Episodes

Your own Stem Cells can be extracted from your bone marrow, concentrated, and then later injected into certain areas to potentially eliminate the need for surgery. Many people just refer to it as "stem cells", but bone marrow concentrate which contains stem cells is the most accurate way to describe what Regenexx does. Regenexx can help self-funded employers who have employees which knee injuries, shoulder injuries, back injuries etc. as a possible intermediate step before the last hope is surge...

What is it like to be a Serial Entrepreneur? When you hear Mark's story it becomes clear that it takes someone with a combination of drive, intelligence, will, luck, faith, and a sense of humor! Mark Combs started his career in financial planning, moved into the employee benefits broker world, helped grow an agency into a successful acquisition, and after experiencing nothing but success in his work life thus far, that is when he said, "everything STOPPED working"! He talks about having to re-in...

Private Equity Explained What is it? How does it work? How do you get a job in private equity? When do you use equity vs debt? What types of firms should go public rather than stay private? What are the stages of growth that impact capital requirements? All of these questions and more are answered in Episode 44 of "Self-Funded with Spencer", featuring Kyle Coots, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Miramar Equity Partners. Kyle and I have known each other for almost 30 years, and we reconnected ...

Life Rewards Effort. Randy & I discussed Leadership, Faith, Family, Personal Growth, Managing Career Success, Being a Star Hurdler in High School, Moving from CA to TX, Advice for Young Salespeople, and the roles both of our Wives have played in making us the men we are today. From a random meeting at a children's play-place called "Cheeky Monkey" two years ago during the pandemic, to having Randy sit down this week for the podcast, it has been an interesting two years for both of us. --- Supp...

“Never Pay the First Bill” This is the title of Marshall Allen’s extraordinary book, which empowers working Americans to fight back against unfair medical billing practices and WIN. Marshall came on Self-Funded with Spencer to discuss: ✍️ His investigative journalism career 📚 His Substack newsletter 📽 His upcoming video series 👨‍⚖️ How to win in small claims court 🏥 His son’s recent ER visit ⛪️ His faith and time in ministry 🏛 His new job in the federal gov 📕 and of course, the book! “Never Pay ...

Allergy season, muscle cars, space shuttle launches...and Dependent Eligibility Audits? Keith Bird, VP of Sales for AmWINS came on the Self-Funded with Spencer Podcast to discuss the fiduciary responsibility that Self-Funded Employers have to ensure the dependents enrolled on their health plan are eligible to be there. Unless you have a good way of validating the eligibility of enrollees manually (you probably don't) then you likely have dependents on your plan today that are not supposed to b...

Captives, keynote speaking, employee education, client testimonials, problem-solving, and having skin in the game with your customers, were a few of the many topics Robert Gelb, David Voorhees and I discussed during the final installment of the Self-Funded w/Spencer podcast on the road at the True Captive conference. Here is the registration link for the next Future of Benefits in Business conference in St. Louis, MO at Busch Stadium on 4/12/22. https://truecaptive.com/st-louis-registration/ htt...

How much does surgery cost? How good is my surgeon? Sanjay Prasad MD sits down with me to discuss the answers to both of those questions and more. Sanjay is an Ear, Nose, and Throat surgeon by trade, the Author of "Resetting Healthcare", and the founder of SurgiQuality. Sanjay is a brilliant man on a mission to create more transparency for patients around the ability of their surgeon, and the price the member will pay. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer...

"Healthcare is Fixed" - That is the message Glenn Fisher, serial entrepreneur and Managing Partner of NavMD, is delivering to the employee benefits world. We talk data analytics, acting on these insights, FinTech, and why Glenn was attracted to the Healthcare space initially. Beyond the technical nature of his business, he stresses the importance of delivering value to your customer no matter what you do. We round out the discussion on pharmacy, consulting, reference based pricing, captives, and...

Rachel Strauss joined me in OKC to discuss the vital role of a transparent PBM, such as her employer EHIM. She has been a previous podcast guest (Episode 10), and she is one of the most knowledge people when it comes to Pharmacy Benefit Management. She implores employers to ask the simple question, "How does my PBM get paid"? Rachel also relates the problem of "rebates", to getting money back on your tax return. Is it really better to overpay, and then wait 12 months to get money back? She se...

Modern marketing is evolving, and Trey Hinson of Ocozzio shares everything you need to know about this changing landscape. We covered an array of topics from Self-Funding, Bourbon, LinkedIn Sponsored Posts, The Power of Video for Marketing, Personalized Prospecting, the Decentralization of Healthcare Solutions, Storytelling, and so much more! This was one of the most difficult episodes to edit because there was so much great content. I ended up making 4 promo clips instead of 1! --- Support th...

