Risky Benefits
Welcome to Risky Benefits, a podcast from FBMC Management, Inc. As your personal advisor on all things benefits, join host Rick Farris, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, every month while we educate you with all the ins and outs of compensation packages. From topics about insurance to employees and everything in between, you’ll walk away with the knowledge needed to get the most out of healthcare benefits.
Risky Benefits
Emily Davis - Risky Benefits Podcast S5E11
In this episode of Risky Benefits, we welcomes Emily Davis, Vice President of Partnerships and Sales at First Stop Health, to discuss strategies for creating a company culture to be proud of. Emily shares insights from her 20 years of experience in the benefits industry, highlighting the significance of direct virtual care, healthcare innovation, and meaningful personal interactions. She talks about the essential elements of a healthy workplace, emphasizing the role of play, purpose, and potential while cautioning against excessive pressure. Emily also explores the concept of viewing employee benefits as gifts, advocating for a human touch and active listening to enhance employee satisfaction and loyalty. Additionally, she provides personal anecdotes and practical examples on how to integrate these philosophies into company culture effectively.
To listen in and subscribe to more episodes, visit our website: fbmc.com/podcast.
Hey everyone. Thank you for listening to Risky Benefits and welcome to this week's episode. Our guest today is Emily Davis, vice President of Partnerships and Sales at First Stop Health. had the pleasure of hearing Emily speak at a recent Working Well Breakfast, which was held by Capital Health Plan here in Tallahassee, and we loved her and kind of knew that we had to bring her on. For our listeners to hear. We're excited to have Emily talk with us and inspire new ways to create a company culture that you can be proud of. So before we get started, Emily, please tell us about yourself. Maybe a little bit about what you do, family, where you live, all the goodies
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Love that. Well first thank you guys. So much, totally honored to be here and speaking with you. The working well conversation was a ton of fun and it's even more exciting for me to continue the dialogue today and with your listeners. So. I guess, gosh, a little bit about me. We'll start professionally. I think I've been now in the benefits world coming up on 20 years, so I started as a population health consultant working with different employers up and down the east coast, really focusing on, I. Their health and welfare benefits. I took some time to actually become a part of human resources with both Duke Energy and Lowe's, which are headquartered right here in Charlotte, North Carolina, where I live. And then I would say most recently, gosh, about. Five, six years ago, I tapped into more of the healthcare innovation side. I was really passionate about people and the tools and the resources that employees have access to, and I swore I would never get into sales, but here I am and I absolutely love it. So yes, at First Stop Health. We're basically like a direct virtual care company, and my role for partnerships in sales is to really ensure that my team, which is gosh, an amazing crew of eight up and down the East coast, they are working with our broker partners. We're expanding our footprint. And ultimately, it sounds kind of corny, but we're trying to deliver care that people love, so, so that's essentially what I am charged with today, and it's been super rewarding. It's a ton of fun. And then as you guys saw on the side, any opportunity that I have to address an audience in a really meaningful way about areas or topics that I'm passionate about within this space, I absolutely love to do that. So speaking engagements. Different conferences, different events where we can really showcase what we're doing or just passions is something that I absolutely love. So outside of the professional, uh, side of things, I am a mom. I've been married for about, gosh, three years or so. And I'm expecting my second, which you guys were aware of when, uh, I was doing the, the working well top. My second will be due in September, so I am gearing up for that as my belly is growing into this summer. And of course, we, we live in Charlotte, North Carolina. I've got two small pups. I love to travel, I love fitness. During the pandemic I. Published a, a kid's book. I launched a YouTube page for some healthy workouts and tips and anything that can kind of pique my interest to continue to learn in a lot of different areas is, is what I love to do. So I hope that's what you were looking for Rick, but happy to dig in anywhere else.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, it is. I, I'm curious, since you said you have two pups, what, you know, they say you can tell a lot about a person by the type of dog they pick. What do you, what types of dogs do you have?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:So we have chonie, if you're familiar with that, but, uh, it is a, a mashup between a dachshund, so a wiener jog, and then of course a chihuahua. So they are very bold, they're vocal, insanely loyal, but gosh, they are stubborn. But we love'em, so they, they're a lot of fun.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:I'm gonna have to look it up. I don't, I, I can't envision it, but Very cool.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:That's funny. We had a dachshund. Always fun. We, your dogs
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:They're, they're a lot of fun. They, their, their bark is worse than their bite. I'll just say that. So,
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yes. Yeah. Well, that's awesome. And on the kids side are you gonna find out the sex or are you
