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2017 Trusted Advisers Insurance Agent: Erica Gaynor

Ollis/Akers/Arney

Posted online

Wading through the sometimes tumultuous waters of the Affordable Care Act over the last seven years has taught Erica Gaynor a lot, but her biggest take away is a simple one: She’s more than just an insurance salesperson.

“Over the past decade, the role of a health insurance professional has truly evolved,” she says. “My clients view me as that professional whom they trust to find the correct solution for their needs and give them professional advice.”

As an adviser and producer for Ollis/Akers/Arney, Gaynor believes it’s her job to guide her clients through the complex guidelines and laws of the health insurance industry – many of which change yearly.

“Rising costs and constantly changing regulations have made providing employee benefits more challenging than ever,” she says. “The employers I work with want to provide something of value to their employees.”

Gaynor says as times change, it’s become necessary to work with an employee benefit specialist. Gaynor’s approach is twofold: First, guide the human resources director through the options of designing a plan and, second, meet with employees.

“Through employee meetings, the employer trusts me to involve and educate their employees on how their benefits package works for them,” she says.

Through the process, Gaynor helps her clients reduce risks, contain costs, avoid fines for regulatory noncompliance and, most important to her, offer employees a plan of value.

“Rather than them come to me with a plan, I like to get in on the design stage,” Gaynor told Springfield Business Journal in a July 2016 interview. “A lot of employers I meet with, whether it’s a director of operations or CEO, CFO level, we work together to build a custom plan they can roll out to their employees. Every employer’s needs are different.”

Understanding the desires of the employer and listening to their concerns have helped Gaynor move through the ranks over the years. She first started at the company in June 2005 as an account associate, moving into an account manager role within the year and up to an adviser just over a year after that. In her current role, she’s earned the rank of Cox Million Dollar Club Producer in 2010 and the Certified Healthcare Reform Specialist designation in 2013.

“Erica exemplifies everything our community needs in our future leaders,” says Piper Schulte, a client and president of the Springfield Neurological Institute LLC. “Her ethics are beyond reproach.”

Out in the community, she’s a board member for The Hamels Foundation and The Victim Center and serves on the education and development committee for the Junior League of Springfield.

Financially, she and her husband support Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks, the American Heart Association and Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland.

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