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Transcript

Ben Markland: [00:00:00] Thank you everyone for joining us for the Insurance Leadership Podcast. We're here in Tampa, Florida at the ICMG conference, and I'm here with Dustin Moseley with Guardian Life and, Dustin is someone we actually met at ICMG, what was it, three years ago now?

Dustin Moseley: That's right. I believe so.

Ben Markland: Yeah and Dustin's the head of distribution and partnerships, and he works with individual products at Guardian Money, so something that's near and dear to us at Morgan White Group but we met Dustin and it's been a long path. I think we're gonna talk about that a little bit today. Let's start, Dustin with getting to know you a little bit. So tell us a little bit about your journey and what kind of got you into the insurance industry?

Dustin Moseley: Yeah. So just going back to my college days, I've always been interested in the power of bringing people and organizations together to build things, to create solutions. And so that led me to studying business administration. I had a focus in entrepreneurship and small business. And then ultimately I [00:01:00] ended up launching my own full service digital media agency, while I was still in school. Fast forward a little bit, I ended up selling that agency to one of my business partners. And then when I started, my professional career I was looking for opportunities to deepen my skills and experience in strategic partnerships. And so that led me to a variety of roles across media and technology. And through that work, I really gained a deep appreciation for the value of strategic collaboration. And then, three years now is 2021. I jumped to the chance to join Guardian and bring that experience to a role where I could, truly create and execute a strategy around partnerships and, not only partnerships, but partnerships that can, make a meaningful difference in people's lives. Anytime you change industries, can be scary, it can be challenging. It was all of those things. But, I've really enjoyed it and I haven't looked back since. I'm just thrilled to work for a company that remains dedicated to [00:02:00] inspiring wellbeing for our customers and for our colleagues and the communities and everything that we do.

Ben Markland: That's great. So let's talk about this partnership a little bit, 'cause like I said we've met three years ago and I think, I had been speaking with Guardian for some time and I'll tell you what I've learned throughout the years is, the Ben and Dustin conversation is usually the easiest part. Oh yeah, you do this, I do that. It's a win-win, but there's a lot of convincing that has to go on and there's, when we're dealing with companies of your size, it's almost politics to get everybody on board with an idea or a vision. And you find somebody that you wanna work with and, unfortunately they don't all work out. What I'd asked about this partnership there's been a lot of perseverance. You personally have been very dedicated to this. Not everyone sticks around for three years of hearing maybe we'll do this next time and, hey, we're gonna look at third quarter and hey, maybe we'll do this later. What kept you focused and motivated during this process, and what lessons do you think you learned from this experience? And I'm sure we're not the only one, you do this all the time so more in general.[00:03:00]

Dustin Moseley: Yeah. For me and for my team, in terms of motivation, when you look at some of the research from Guardian, right? When people have access to insurance benefits, they self-report better wellbeing. So if you can anchor in that just the knowledge for myself and my team members knowing that we're expanding access to those same benefits to the people that need them and want them, it's a powerful motivator for the work that we do and, working towards that shared vision keeps us motivated on delivering the solutions that these consumers need. It's neat that we're on, we're here at ICMG for our three year relationship anniversary. And I think something that Guardian does well is we are a large, nationwide company, we've been around for 160 years. We've done really well. We do foster quite a lot of innovation internally. Call it entrepreneurship if you will and so, a lot of times what it takes is the right it's, [00:04:00] a lot of it is timing. And it's just a lot of education and internal alignment that gets us to that end state. And I think, also when we first met I had just learned that you had been talking to us previously. And one of the reasons why I was brought in was to bring some different perspective particularly from someone who hasn't been insurance for a long time in their career. And we did a lot of back channeling with Morgan White. I we sat down on that couch at the cocktail, session and we crafted our big picture and our plans.

Ben Markland: That's right.

Dustin Moseley: And everything sounded good, just like you said. And then it comes down to now we gotta get to work.

Ben Markland: That's right.

Dustin Moseley: And we heard a lot of great things about Morgan White. In our back channeling, obviously the conversations that you and I had were very positive. And part of this whole strategic collaboration is about being able to align on what the end goal is and to create the mutual value.

Ben Markland: That's right.

Dustin Moseley: And I, so I think we did a really good [00:05:00] job of making sure we were aligned with what the mutual value was. And then just communicating it upwards and horizontally, across the rest of the organization to help folks see that bigger picture and ultimately, we got the support that we needed. And we made it.

