to get somebody, and I think that's something that we do very, very well.
00:23:10.953 -->
00:23:14.209But there are some people who just don't want to chat on the phone.
00:23:14.209 -->
00:23:26.394I mean, if we get a text from someone named Greg Hamlin or a call, I mean Luella can talk about this with me we're going to hit ignore, right?
00:23:26.394 -->
00:23:27.840Maybe you just want to text that guy instead.
00:23:27.840 -->
00:23:30.228But I mean there are people like they're busy.
00:23:30.228 -->
00:23:37.210You know they may be out in the field, they may be in an appointment If you look around just in the general public, everybody's got a phone in their hand right, like even the old school people with the flip phones.
00:23:37.230 -->
00:23:38.152They still have a phone.
00:23:38.152 -->
00:23:39.775Their heads are buried in the phone.
00:23:39.775 -->
00:23:41.897That's just kind of where our culture is at.
00:23:41.897 -->
00:23:51.894So just having that flexibility to be able to text them and converse with them back and forth, it's a convenience factor and that's something where we're really able to flex our agility muscles.
00:23:51.894 -->
00:23:58.828They can communicate to us during an appointment, after an appointment or just any time in specific and we can get right back to them.
00:23:58.828 -->
00:24:02.357And that's not limited just to translation pieces.
00:24:02.357 -->
00:24:09.625I mean, there are some people that may not be as fluent in English and we can bridge that gap by using the translation service in a text.
00:24:09.625 -->
00:24:23.789So that's some of those things where we're just trying to listen to the needs of our insureds and our injured workers and thinking about how we can get ahead of the curve to provide the most possible and the best outcomes for people.
00:24:24.531 -->
00:24:25.935I agree with where you're going with that.
00:24:25.935 -->
00:24:28.130I sometimes kid about this.
00:24:28.130 -->
00:24:30.535I lived in Cincinnati for only two years.
00:24:30.535 -->
00:24:43.544It was a very short window and so I really didn't ever set down roots or get to know too many people, and that's when I changed my phone number to 513 area code, which is Cincinnati people, and that's when I changed my phone number to 513 area code, which is Cincinnati.
00:24:43.544 -->
00:24:57.487And now that I live here in Alabama and I've lived in Kentucky, I know that if someone calls me from 513, they do not know me in any way, shape or form, so I am going to put them to my voicemail and if I know them, they'll be from around here or from Indianapolis, where I lived, or Kentucky.
00:24:58.067 -->
00:25:06.490I think we live in a day and age where most people have cell phones and they see those numbers come in and if it's not a name that's programmed in their phone, it's probably going to voicemail.
00:25:06.490 -->
00:25:34.290And that's a challenge that we're facing that we didn't even 10 years ago to the extent we have it now, and the ability to set up texting and be able to talk, to chat with an injured worker or a policyholder has been a game changer and something that brings us closer to the people that we're trying to help, and I can't tell you how many things we've been able to resolve in real time through texting, because that's just how people are communicating now, so you got to be mindful of that.
00:25:34.290 -->
00:25:41.036Also still being available for those in-person calls, which is a challenge to meet the different needs of what people have.
00:25:41.036 -->
00:25:46.175Luella thoughts on some of the positive benefits of responsiveness.
00:25:46.175 -->
00:25:47.137I know you've hit on some.
00:25:47.684 -->
00:26:00.638Sure, one of the things that we have learned as we answer the phone calls live and are able to talk directly to our customers, is they might have one question which generated the reason for their call.
00:26:00.638 -->
00:26:06.478But while we're on the call, something else comes up and we have a chance to educate while we've got their attention.
00:26:06.478 -->
00:26:09.991Or we can then say hey, you know this.
00:26:09.991 -->
00:26:13.630Moving forward, this is where you can go to find the answer.
00:26:13.630 -->
00:26:16.795We're telling them about items that are available on our website.
00:26:16.795 -->
00:26:20.057Some sign directly into the portal and don't realize some of the tools and the resources that we have on our website.
00:26:20.057 -->
00:26:35.196Some sign directly into the portal and don't realize some of the tools and the resources that we have on our website directly, and so we're able to point them there, or we're able to give them email addresses, and so not only are we answering that question, we're educating them on any other types of issues that might come up in the future, so that they know what to do.
00:26:35.345 -->
00:26:57.393Moving forward, we have some policyholders where, at the beginning of their policy, there's the one contact right, and we've given them that information, but that contact is left, and now they have a new person and so they don't know this information, so they're calling us to ask the questions that they aren't aware of, and we can answer that question and then also direct them to the resources that they have available to them in the future.
00:26:57.393 -->
00:27:05.971One other thing I wanted to mention here, greg, is that we're talking about phone calls, we're talking about emails, etc.
