For more information about VEBB, please visit www.VEBB.org.

Benefits Selling magazine unveils top broker at 2012 Benefits Selling Expo 

San Antonio, TX (April 10, 2012) – Benefits Selling magazine, published by Summit Business Media, announced today that Brandon Scarborough has been named the 2012 Broker of the Year at the 8^th Annual Benefits Selling Expo in San Antonio, Texas. Benefits Selling’s Broker of the Year is one of the industry’s most prestigious awards and identifies brokers and consultants who have influenced the benefits industry in a positive way.

Brandon Scarborough, co-founder of Power Group worksite division and PowerEnroll at Power Group Cos. in Overland Park, Kansas, founded Benefit Design Group, because it allowed him to focus strictly on providing voluntary benefits to low-wage workers employed by nursing homes. Scarborough continued his business until he merged with Power Group Cos. in 2007 when the company wanted him to run a new worksite division. For Scarborough, the appeal of the benefits industry centers on the opportunity to help a wide range of clients. Whether a group is small or large, Scarborough can help that client find a plan that fits best for its unique needs. Read more. 

“We were flooded with nominations this year,” Benefits Selling Editor Denis Storey explained. “The Broker of the Year represents the best our business has to offer. I congratulate Brandon Scarborough for being Benefits Selling’s 2012 Broker of the Year.”

The other finalists for the 2012 Broker of the Year award, sponsored by Aflac, were David Goldfarb, President of DSG Benefits Group in Dallas; Joe Milano, Area Vice President for Gallagher Benefit Services, Itasca, Ill.; Rina Tikia, President, Tikia Consulting, Metairie, La.; and Brian Ward, Managing Director of Investments at Ward Financial Advisory Group in Nashville.

To find out more about the 2012 Broker of the Year or to learn more about this year’s expo, please visit BenefitsPro.com—and stay tuned to the June issue of Benefits Selling Magazine.

ABOUT BENEFITS SELLING

Benefits Selling is the authority for brokers and agents selling group and voluntary employee benefit products. As the industry leader, the editorial mission of Benefits Selling is to cut through the fluff and provide brokers with the best sales strategies, reveal upcoming trends and analyze the latest research in order to be the most successful, customer-based brokers in the business. Our goal is to provide the most practical sales-focused information for benefits brokers and agents to help them act as an invaluable resource for their clients. We strive to be the leading resource in the benefits market by delivering exclusive real world sales tactics, news and information through our magazine & web site and by bringing brokers together with other market players on BenefitsPro.com and at Benefits Selling Expo.

ABOUT SUMMIT BUSINESS MEDIA

Summit Business Media is the leading B2B media and information company serving the insurance, financial services, legal and investment advisory markets. Summit strives to be “The Next Generation of Business Information” for executives and practitioners by providing breaking news and analysis, in-depth practice management strategies, business-building techniques and actionable data. Summit services the information needs of its customers through numerous channels, including digital, print, and live events.  For more information, please visit SBMedia.com.

Contact:

Denis Storey

Editor, Benefits Selling

(720) 895-3964

dstorey@benefitspro.com

BenefitsPro.com

“And here I thought last year’s expo couldn’t be topped,” said Denis Storey, editor of Benefits Selling. “This year’s lineup not only outshines anything we’ve ever done before, but anything the competition’s ever put out there. I know there are a lot of shows out there clamoring for brokers’ time and money, so we take the responsibility of putting together the best complete trade show in the business.”

Four of the nation’s best and most significant leaders in their respective fields will be ready to motivate and energize an audience of more than 900 of the nation’s top benefits brokers and agents.

Ambassador Karen Hughes: Referred to as the most influential woman ever to serve an American president, Ambassador Karen Hughes served as Counselor to President George W. Bush in the White House from 2001 to 2002. Told by the President that he wanted her “in the room whenever a major decision was made,” Ambassador Hughes worked on a comprehensive range of domestic and foreign policy issues. She also led the White House Offices of Communications, Press Secretary, Media Affairs and Speechwriting.

Governor Howard Dean: A long-time champion of health care reform, Former Governor Howard Dean originally entered politics to try to get universal coverage in the U.S. and instituted an innovative health care plan as governor of Vermont. Dean offers an experienced and dual perspective as physician and politician to the discussion of health care reform in America.

Susan Dentzer: An on-air correspondent with PBS’ “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” Susan Dentzer leads a unit dedicated to providing in-depth coverage of health care and health policy. She is a regular analyst and commentator on CNN and The McLaughlin Group. Formerly the chief economics columnist for U.S. News & World Report, she reported extensively on the debate over reforming and partially “privatizing” Social Security and over such health policy issues as regulation of managed care.

Brian Hicks: With an onstage energy that’s been called “an adrenaline rush,” Brian Hicks is quickly becoming a sought-after speaker across the country. He enjoyed an enviable 20-year career with Aflac, the top supplemental health insurer in the world. For 15 years, he trained and motivated salespeople and their managers both in the US and abroad.

PLUS:  more than a dozen strategic selling sessions led by the nation’s top performing brokers; 100 new ideas, tools and tips for successful selling; the official industry networking party; the highly esteemed Broker of the Year Awards and Reception, and much, much more.

The 8^th annual Benefits Selling Expo is the benefits industry’s largest and best educational and networking event for employee benefits brokers and agents. This three-day event is sponsored by: Colonial, Aflac, Colonial Life, The Hartford, Lincoln Financial Group and more than 75 premier carrier and industry service providers.  Registration discounts are available through March 23, 2012. For more information or to register, visit www.BenefitsSellingExpo.com or call 888-831-8333.

NOTE TO EDITORS: The event is open to qualified press. For those writers, journalists interested in attending, please contact Maria Palombini, mpalombini@sbmedia.com for press accreditation inquiries.

ABOUT BENEFITS SELLING
Benefits Selling is the authority for brokers and agents selling group and voluntary employee benefit products. As the industry leader, the editorial mission of Benefits Selling is to cut through the fluff and provide brokers with the best sales strategies, reveal upcoming trends and analyze the latest research in order to be the most successful, customer-based brokers in the business. Our goal is to provide the most practical sales-focused information for benefits brokers and agents to help them act as an invaluable resource for their clients. We strive to be the leading resource in the benefits market by delivering exclusive real world sales tactics, news and information through our magazine & Website and by bringing brokers together with other market players on BenefitsPro.com and at Benefits Selling Expo.

ABOUT SUMMIT BUSINESS MEDIA
Summit Business Media is the leading B2B media and information company serving the insurance, financial, legal and investment advisory markets. Summit strives to be “The Next Generation of Business Information” for executives and practitioners by providing breaking news and analysis, in-depth practice management strategies, business-building techniques and actionable data. Summit services the information needs of its customers through numerous channels, including digital, print, and live events. For more information, please visit SummitBusinessMedia.com.

Contact:
Tamara Patterson
Publisher, Benefits Selling
720-895-4988
tpatterson@benefitspro.com

“The Annual Benefits Selling Expo is the industry’s best event!”
-Carroll Fadal, President, VEBB

For more information about VEBB, please visit www.VEBB.org.