Ben Markland: We did. Very recently actually, but we did and I've never heard that word before entrepreneurship. I like that that's a good one. I'm thinking ultimately, no matter how big the company is it's still people, it's made of people, and that's what you're dealing with and I think, what we've seen with Guardian is okay, yeah, look, it's, everyone knows it's a big name, but we're still working with people and we found a lot of people, like you said that the vision kind of aligned. And even though we're blazing a new path, everybody was on board with that. So I think obviously kudos to you and your team for making it happen.

Dustin Moseley: Yeah and likewise I'll just add, quickly. I think the other part of it was the willingness to take the step forward to meet in the middle instead of waiting for, the other side to take that step forward.

Ben Markland: That's right.

Dustin Moseley: There were certainly hurdles and challenges that we went through and [00:06:00] that was reciprocated. So that was the beginning moments of that true strategic collaboration that leads to trust, and then once you have that trust, you can do a lot, you can do a lot more when the trust has been established. And ultimately you can get the hard things done once that trust is established.

Ben Markland: That's sure can. Absolutely. So Dustin, let's talk about your market a little bit, the individual market. I know you have a lot of knowledge about this. I know you've been doing this for a while. What do you think sets this market apart from others? And what do you think is trending or do you see opportunities out there that gets you excited about the individual market?

Dustin Moseley: Yeah, just in terms of market trends right now, there's rapid growth in the retiree market and what we call the gig worker population, but essentially, anybody that is working that but doesn't have access or has limited access to these important benefits. The nature of how and when and where Americans work is shifting. And then ultimately leads to how and when and where [00:07:00] Americans access the important benefits. So I think we will continue to see a heightened focus on offerings that are designed to bring the insurance benefits that were traditionally offered in the workplace directly to the individuals. At Guardian, we are constantly pulling market insights, we're listening to our customers and where a lot of value we get from our strategic partners is deeply listening to partners like yourself and others who have a lot of the insights so that we're able to continue to innovate on our products as well as our technology capabilities.

Ben Markland: So when you say you're digging into the market trends and looking at your customer, when you mentioned the gig economy, is there certain ways you guys are focusing in on that segment and saying, here we're gonna market to these people specifically and here's the message and this is what works 'cause we've tested it, are you guys going to that level of detail when you're marketing?

Dustin Moseley: I think we're getting there. Where we start with is we wanna work with partners who are supporting the wellbeing of the individuals [00:08:00] that we work with and that we build products for, so we always start with the product, make sure we have the right product in market that these consumers need access to. And then we form, our strategic partnerships and alliances with the organizations that are focused on supporting those same individuals. And we look for alignment of driving that overall wellbeing, financially speaking health and wealth. And so as long as we can identify the right partners, distribution partners that we work with who are supporting the customers that we build our products for. A lot of it comes after. And so we're learning more about, again, where and how these individuals are accessing their benefits. They're not accessing it through an employer, they're accessing it through a trusted advisor or they're accessing it through some kind of technology, consumer facing application. And so we're focused on making sure our products are aligned with the distributors that are also supporting the [00:09:00] same customers doing that.

Ben Markland: Exactly right. Okay, great. Yeah you touched on this a little bit, I know just distribution is a key part of your role. So how do you approach getting companies excited about guardian's products. There's a lot of 'em out there. People call me every day and we're very careful of who we hand pick once again, who we hitch our wagon to. So when you're out there looking for companies and distribution, what are you doing to stick out in this competitive market?

Dustin Moseley: We're fairly selective with who we work with. When we create, we create the opportunity with the distribution partners to take a step back and see the bigger picture, around some of the research that we've seen. Mental, physical and financial health they don't exist in silos. And so we develop our products and partnerships to accordingly to meet those intersecting needs. So if we're able to help tell that story with some of the distributors that we talked to, take a step back, see that bigger picture, we're competitive in that regard. Because by ensuring everyone [00:10:00] has access to the benefits that directly impact their mental and physical and financial wellbeing, that's meaningful work for us. And it's meaningful work for those, distribution partners that we wanna work with and so that's something that can truly be rallied behind. I think the other thing is just around the people you mentioned, people being such an important part of the business, our hunger and our commitment to being lifelong students. We don't just wanna walk into a room put our products on a table and walk out. We want to be that strategic partner with the organizations that we choose to work with, we lean in, we wanna learn about their business, we want to truly co-create with them. And, we wanna support each other, we wanna share the industry learnings. The whole strategic partner is used a lot and I think it's overused. We truly do want to be that strategic partner, co-create, go to marketing strategies together. And we've seen that approach ultimately lead [00:11:00] to, I mentioned it before, ultimately leads to greater trust between the organizations and so that's a competitive advantage that we see. And that's an environment that we bring to the table. We think that's fairly unique and, we can get to the mutual accountability and to that mutual value.

