🚀 Beyond Cost Control: How Self-Funded Benefits Now Win the Talent War
🚀 Beyond Cost Control: How Self-Funded Benefits Now Win the Talent War
Interview by Donald F. Morgan, AIF®, CPFA®
“If 2023 was about controlling costs, 2025 is about maximizing value.” — Branden Campbell
This week on Get Morganized!, I sat down with Branden Campbell to revisit the shifting landscape of employee benefits—particularly how self-funded insurance strategies are evolving to meet new pressures in the labor market.
Last year, it was about cutting costs. This year? It's about building total rewards systems that make businesses more competitive and more resilient.
💡 Smarter Plans, Better Talent
Donald Morgan: Last time, you gave us the playbook for using self-funding to control claims. What’s new?
Branden Campbell: We’ve leveled up. It’s no longer just about claims management. It’s about custom plan design, data transparency, and employee-focused flexibility—all tailored to help employers retain talent without blowing up their budget.
👩💼 Benefits Are the New Differentiator
Donald: We keep hearing that benefits drive retention. Is that real?
Branden: Absolutely. Salaries can only go so far. What makes the difference now? Voluntary benefits, telehealth, cost-sharing options, and value-based care. Employees want security. Smart employers are delivering it in meaningful, flexible ways.
🔐 A New Twist on Group LTD: Business Gets Paid Too
Donald: Tell us about the Group LTD rider you’re excited about.
Branden: It’s a game-changer. A standard group LTD policy pays the employee 60% of their income if they go on long-term disability. But this new rider also pays the employer—60% of that same salary, for up to 12 months.
Donald: So it’s built-in key-person insurance?
Branden: Exactly. It bridges the gap when a top salesperson, developer, or executive goes out. Recruiting and retraining take time. This benefit gives the company a financial buffer—without separate underwriting or massive costs.
🧠 The Takeaway
“The future of benefits is strategic. It's about alignment—between what employees want and what the business needs to stay competitive.”
For mid-sized employers especially, this is a unique moment. With the right plan design, you can cut risk, attract talent, and build real value into every dollar you spend on benefits.
❓ Quick FAQs
Q: What size employer can use self-funding?
A: Many carriers now offer level-funded plans to groups as small as 25 employees.
Q: Is the LTD rider expensive?
A: Usually just a small increase in premium—often under 5% for the added protection.
Q: Do employees see this value?
A: Not directly—but leadership will. And it helps preserve continuity, morale, and operations.
Donald F. Morgan, AIF®, CPFA® is a full-time financial advisor, serial entrepreneur, lifelong amateur economist, and political scientist. He is often seen on television news and quoted in publications as diverse as The Financial Times, US News and World Report, and the Spokane Journal of Business. He and his wife Violet produced and directed a local television talk show, and he has had a column in the Coeur d’Alene Press. His views are his own.
