As we round out 2025, we’re excited to share another installment of our Disruptive Dialogues series spotlighting leaders driving meaningful change across employee health and wellbeing benefits. Since launching this series, our mission has remained the same: to inspire bold conversations that challenge the status quo and uncover new ways to support employees in today’s complex, fast-changing world of work.
In this latest episode, we connected with Jennifer Borislow, Founder & CEO of Borislow Insurance, a leading provider of innovative health and wellbeing benefits solutions, serving more than 300 businesses throughout New England. Jennifer is also past president of the million dollar round table, a co-author of five books and an active participant in several insurance company advisory boards. Alongside our co-hosts, YourCoach CEO, Marina, and YourCoach COO, Eugene, Jennifer tackles the evolving role of brokers, why culture and data must go hand-in-hand when shaping benefits strategies that work, and the increasing emphasis on family services. In today’s blog we highlight three key takeaways from this insightful conversation. The full episode is also available here.
The broker’s role is evolving to meet the needs of lean HR teams.
According to Jennifer, the modern broker’s role has become far more consultative. Instead of simply managing rewards, brokers are helping organizations think long term, integrating wellbeing, engagement and retention goals into their benefits strategy. Shares Jennifer, “The number one challenge today that most employers are facing is their HR teams, the teams that manage the benefits are getting slimmer and slimmer. Their dependence on us as consultants, it’s gotten greater.”
Many HR leaders today are managing more than ever: recruiting, compliance, payroll, terminations, benefits and the growing list of wellbeing initiatives. Says Jennifer, “Employers today struggle with too much on their plate. Benefits are just one piece of their puzzle.” Jennifer explains that while plan administration and spreadsheet comparisons used to suffice, the complexity of modern benefits requires far more. This is where brokers step in as strategic partners. By analyzing data, identifying risk factors and providing tailored recommendations, they help HR leaders dive deeper when they simply don’t have the time. “Being a consultant is taking that data and really creating a pathway forward,” says Jennifer. “And that’s where we feel being a strategic advisor is a better terminology for how we define ourselves and the role we play with our clients.”
Data is only valuable with context. But data alone isn’t enough.
Jennifer emphasizes, “Data without any context to it, is useless, right? It’s just noise.” For data to truly be effective, it must be transformed into insights that can be used to support, inform or guide change. Advances in technology allow her brokers to delve into data at a much deeper level, giving employers the opportunity to understand why they may be seeing rate increases, understand what’s happening in their populations, and see how decisions will impact specific groups of employees. This enables them to make more precise, even humanized recommendations that account for real employee experiences.
That said, data isn’t the be-all and end-all, especially when it comes to something like employee wellbeing. “Wellness has the ability to be transformative if it’s done right,” says Jennifer. This means cultivating a deep understanding of what employees need. Beyond simply delivering renewals or cost projections, brokers and employers must keep employee experience and organizational culture top of mind. By balancing data-driven insights with thoughtful benefits design, organizations can build strategies that truly support employees’ wellbeing while also driving meaningful ROI.
Progressive wellbeing benefits need to prioritize family services.
Today’s employees are navigating complex personal and family responsibilities alongside their professional lives. Shares Jennifer, the future of health and wellbeing benefits needs to include the full spectrum of family services: “It’s infertility, it’s caregiving, it’s mental health. It’s maybe financial resilience or understanding.” She explains that when we’re looking for employees to show up fully at work, many are balancing challenges that pull them away from their focus, whether that’s caring for aging parents, supporting partners through fertility treatments or managing childcare.
Benefits that provide meaningful support, like health coaching, can help employees manage these demands, prioritize their wellbeing and maintain their professional performance while navigating complex personal responsibilities. For employees on a fertility journey, health coaches provide guidance, education and stress management strategies for dealing with the regular uncertainty. For caregivers, they offer tools for balancing their time at work and at home while establishing habits that protect their mental and physical health. By addressing these real-world challenges, health coaching and other family-focused benefits not only support employees’ personal wellbeing, but also strengthen engagement, productivity and overall workplace satisfaction.
As the world of work continues to evolve, HR leaders and brokers face growing complexity in benefits strategy. Jennifer’s insights remind us that the most effective approaches balance data, culture and personalized support – something REAL health coaching achieves well time and time again. By leaning on strategic advisors, harnessing data with context and prioritizing holistic, family-focused benefits like health coaching, organizations can create programs that not only meet employers’ needs but drive engagement, productivity and long-term business success.
If you’re an organization who’s interested in learning more about how we can deliver REAL, impactful health coaching to your clients, employees, patients or members, or if you’re interested in participating in our Disruptive Dialogues series, send us a note to team@yourcoach.health.
A very special thanks to Jennifer and Borislow Insurance for joining us and sharing this important perspective!
FAQ
Q: How can health coaching support employees managing complex family responsibilities?
A: YourCoach health coaching helps employees navigate challenges such as caregiving, fertility treatments, childcare, and mental health. Coaches provide guidance, education, and stress management strategies, enabling employees to balance personal responsibilities while maintaining focus and performance at work.
Q: Why is partnering with a strategic broker important for lean HR teams?
A: Modern HR teams face increasing demands and shrinking resources. Strategic brokers provide expertise, analyze data, and deliver tailored recommendations, helping HR leaders make informed benefits decisions without being stretched beyond capacity.
Q: How does data-driven insights enhance benefits strategy?
A: Data alone is just noise. When transformed into actionable insights, it allows employers to understand population health trends, anticipate cost changes, and humanize decisions for employees. Combined with thoughtful benefits design, data supports strategies that improve wellbeing while driving ROI.