Ben Markland: So I'm gonna throw you a little curve ball here. Not every partnership, is a home run off the bat so, do you have a story or anything of a partnership that started going south that you were able to right the ship and that be something that continued forward, or sometimes maybe you just have to be, wise enough to say maybe this just wasn't the right choice and we'll cut ties here.

Dustin Moseley: Yeah, I think I'll maybe not give a specific example, but I'll touch on kind of a trend that I've learned from which is, it's really easy to say, we're gonna drive X amount of value as a strategic partner with you guys. I think in the past, where I've personally missed, and this is just even outside of Guardian in some of the other roles I've had is not taking the time to truly evaluate and [00:12:00] align on what that mutual, what that North Star is. And so you do a lot of the work, you go through the contracting. Everybody's excited, you have salespeople talking to each other, they have their vision.

Ben Markland: It's always a win for them. You can't lose.

Dustin Moseley: And you really gotta make sure that you pull in all the supporting cast members behind the scenes to help them see the bigger picture. Because if you can help them see the bigger picture, they're gonna be the first ones to raise their hand and say, Hey, there's a challenge here. Hey, I don't know if we can do that. Or Hey, I have a couple questions here, we need to dig into that. And that comes from both sides so it's not only, the company that I'm working at that need to make sure we have the alignment of, it's also the company that we're potentially gonna work closely with, making sure they have the alignment on their side across all their supporting staff. And I've certainly missed that part of the process in the past, and you get down to, all right, it's time to go to market. And those supporting cast members, are not aligned with.

Ben Markland: That's right.

Dustin Moseley: With what that plan. I could pick a couple examples, but I think just a trend overall. That's why we [00:13:00] are a little bit more selective than others, and who we choose to work with because, ultimately when the rubber meets the road all supporting cast members need to be ready.

Ben Markland: That's right. Absolutely. And it takes a lot of people to get lift off on some of these projects, right?

Dustin Moseley: Absolutely. Yeah.

Ben Markland: So anyway, lots of different skill sets, lots of different departments, lots of people involved. So you're right. If everyone's on board, you should be in good shape, right?

Dustin Moseley: Yep. And I'll add everyone needs to know, have eyes wide open of what the risks are, right? Nothing's gonna be a guaranteed home run. There's no guaranteed success. Everything's a little bit of an investment, for potential ROIs, some things are bigger bets than others. But as long as everyone understands and goes into it eyes wide open, here are the outcomes. Here's the ceiling, here's the floor, we're gonna go for it.

Ben Markland: So as a leader, what advice would you give to professionals about navigating the challenges of today's insurance market and staying ahead of the curve. I know Guardian puts a lot of weight into that and being [00:14:00] innovative so what would be some advice you'd give to, whether it be a broker, an agent or just a fellow leader out there?

Dustin Moseley: Something that served me very well and it's advice I give often is, stay informed and stay a lifelong student. You're going to develop your expertise over time. You're going to know your space, your vertical. You're gonna have your strengths and skillsets. Don't just rest on your laurels, don't stop there, always try to be this lifelong learner because there is a lot of changes happening in the in the industry. Make sure you stay informed. Attend industry events. Listen to podcasts. Meet with skip levels in your organization to hear and gather insights and their perspective on what's happening. But don't stop just at the information collection stage, then take action on that. Like ultimately it's up to all of us to bring those insights that we gather from all those different activities and then apply them to the work that we do so that we stay ahead. [00:15:00] So stay a lifelong learner, stay informed and then, act on those insights and learnings.

Ben Markland: And I gotta say listening to podcasts is probably the best.

Dustin Moseley: Absolutely the best.

Ben Markland: Specifically this one right here.

Dustin Moseley: This one in particular, right? Yep.

Ben Markland: Dustin, we appreciate you being on with us today. Appreciate your insights. So thanks for joining us, and thanks everybody for joining us as well. We'll see you next time.