00:27:05.971 -->
00:27:18.586We also have on our website a virtual attendant, and so, if remember how you're talking about different ways of communicating, where we can now text, we also have a chat option for our customers.
00:27:18.586 -->
00:27:24.849If they do want to go to our website and initiate a chat because they don't want to call or they don't want to send an email, that is another option.
00:27:24.849 -->
00:27:32.556So we're giving another way that they can communicate with us easily and get their questions answered there as well, and that's newer as well.
00:27:33.355 -->
00:27:40.088I think what you hit on is really important is our goal is to meet people where they're at, instead of force them through a channel.
00:27:40.088 -->
00:27:42.501That is the way we've decided for them.
00:27:42.501 -->
00:27:50.088They're going to reach us, and that takes a little bit more agility, but the option to access our portal and get your information yourself.
00:27:50.088 -->
00:27:52.903If you prefer that, text us if you want that avenue.
00:27:52.903 -->
00:27:53.083Email.
00:27:53.083 -->
00:27:53.584If you want that avenue.
00:27:53.584 -->
00:27:54.144Talk to a real person.
00:27:54.144 -->
00:27:56.269If you prefer that, text us if you want that avenue Email if you want that avenue.
00:27:56.269 -->
00:27:57.413Talk to a real person if you want that avenue.
00:27:57.413 -->
00:28:03.787Our goal is to meet people where they're at, and I think that really stands out in the marketplace right now.
00:28:04.468 -->
00:28:07.663Chris, one last thing that I wanted to kind of circle back on.
00:28:07.663 -->
00:28:09.366You've been a team manager for a long time.
00:28:09.366 -->
00:28:14.067You've had people report to you and you've probably been on teams as you started your career out.
00:28:14.067 -->
00:28:24.428Where does this fit when you start thinking about the internal dynamics between your own team, your manager, those that you might report to other departments?
00:28:24.428 -->
00:28:26.833How does that fit in the bigger picture?
00:28:27.220 -->
00:28:30.608Well, I think the big picture it's absolutely huge.
00:28:30.608 -->
00:28:36.748I mean, this is an integral part of what we do, and I think what we tell the claims folks is you know the try-on perspective.
00:28:36.748 -->
00:28:47.406If you were to call in or you were to do something that was not related to the claim, right, like, what is the expectation from your end, what would you expect to receive from somebody else?
00:28:47.406 -->
00:28:52.885And I think that goes a long way, not only with our external partners, but also internally within the team.
00:28:52.885 -->
00:29:08.511You've got your teammates that are going to be on the phone calls too, so how you know, if you get a transfer call, can you step up and assist that injured worker or that insured at that point in time, so not having all that back and forth, but then you can relay that to the adjuster.
00:29:08.511 -->
00:29:10.468So everybody's consistently moving forward.
00:29:10.468 -->
00:29:16.093But the big thing is you really got to put yourself in somebody else's shoes to deliver for them.
00:29:16.900 -->
00:29:21.451And I think when you start thinking about teams and people, you hit on some really important things.
00:29:21.451 -->
00:29:29.734If we don't model that behavior in our own teams as leaders, how do we expect our frontline employees to do that with our customers?
00:29:29.734 -->
00:29:35.411Are we moving our one-on-ones, are we making ourselves available for the people who need our help?
00:29:35.411 -->
00:29:46.559Because if we're not doing that, how can we then expect them to go do those things with the people, our customers, our injured workers, our agents, all the people we touch through our communications?
00:29:46.559 -->
00:29:49.250I think that that's really, really important.
00:29:49.250 -->
00:29:53.131So I wanted to just thank both of you for this episode.
00:29:53.131 -->
00:29:56.128This is something I know both of you feel passionate about.
00:29:56.128 -->
00:29:56.650I do too.
00:29:56.650 -->
00:30:07.212I could talk about this for several hours, but we won't do that to our listeners, but I do want to, as I do every episode, end talking about gratitude.
00:30:07.212 -->
00:30:09.407This is something I'll never stop doing.
00:30:09.940 -->
00:30:11.728I think those little things are really important.
00:30:11.728 -->
00:30:18.861I was just thinking the other day it's been a little bit cold how nice it is to have a hot shower, and you know that's something like we take for granted.
00:30:18.861 -->
00:30:25.886It's a very simple thing, but I'll tell you what for hundreds and hundreds of years, there were no showers and they weren't hot.
00:30:25.886 -->
00:30:30.564So indoor plumbing is a pretty awesome thing, and I'm really glad that I have a water heater.
00:30:30.564 -->
00:30:36.403So that's a small thing, but could each of you share something that you're grateful with, and let's start with you, lala.
00:30:36.763 -->
00:30:58.969Sure, I am in a stage of my life where I have more grandchildren than I have children and as I transition to getting closer and closer to having no more children at home, which makes me sad, it's also making me hopeful and enjoy the being a grandparent stage of my life, which still seems so strange for me to say that I am.