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:no, you know what, I'm a very type A plus person and I usually control a lot of different things in my life. And this is one area where we just kind. Leave it up to God and let it be a really fun and exciting surprise. So we did not find out with my son and we decided to not find out with this current little tot that's growing in there. So I'll let you guys know on the birthday,
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:All right. That's awesome. What September? What?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:September 22nd is the due date, so my son will have just turned two. So, send your prayers and well wishes for us.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Absolutely. Absolutely. That's awesome. Congratulations. Yeah, so when we heard you, I wrote down the quote when work made fun gets done, so I wanted to know like, how did you get that quote? Is it from a particularly fun experience or something that motivated you? I loved that.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, so you know what I, I wish I had a better story, but No. So of course I've been a part of different organizations and some of them were just absolutely amazing. Some of them not so much. And as I mentioned before, I work with different employers every single day and it's, it's so interesting to me because I think with all of that exposure. I was always able to kind of drill into a theme per se, and it was truly the organizations that had a natural but thriving environment. I. Their people were happier, they were more loyal. The, the growth of the organization was strong. And on the flip side, when we would be brought into organizations where they were really struggling and finances were low and they were missing their various margins, we would also hear that turnover was really high and morale was really low. And so I just had kind of said, you know what? If we can make. The workplace enjoyable for people, I bet they would produce more. And as you heard, and that what I'm sure we'll get into today, there's a lot of research that backs that up. So that's kind of where that saying was, was first birthed, I guess. In a, in a funny, in a funny way.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Very cool. Yeah, it's got Mary poppin vibes for me. What is it for every element. Of fun, of, of, of work to be done. There is an
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:I.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:of fun. Yes, yes. Yes. That's cool. Yeah, so big picture, Emily. I guess just kind of jumping into really what you do, what does, in your mind, exceptional workplace even mean? It's, I think it's healthy to st to kind of establish a baseline for people listening. How might you describe an exceptional workplace?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:People have to call it a career home. It's not a job. It's not I have to go to work. It's not your sole purpose for waking up in the morning is to get a paycheck. That's not what we want. When you think about an exceptional workplace, it is truly an area or an environment in which somebody can thrive. Their best self comes to life. You have a workplace family, a best friend at work. You have a leadership team that's insanely motivational and you respect them. You know the purpose that you bring every single day and you appreciate the people around you. I don't know if you guys are familiar with the Maslow's hierarchy of needs, but I, I kind of equate that the same way as an exceptional workplace. So you have to have the psychological needs, so the, you know, human survival, your basic needs, food, water safety, et cetera. Then you get into having the emotional safety in the workplace, let's say. Love and belonging or are a big component there. And then you get into self esteem and self-worth. And then of course, being able to grow and have autonomy. So when I think about an exceptional workplace, I kind of tap into those five major elements. And if any one of those are missing, that's kind of a red flag to take a, a deeper look under the hood or peel the onion back in a workplace and understand why maybe what's missing.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Very cool. Okay, can you tell us and our listeners about the four Ps of employee motivation?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah. So, I'm a nerd outside of, of sales and, and we love human behavior at First Stop Health and it's kind of, in our core ethos and what we do. But there's a lot of research that goes into our industry and, and science around healthcare and benefits and people and whatnot. And I was super intrigued when my CGO actually presented us with the Harvard Business Review. And it was basically this massive meta analysis that looked at over 20,000 employees across 50 different countries really digging into what. Leaders were trying to understand as to does culture actually impact workplace performance and longevity? Essentially they wanted to know, how can I institute strong culture? Is it worth it? You know, that the time, money, the effort, energy, et cetera. And then does culture actually drive performance in a meaningful way? Right. And so during our talk together, I kind of laid out four different Ps that are really digging into the motivation as to why we work, because it ultimately will determine how well somebody performs. So the first is my favorite and and it should be because it's actually the most impactful for somebody. It is play. So you work because the work that you are doing is inherently enjoyable. It's a part of your identity. It enables team trust. It peaks curiosity. It allows somebody to be super flexible, and then it reduces things like