This week we’re learning more about Rob Green and his firm, Green Benefits Group.
Where does your firm operate, geographically speaking?
We operate mainly in the GTA, with our head office in Burlington and a second location in Niagara. In all, we have 16 team members in the two locations.
How did you enter the industry?
Like most of the fine people in Benefits Alliance, I started with London Life in the Employee Benefits Sales and Service division. I was playing varsity baseball at University and my coach worked for London Life. He asked what I was going to do after graduating, and I thought I’d start my career at a bank or financial institution. Thankfully, I took him up on his offer to meet with his brother, who was the Regional Director for Niagara (Rick Kemp).
What is something that people do not know about you?
I might not seem it on the outside, but I’m very competitive and I hate losing in anything…but I’m better now than I used to be and one in a while I might let my kids win in a board game (kidding). Don’t ask me to fix a leaky faucet, but if you want to get passionate about creative solutions for benefits, I’m your guy. I am also a big vision board and productivity guy –Brian Bouchard and Robin Sharma are two people I follow a lot. Visualization of what I want to do and where I want to go as a person has been instrumental in my personal development.
What is the biggest lesson that you have learned in the business?
Definitely a few things – communication to clients, and as we’ve grown as a team, over-communicate to my team. Good communication solves so many problems. Especially if it is tough news for a client – get on it right away. Another one is listening – we have 2 ears and only 1 mouth for a reason. Too often people want to tell someone everything they know, but what does the consumer want? Listen first. Last, always be over-prepared for meetings. Nothing makes me mental more than a supplier that comes to us for a meeting and they haven’t done their homework on what our needs are for that specific meeting.
What are you hoping to do with The Benefits Alliance Group?
I’ve now been a shareholder for over 10 years, but I have always loved getting involved with my fellow partners in BA. The best advice I can give to any new members is to pick up the phone if you have any industry questions and call a fellow member.
Do you have insights about the industry that you would like to share?
I feel our industry is at a critical stage where companies that we advise are looking for more unique and modern solutions and support for their staff, but the industry has not kept up. All stakeholders in our industry need to collaborate more as a whole and move at a quicker pace to adapt to this rapidly changing need.
The Benefits Alliance Member Spotlight showcases our members across Canada who provide custom solutions for their clients Employee Benefits and Group Retirement.