Happy Holidays All!

It’s been a great year for MJ. Wrapping it up, it’s got me thinking about all we’ve achieved, and the lessons we’ve learned. We’ve remained true to our Purpose to inspire the success, fulfillment, and wellbeing of each person we serve. But it isn’t easy. And so, I’d like to open up a little bit about what this last year has taught me.

We want the insurance landscape to be different. We feel an urgency to create new and better solutions to protect people and organizations, promoting stability, resilience, and wellbeing.

Now by nature, if you’re trying to get to a different place, you can’t take the same route. I’ll share a quick story to explain.

We try to think about risk management and employee benefits holistically. Forget the silos. We consider the needs of an organization as a whole and think about how we can help them be more successful. Initially, we viewed data as a stepping stone to greater efficiency, but quickly learned that’s just the tip of the iceberg! By integrating organizational data across verticals, we can correlate, plan, and strategize ways to optimize spend. We can take the guesswork out of how plan changes affect an entire organization to help provide the biggest return for businesses and people. It’s a better experience, a better partnership, and a critical step to help us reach a new path. A path aligned with our values, community, and client needs.

We are always looking for good ideas, big ideas—from anywhere. I’ve found that our MJ community is bursting with huge ambitions. And I relish it. These ideas are not always from our associates, though many are. They also come from people outside our firm entirely, from colleagues, from partners, from friends, from our communities. They honor us by sharing their observations and perspectives, and we work hard to keep that dialogue open.

I’ve realized that MJ’s superpower is that our Purpose and structure allow us to harness the aggregate strength of our associates and partners. We are more than the sum of our pieces. We’re committed to connecting with people who want to find a better way, people who share a vision for a more protected, supported landscape where success can thrive.

I know that one organization can’t change everything, but we believe in the transformative potential of our industry, the power to bring about positive change. I know we can’t bring about this change single-handedly, but we can try to change ourselves, and we can stand as an example of a way to do things better. That has always been a key part of our DNA and remains one of my highest goals.

Most importantly, this year has taught me about the importance of change. And that sometimes a deeply held mission needs room to evolve. I said earlier this year that MJ is on the brink of something big, changes are just around the corner. Our Purpose gives us the will to make these changes—which are well on the way for the new year. From our earliest days, we’ve set out to do something not just different, but better. And we maintain the drive to actually make that something happen.

I cannot express how inspiring it is to witness the dedication of our MJ community. I see it in our associates, in our partners, I see it in our leadership and our volunteers. I see it in all those who think of MJ and support our efforts.

It’s the honor of my life to be a part of Team MJ and I look forward to all the new year has in store.