burnout. Stress, boredom, fatigue, hierarchy, uh, and I gave the example, if you think of a teacher, a teacher that is thriving in the play category would be having the autonomy to create their own lesson plans or putting together a really fun day, a field trip where they build these meaningful and long lasting relationships. So that is the play category. The second one that I think is, is, is right there in terms of importance would be purpose. So what we do has impact. So basically when I wake up every day, I am aligning with the mission of, of the overall organization based on the work that I do. I guess, when you think about the value that you bring to the work every day, you understand it. So, so you know your purpose and you know the purpose of the people that are around you, either working alongside of you or different types of peers or, or even your boss or your manager and you really appreciate the outcome of the work. So for, for the teacher, let's say. Her purpose is, you know, building our next generation, the society and, you know, helping kids master multiplication or, or spelling, et cetera. And then third would be your potential. So I always like to ask the question, are your people growing from their experiences? We are all humans and so we innately. We don't ever wanna be stuck or feel stagnant in our lives, whether it's in our relationships, you know, personally, but professionally, it, it's really key. So within a role, are there career ladders, are roles, very clearly defined. Are there opportunities to grow? Maybe not necessarily up a ladder, but are you exposed to new experiences and so. Those first three Ps of motivation and of the workplace are really what we call direct motivators. So if somebody is indexing very high on those three Ps, they're gonna perform better. They're going to be more, more loyal. They will, they will be better team members for your organization. And the fourth. P is is more the one we have to be careful of, and that's pressure. And there's a lot of different types of pressure from emotional to economic, et cetera. But the one that really plagues the workplace is the emotional pressure. And this is essentially, am I comparing myself in a negative way to my peers? Am I doing something just to gain a reward or to not receive a punishment? And so there's a really fine balance with pressure because it is, it can be determined to be an indirect motivator, and that can be very negative for performance and for the longevity of the individual. So if we, we take the example of that teacher. The right amount of pressure for that person maybe is just the pure fact that they have to set their alarm every morning at 7:00 AM in order to wake up and to get to school to be paid. Right. That is pressure in and of itself. But if, if that teacher was, you know, packed in a classroom with 50 kids and they all had to make straight A's without a lot of resources that would, that would be, unnecessary and it would harm the impact of both the students and the teacher. Ultimately the research around the four Ps is really interesting because, again, as I mentioned, they, they studied a lot of different organizations, and when you can index high on the first three Ps and monitor the fourth pressure, then you can really create that workplace culture where people can thrive and where they can stay with that organization long, long term. So anything I missed that you guys love that I need to, to drill into more on the that topic?
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:No, I like it. I like it. It's, it's almost like sets. Maybe, I wouldn't say like it's the employee motivation. It's almost like factors that need to exist
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yes.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:within the employee's. We always used to say what are the artifacts?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Mm-hmm.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:a consultant, when I would go into a company, one of the things we would say is. What artifacts exist? Af like, I could come back a year from today after having worked with somebody. What artifacts are going to exist a year later? That show that we were there I feel like what you just described are what I would look for. I. I would look for those healthy signs of somebody being able to look to me and say, Hey, here's my purpose. Here's how I, exist within this place. And, and also I have fun and here's how I do it. And, you know, those types of things, like what you're saying. Those to me are. Our wonderful artifacts, I feel like for, find within a firm especially after you guys have, have worked with them to come back and then see those things. Because I, I think you're right. I think if you're lacking those things, I definitely, I, I think, and or if you have an overabundance of one of those things, like pressure can you know it? Every, it, it is interesting. Everybody responds differently to pressure. Pressure can be good,
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Okay.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:be crippling and it's, there's this fi fine balance and having too much fun could become a distraction. So it's
