67. How One Employer Broke The Renewal Cycle: A Case Study

In this episode of The Business of Benefits, Donovan Ryckis guest starred on a Be More Than a Fiduciary Podcast episode with Eric Dyson of 90 North Consulting and Brenda Kruse of Axiom Healthcare Services. Together, they break down how employers can finally escape the renewal treadmill, create a 3–5 year benefits strategy, and apply fiduciary principles to healthcare.Brenda shares Axiom’s transformation... from repeated renewal frustration to achieving a 13% premium decrease, lowering deductibles, expanding benefits, and reducing employee out-of-pocket costs by 27–38%. Eric and Donovan dig into why the healthcare system fails employers, how to identify misaligned incentives, and why transparency and governance are the keys to long-term success.They also explore PBM dysfunction, compensation conflicts, the four components of a health plan, and why employers must act as true stewards of their healthcare dollars.What You’ll Learn:What’s really behind recurring renewal increasesHow Axiom achieved a 13% premium decrease while improving benefitsWhy data transparency directly drives better outcomesWhy PBM strategy is the fastest path to meaningful savingsThe four structural pillars of every health planHow to build and follow a multi-year health plan strategyFiduciary responsibility explained for employer health plansHow to identify and correct misaligned broker/consultant incentivesPractical governance tools: fiduciary committees, 408(b)(2), comp reviewWhat responsible healthcare stewardship looks like for employersEric Dyson — 90 North ConsultingLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-dyson/Website: https://90northconsulting.com/Podcast: Be More Than a FiduciaryBrenda Kruse — Axiom Healthcare ServicesLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brenda-kruse-2078386/Website: https://www.axiomhealthcareservices.org/Donovan Ryckis — Ethos BenefitsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donovanryckis/Website: https://www.ethosbenefits.com/Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@thebusinessofbenefitsTimestamps:00:00 – Preview00:38 – Title Intro: The Business of Benefits  01:00 – Episode Overview: Axiom’s journey & fiduciary crossover  02:08 – Guest Introductions  03:53 – Axiom Healthcare Services: Who they are04:39 – How Axiom Met Ethos Benefits  05:10 – Early Challenges & The Broken Renewal Cycle  05:52 – Ethos’ Approach: Strategy over sidestepping  06:44 – Building a Multi-Year Plan07:16 – The Renewal Turnaround (13% decrease)  08:26 – Lowering Costs for Employees09:19 – Why Data Matters in Healthcare Strategy  10:50 – Making Data Simple for Decision Makers12:27 – Pharmacy Benefits: The 60% Cost Problem  13:25 – PBM Conflicts & Misaligned Incentives  15:25 – Fixing PBM First: High-Return, Low-Friction Changes16:27 – Member Experience: What Improves  17:37 – Understanding the Four Parts of a Health Plan  18:20 – Increasing Competition & Transparency19:46 – Compensation Transparency & Fiduciary Responsibility  20:35 – Forming a Fiduciary Committee  22:53 – Industry Conflicts & Broker Incentives25:07 – 408(b)(2) Disclosures & Reasonable Arrangements  26:22 – Why Compensation Alignment Matters  27:15 – Advice to New Advisors & Consultants  27:50 – Advice to New Benefits Managers  29:18 – Raising the Standard of Care in Healthcare  31:11 – Internal Alignment: How Employers Improve Outcomes  32:27 – A Better Approach: Curiosity Over Judgment  33:10 – What “Good Healthcare Stewardship” Means  34:28 – Ethos Healthcare Documentaries  35:20 – Closing Remarks & Episode Wrap--------------------------------Finished with the content? Claim your CE credit here: https://ideas.ethosbenefits.com/continuing-education SHRM: Ethos Benefits is recognized by SHRM to offer professional development credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities. HRCI: Ethos Benefits is approved to offer HRCI® recertification credits for this program. This program has been approved for 0.5 - 1 HR (General) recertification credit(s) toward aPHR®, PHR®, SPHR®, and GPHR® certification.