In installment 3 of my coverage of the True Captive Summit, I sit down with the CEO of Vālenz®, Robert Gelb. "Vālenz® simplifies the complexities of self-insurance for employers through a steadfast commitment to data transparency and decision enablement". Rob is quickly becoming one of my favorite people in Employee Benefits because of his charisma, his focus on company culture, and the "yes, and" mentality he brought over from studying improv to apply to the business he runs. In this episode...

In installment 2 of my coverage of the True Captive Summit, I sit down with Adam Berkowitz of Simpara, and his client Lance Young, of Shine Solar. In this mini-episode, we discuss Lance's experience working in Human Resources and how his partnership with Simpara inspired Shine Solar to transition from fully-insured to self-funded. Shine Solar went from experiencing annual costs increases with no ability to counteract this trend, to lowering their cost multiple years in a row, while simultaneou...

Episode 38 of Self-Funded with Spencer features Jorge Arzate, CEO and Founder of MAKINA BENEFITS. Jorge joined me on the show to discuss the role of a boutique-style independent TPA and his passion for helping small employers take control of their healthcare spend. We had conversations about discipline as an entrepreneur, focusing on growth over just setting goals, and even kicked the chat off with our mutual upbringing on #heavymetal. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com...

I recently took the Self-Funded w/ Spencer Podcast on the road to Oklahoma City where I covered the Future of Business and Benefits Conference, Hosted by True Captive Insurance and Presented by Valenz. In this mini-episode, I sat down with the CEO of True Captive, David Vorhees, to discuss the goals for the conference and what the audience should expect in terms of quality content. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

Dan is the US Head of Sales, Middle Market for Meritain Health. He has an extensive career in Employee Benefits, especially in Self-Funding, and received his CEBS designation through an affiliation with the Wharton School. In particular, this episode focuses on the advanced role of a TPA for self-funded groups, and how they can serve as an open architecture solution for employers to customize their health plan and better control the cost of care. Dan is also an avid fitness enthusiast, partic...

One of the most neglected parts of our healthcare system in the last few years has been the lack of availability in virtual mental/behavioral health support for employees. In this episode, Mike Kohl of Vida Health joined me to discuss whole person healthcare, which includes a heavy emphasis on getting members of an employer sponsored health plan access to mental health support as quickly as possible. Mike is a great person, with an awesome story, and I hope you find this information valuable. ...

Erik Templin is Executive Vice President at Brown & Brown. He is one of the most knowledgeable people in our industry, and the person responsible for introducing me to the concept of self-funding. He's also an outstanding strategist, salesman, and family man, and has been a mentor for me as I go through my own career journey in this industry. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

Allison is the Founder of Altiqe Consulting, a boutique employee benefits consulting firm out of San Antonio, Texas. Allison is easily one of the most innovative EB consultants I know, and also a podcast host herself, with her show called "Raising the Bar with Allison De Paoli". https://raisingthebar.live/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

Chris Fisher is the Founder of BenefitsAlly and the creator of the 3x3x3 podcast series. Chris has alway had a finger on the pulse of what’s new and innovative in the insurance space, and he’s one of the most connected people I know in employee benefits. We discuss everything from new benefit solutions, carrier group school, Vonlane luxury bus travel, and Chris’ COVID hair! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

Megan Chiarello and Andy Neary join me in the studio to discuss how to maximize your efforts on LinkedIn. If you are a salesperson, an entrepreneur, a marketing specialist, and insurance broker, or just someone that wants to grow your network of prospects and clients, this special episode of the podcast is for you! Make sure you follow all of us on LinkedIn for more great content! Megan Chiarello - https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganchiarello/ Andy Neary - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyneary...

Chetara Brisbon is the Director of Growth for Nice Healthcare. Chetara flew all the way in from South Carolina to share her story, as well as her company’s value proposition. In the show we talk family, her pursuit of a PhD, in-home healthcare visits, virtual primary care services, and so much more. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

Reid Rasmussen came on the show to discuss the origins of freshbenies, what it was like moving from Canada to the US and how our healthcare systems differ, as well as his own original employee benefits show "Brokers in Cars Getting Coffee. freshbenies website - https://www.freshbenies.com/ Brokers in Cars Getting Coffee - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X1umyPQ0QA&t=19s --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spencer-harlan-smith/support

"Captives" Part-2 with David Voorhees, CEO of True Captive Insurance. David stopped by Frisco, TX on his way back to Kansas City and graciously helped me complete the second part of the #captive podcast miniseries. He brings a unique perspective having spent the majority of his career in recruiting and human resources, and his captive model has a very employee-centric approach to risk management. David was also the person who recommended I pitch Waterloo Sparkling Water on a podcast sponsorsh...