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Exactly right.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, it's like it's, they're cool they're cool guides and baselines for, hey, for each one of these, there's a healthy amount and we need to figure out what that is. And but all four of these need to exist in some way, shape, or form, and to, to a certain degree. It's cool. It's good stuff. I, I think they're great indicators. so yeah, no, I wouldn't, I'm, I didn't feel the need to add to it. I think it's great. But I do want to speak specifically about one of'em, you, you talk about play. I know a lot of people that are out there get super nervous when they hear that, especially probably, I don't wanna classify people within certain categories of age, but I do feel like it is, it is somewhat common, like the older you get, more you feel, you get in your feels about the word play at work, right? the truth is getting feels right. You know, you get in your feels. Trying to think of the right way to say that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. But the reality is I think we all really do believe that all the way back to, say Mary Poppins and that old song she does, it's like there, there does need to be an element of fun Right. To work and there's no reason there can't be. But maybe how do you recommend to employers that they institute play within the workforce?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Such a thoughtful question and, and I wanna make sure that. We define play within the workplace. It's not just, you know, let's have balloons and parties and be the Michael Scott of the office every day, right? That's not necessarily the play, but at the end of the day, play really means is the work that somebody is doing enjoyable. So it allows for creativity as to how somebody might perform a job. So the flexibility, let's say around. They're working hours. Maybe it's not your strict nine to five, but maybe there's some flexibility there. Maybe play is also the opportunity to connect with other colleagues or other departments and, cross-reference or be more collaborative. It might be the C-suite opening up. Office hours just to get to know and, and to meet different people within their organization. So it just allows somebody to show up as their true self. Things like dress for your day, bring your child to workday, being goofy with a customer because. That's innate within you, and it's an enjoyable experience for them. So every single industry will be a little bit different. And so I want to acknowledge that you're exactly right. If I'm talking to a construction company and I'm like, yeah, add in some play, they're like are you kidding me? Like this is a high risk environment. And so I think thinking about other creative ways specifically in that industry, like. Maybe there are stickers that get placed on your hard hats when you reach a hundred days of work. Or maybe you have somebody that's in the field on the workplace that's, taking pictures of how hard the various colleagues are working and then they post them to their LinkedIn or social media page, or maybe it is the. The manager that does a pre huddle and he starts each conversation off with a joke. So it's just the opportunity to add some levity, some enjoyment, some aspects of togetherness, and then letting the employees really have that autonomy to get their work done in a way that makes the most sense for them and how they can show up as, as their true self. As I mentioned before. Is that helpful?
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, very much so. So you have a gift giving theory. Can you tell us about that?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yes. And so, during the conversation for your listeners, like I kind of had mashed up. Two different theories in the workplace that we'd love to see come together. Obviously understanding the motivations of work that we just kind of dug into. And then honestly, I think I lean more favorably on the theory of gift giving.'cause I think it's fascinating. We as humans, I mean there's a whole book that the Five Love Languages and gifting is a big love language for humans. It's a form of. Communication and expression, general thoughtfulness. You know, the giver of the gift has all these different components of mastering the gift giving, and the receiver obviously gets a lot of the great benefits of receiving a gift. But basically this theory boils down into three major areas of if a gift is going to be well received or not. So the first is. Does the recipient feel heard and seen? So it really kind of ties back to the giver's attention to detail. Do they know the individual? Is the gift personalized to them? Does it convey that that giver has listened to them or understands their needs, wants, desires? That's the first one. That one's pretty key. Second is, does it expose the recipient to a new idea, a new lesson, a new way of living? One of the big keys that a lot of the research has unpacked is if a gift is ongoing in nature, it is much more meaningful than just kind of one stagnant. Thing that you use and then throw it away and you don't think about it again. So does it introduce somebody to a new idea? Is it creative? Is it thoughtful? Does it impact their health and wellbeing over time? And then the third, which I think is what most people think about when they think of gifts is it luxurious? Do we add in this thing called the luxe principle? And so for. The recipient, they view the gift as, wow, this is super nice. Maybe it was expensive. Maybe it took a lot of time and energy to create or to organize or to purchase. It is the highest quality of a version. Of something that's being given. And for the giver, sometimes it might be expensive out of their pocket, but ultimately it's something very special. And so when we take the theory of gift giving and we actually apply it to human resources or the benefits ecosystem, we try to tie in. We as the employers offer up gifts to our employees in the form of benefits. Programs, the culture and the environment that we instill among the workplace. And so if we can retrain our HR leaders to think of benefits as a gift and apply these different principles, then their employees will again elicit that wow factor. And truly feel the benefits that their employers care about them and what they've given them outside of just a paycheck are really meaningful. And they are, they're true gifts at the end of the day.