00:30:58.969 -->
00:31:07.478But I have four kids and six grandchildren, who are amazing, and I didn't think that I was going to, you know, love the role.
00:31:07.478 -->
00:31:10.489In the beginning, it just seemed like I was too young to be able to do that.
00:31:10.489 -->
00:31:13.548But I am loving this stage of my life.
00:31:13.548 -->
00:31:15.323It's so exciting, it's so fun.
00:31:15.323 -->
00:31:20.349I just my heart bursts, you know, when I see my grandchildren, just like it did when I saw my kids.
00:31:20.349 -->
00:31:22.645So I'm just loving this stage of my life right now.
00:31:23.027 -->
00:31:23.488I love that.
00:31:23.488 -->
00:31:28.605Well, you need to talk to my wife because she the other day she was looking at baby pictures and, like, sweetie, you got to wait.
00:31:28.705 -->
00:31:32.431We're going to have six kids they're coming.
00:31:32.471 -->
00:31:34.653Yeah, that's exactly right, it won't be that long.
00:31:34.795 -->
00:31:35.375It's pretty great.
00:31:35.579 -->
00:31:37.666So, chris, how about you Something you're?
00:31:37.688 -->
00:31:39.826grateful, for I get to list more than one right.
00:31:39.826 -->
00:31:41.267This is my first ever podcast.
00:31:41.460 -->
00:31:42.987So, like I feel, like I get to right.
00:31:43.119 -->
00:31:45.167So we'll start off with my walk with God.
00:31:45.167 -->
00:31:46.805We'll talk about my family.
00:31:46.805 -->
00:31:48.068I've got a little one.
00:31:48.068 -->
00:31:49.987I am absolutely loving that.
00:31:49.987 -->
00:31:53.451Being an old dad is a new thing, but, man, I love.
00:31:53.451 -->
00:31:55.252It Keeps me young, my friends, my health.
00:31:55.393 -->
00:31:58.016And you know, I really, really love working for Berkeley.
00:31:58.016 -->
00:32:10.709I love what this company stands for WR Berkeley, but then also Berkeley Industrial Comp, the core values, the way this culture operates and just the overall love and respect that we have for our insureds, for the injured workers.
00:32:10.709 -->
00:32:21.321It's not what you see on commercials, right Like we actually want to problem solve, we want to help people from an insurance perspective and we want to make a difference for the end of workers.
00:32:21.321 -->
00:32:24.348And my final thing is it's March.
00:32:24.348 -->
00:32:29.729Iu has not been great this year, but we are still depending on who the analysts are.
00:32:29.729 -->
00:32:30.852I think we're in the dance.
00:32:30.852 -->
00:32:41.432So if we win this weekend, I'm going to be thankful that IU can be in the tournament this year, because every year my wife, who's a Purdue alum, gets the boilers in the tournament.
00:32:41.432 -->
00:32:43.765I want some consistency with our Hoosiers.
00:32:43.785 -->
00:32:47.700So I'm thankful that, manifesting this, we're going to be in.
00:32:48.501 -->
00:32:48.942I love it.
00:32:48.942 -->
00:32:50.345I'm there for it.
00:32:50.345 -->
00:32:55.733I know we're going to have a new coach this year, but March is not fun when my Hoosiers aren't in it, so I'm right there with you.
00:32:56.460 -->
00:33:08.165I'm in football country now in Alabama, so I'm trying to teach these folks down here how to really love basketball, because they got the football thing down, but we're working on that still.
00:33:08.165 -->
00:33:11.128So I couldn't agree more with both of you guys.
00:33:11.128 -->
00:33:20.102There are so many good things in this world that I'm grateful for, and I think my team's a huge part of it.
00:33:20.102 -->
00:33:21.344Berkeley Industrial Com is a big part of it.
00:33:21.344 -->
00:33:32.615Of course, my family is too, but grateful to work with you guys and I am excited for the future and I would encourage our listeners, as always, to do right, think differently and don't forget to care.
00:33:32.615 -->
00:33:34.682And that's this episode of Adjusted.
00:33:34.821 -->
00:33:39.654We hope that you will continue to join us as we release episodes every two weeks.
00:33:39.654 -->
00:33:46.931Also, we would encourage you to like and follow the podcast, as well as give us a review.
00:33:46.931 -->
00:33:48.374We would love a five-star review.
00:33:48.374 -->
00:33:51.426I'm sure my mom's given us one, but I could use a few others.
00:33:51.426 -->
00:34:00.190So if you're out there and you're listening, please put in a five-star review and some comments in there to help others find this podcast.
00:34:00.190 -->
00:34:02.105And again, appreciate you for listening.
00:34:02.105 -->
00:34:03.410We'll catch you next time.
00:34:03.410 -->
00:34:05.301Thanks everybody, thank you.