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Very cool. What just maybe as a good example, Emily, like what's a, could you throw out a, maybe with the best gift you've given, or, uh.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:yeah, so, uh, gosh, it's hard. I think the example that I gave when we first connected was, actually the best gift I had ever received. And it was back when I was a child, fifth grade. And, you know, I had mentioned, for me personally, I'll never forget it, it was a time of strife within my family. My, my mom and dad were going through a divorce. I was the youngest of three sisters. And, during the holidays everyone kind of wipes clean what's going on, within the household. And we have a tradition that. Every Christmas Eve you get to open one gift. And so my dad came down the stairs with just this massive box and all different wrapping papers because it was so big to cover it. And and he looks at me and says, you know, ster, it's, this is for you. And I was like, oh my goodness. My sisters are instantly jealous. And they're like, no, fair. She's the baby. She gets everything. And and I was totally eating it up. So ultimately I was like, I'm so special. This is amazing. And I opened up a mini trampoline and at the time I didn't even know that these things had existed and it was so much fun. My dad knew I was kind of high energy. As I mentioned, I love to do fitness. I love to, be on the road and whatnot, and it was really expensive at the time. These trampolines are a hundred dollars and. For my family. That was a lot of money for one gift that I didn't even ask for. And so for me, all of these emotions of the thoughtfulness, the luxe principle, knowing me, knowing I would love to do something that was active and that wasn't just a one and done, but I could come back to it. I think later I made my trampoline bee little forts for Beanie Babies and all Barbies and all sorts of things. So it, it was such an impactful. Gift for me. And then, shortly thereafter that next year my parents separated and we had to move and we went through a tough time. So I will always remember that and the emotions that it elicited for me. So. I took that on the reverse, Rick, so I hope that's okay. I would say the best gift I'd given was, maybe Surprise, goo Goo Doll tickets to my husband at the Red Rocks.'cause he's a huge fan. But it's, it's a lot of thinking of that individual, the time, the energy, the resources that it takes to truly make somebody feel seen and heard and special. That I think goes a long way.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, it's probably the best way to go about it, right?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:you can describe the emotions of when you received it as opposed to when you gave it,'cause you know how it made you feel. Mm-hmm.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:so definitely grateful for the. Grateful for the, you sharing the story. It's, it's a cool story. I mean, I think it helps, at least people connect with, it's not just an act, right? There's a desired response of helping some or connecting with somebody,
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yep.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:right? And in order to connect, we often say heard, confirmed, validated. It's do they feel heard as a result of the gift that you gave them? Do they feel confirmed? Do they feel validated in, in their thoughts, their feelings? And and it doesn't have to be anything that. Like crazy. I had a guy who was trying to sell to me one time and I had this big personal objective was to get a pro card and bodybuilding like a after 40. the guy somehow heard me say that. And was paying attention enough to know that I was trying had gone onto my Facebook page and saw like one of my posts. So he went and he knew I liked coffee, he went and bought me a coffee mug. That was literally the shape of some bodybuilder that's posing like this, like with his arm out to the side. And that's where you grab it with your hand? Yeah, and he sent it to me and was like, Hey man. I know you're into this stuff. I, I saw this and I, I applaud your efforts, hoping to get a meeting with you. Do you think I called that guy? Absolutely, because
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Absolutely.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:it was probably one of the, and, and I guys like, let's be real for a second. That mug probably cost less than$5 somewhere.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:totally.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:on Amazon, right? All the, it was very, I just really felt like, wow, man, you just did a great job.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, absolutely.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:You know, he listened. He, he did all the things, and I still have the mug. I
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:So true. And I'll, and I'll even tell you like, one thing I always remind my team, my sales folks is that one quote that is. People might forget what you said or what you talked about, but they will never forget how you made them feel. And so if you can show up and be present and be thoughtful and pick up on those little cues about somebody, it just will go such a long way. And it, and it kind of builds back the human touch and the relationships that I feel have been so broken or missed. Especially since COVID, but even more so with, technology and these devices that we have today. And it's a meaningful way to bring back that human element.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:That's super. Absolutely. Yeah. So you talked a little bit about how employee benefits are a gift to the employees from the employer. How do you, how do you tie that in and influence company culture with benefits?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah, it's a great question. So ultimately I would say. The benefits that a company decides to offer to their employees is a direct reflection of what they actually care about for their employees. And the same hold true. If you were to ask somebody, alright, let me see your bank statement. What do you. Spending money on, that's what you care about. Literally before we got on this call, my husband came in, he is like, Hey, I see a really big bill to TJ Maxx, and I was like, mm-hmm. I care about that quite a bit. But all jokes aside same thing if you were to look at somebody's mobile app. Or their mobile phone and see what kind of apps are on their phone. That's typically what they care about. Again, for me, it's my daycare app. It's my YMCA pass. It's my Amazon account. And so if we apply that to the employers, I. What are they offering? So let's say they have a really strong 401k company match, or they're doing tuition reimbursement for maybe some of their younger folks with student loans. They care about their people having financial freedom either at the start of their professional career. Or maybe on the backside. What if they offer really strong and lucrative fertility programs or a really great parental leave program? That means that tells the employees, wow, my employer actually cares about me starting a family, and all of the wonderful benefits that coincide with that. Another great example is Patagonia, who I was doing a lot of research on. They physically shut down their entire warehouse operations, their stores, everything from Christmas Day to January 2nd, and that tells the, the whole organization, you know what we care about. You guys enough? You've worked really hard during this holiday season. You need to rest. You need to enjoy the time with family and friends. You need to show up again in this next year, recouped and ready to rock and roll. But you know what? We care about you right now. We want you to take this time to completely turn off and do the things that you need to do for the holidays. So I think for employers when they're thinking about the theory of gift giving and even the, you know, the four Ps of motivation. Take an evaluation or an assessment of your benefits ecosystem today, does it hold true to the things that you would want or that you would find value in, in terms of a gift? Is it allowing you to thrive? Right? And then I would say reverse it on the back end for your people and really. Find a meaningful way to understand what they're offering. And it's maybe not just benefits. It could be other things, again, other programs or, or different cultural methods that they have instilled. But are they gifts? Do your people see them as gifts? And, and you can ask'em, you can get their feedback. And, and so that's how I think I would first encourage leaders to assess their benefits and assess if how people are taking them.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:I love it. I feel like it's a nuanced way to look at the planning behind what benefits you put in place. You know, think that's the thing is in life, I've found that most people look at say, good gift givers. Let's just use that as an example. I think this fits in many facets, but we'll use this one. And they say, okay, well, they're just good at that. And it's like maybe, or maybe they just did a ton of research as a result it landed exceptionally well. And now you're not seeing all of the work that went into their preparation for the gift. You're just seeing the gift they gave. So on the outside looking in, you're like, oh, they're just good at providing benefits, or they're just good at providing gifts, and it's like. Well, they probably did a ton of research that you didn't see to make sure that it landed with the population they were providing it for and or the person they were providing it for. Mm-hmm. And that's truly all that heart passion, thought care concern that went into providing the gift. That's actually what made the gift so great.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yep.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:And, and if I'm parroting back, kind of what I feel like I'm hearing you say it and tying the pieces together. It's like, look. you do your benefits, you could, you have options. You can just put together your standard array of benefits and say, here you go. Like, this is what people give when they give benefits. you can really d dive deep, seek to understand the population that you're serving and, and how they would perceive. The g the gifts or the benefits that you're giving and make sure that they perceive them more as a gift and maybe less is just like, this is what I get.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Yeah.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:And that, that therein lies the difference maybe in perception.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:A hundred percent. And I'll tell you, there's a lot of research today where yes, if somebody is exploring, taking a new role, they're looking at salary, but almost as important, if not more. They're looking at the benefits, if they wanna start a family, if they want financial freedom, if they want. You know, flex or different types of PTO and time off and you know, there, God, there's such an array of different benefits today from pet insurance to all sorts of things that it really does impact your people and if they will join your organization, if they will produce at your organization and if they will be loyal to your organization. I know for us, we work with different employers that. Again, are screaming the attraction retainment, turnover, the cost that it takes an employer to hire somebody, to train them to go through all the motions. And at the end of the day you don't even know six months later if they're gonna going to perform. That's a lot. And so if we can help reduce that by offering a little bit more on the benefits and the programming side for people to allow them to thrive and to allow them. To wanna stay loyal to that employer. It's key. It, it's just a no brainer in my opinion.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Emily, do you have any other ideas on can remind their employees that their benefits are gifts? Maybe in, in essence, shifting their mindset that, hey, these aren't just benefits, these are gifts I.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:Listen to them first and foremost. And I'm not saying do an employee survey. Yes, those have been done for a while, but, but truly like, understand, would you rather have more PTO or would you rather have free pet insurance? Like give them options of things that are out there in the market. When was the last time that leaders actually got to know? Their people, when was the last time they were on the line with them that they did a ride along, that they were actually to hear some of their concerns or to hear areas where they're struggling and in the reverse, you know, hear about the benefits that they love and that they're, they're thriving. And I would say second to that on an ongoing basis of listening to them is tell them. We care about you and your family and your longevity here. So we're investing in you and your family and your longevity here. That means career development programs. That means you know, amazing medical benefits for your entire household. That means we are giving you this full blown benefits package because. Each one of these things are gifts, and so I would reframe it when you do your annual or your open enrollment meeting, say, welcome to the Gift Giving Party. I wanna talk to you about everything that we're giving to you and your family as being an employee here at this organization. Reframe it, reshift it, and then you do have to be open to, again, receiving that feedback because you wanna hear. Hey John. Hey Susie. How have these gifts or benefits been received? Are you using them? Are your families taking advantage of them? Has your life changed because of them? And then be able to adapt and shift where you need to.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Awesome. Very nice. So what is one piece of advice that you would give employers and business leaders who wanna create a more human and supportive workplace?
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:I, I kind of teased it out before, but be human with your people. Take your hat off a moment from being the CEO or the CFO or the boss or whomever it might be, and just be human with your people. I mentioned before we've really lost the human connection and the trust, and I think trust. Within the workplace. And you know what we break bread together with a lot of our colleagues. We probably see our colleagues more than we see our family members. My little boy I was talking about during the workday, I might see him three hours between, you know, him going to daycare and me having my job and, and bedtime. So the people that I'm working with, we should be able to establish that workplace family. And so I would just encourage every single leader. Who are making the decisions around culture benefits, programming their people, et cetera. Go get to know your people and be human with them again show them your vulnerabilities. Talk to them about your families. Talk to'em about the best book you read. Last year. Very simple ways that you can bring that human element back to the workplace and your people will feel more grounded to you. They will trust you. The decisions that you make along the way, they will be more likely to stand behind you and be loyal. So that, that I think would be my advice.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Love it. Love the advice. Thank you Emily. So last question that we throw out there is really, it's, it's really one for you. Just to circle back and ask, is there anything else that you'd like our listeners to know? I.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:I would just say that, at the end of the day I've learned this being in a few different branches within this industry. Life is short in this industry is really small. So treat people the way you wanna be treated. Whether you're a leader, whether it is your first role that you've ever been a part of, you never know where you're gonna find people again or when you're gonna see them, or how you might need somebody to be a resource or to help your career or just personally, you know, a neighbor. So just treat people the way you, you wanna be treated in all aspects of this industry and of this life.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Awesome. Well, Emily, thank you very much. Really appreciate you coming on and just wanna also thank the listeners out there for tuning in. I. If anyone has any questions please contact us or look for information on our homepage@www.fbmc.com. And before I end it, Emily, would you like to make a plug for y'all's website? I.
emily-davis_1_05-28-2025_090700:I would love to thank you first and foremost. Thank you guys for, for tuning in, as I mentioned first Off Health is a direct care company. Everything from urgent care, primary care, mental health. We are in all 50 states. If you are interested, you can check out our website along with all of the social media channels that we are on. Or of course you can get connected with me at Emily Davis on LinkedIn. So thank you guys so much.
rick---kyla_1_05-28-2025_090700:Thank you. Awesome. Appreciate you so much and remember listeners, you can find us and subscribe on any podcast app. Thanks and have a great day.