BlocBuilder 2024 Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Jessica Brooks-Woods | NABIP Chief Executive Officer
Jessica Brooks-Woods is the chief executive officer of the National Association of Benefits and Insurance Professionals (NABIP) and NABIP's Education Foundation, working diligently to ensure all Americans have access to high-quality, affordable healthcare and educational tools. She has more than two decades of business and healthcare experience, is a recipient of the 2019 Pittsburgh Women of Influence Award, and led the Pittsburgh Business Group on Health for its recognition as a Healthcare Purchasing Collaborative Award winner. Currently, Jessica serves on the board of governors for the University of Pittsburgh Institute of Entrepreneurial Excellence, Adagio Health, the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative and the Patient Health Action Network, and as an appointee to the Pennsylvania Health Insurance Exchange.
BlocBuilder 2024 Opening Session Keynote
AgencyBloc Partner Speakers
Christian Brindle | Insurance Influencer & Thought Leader
Christian Brindle is the owner and founder of Christian Brindle Insurance Services and the creator of the Seven Figure Medicare Agent Facebook group. With almost 7,000 members, this Facebook group is one of the fastest growing online communities dedicated to helping agents grow. Christian also has one of the fastest growing YouTube channels for Medicare agents, with over 4,500 subscribers.
YouTube & Video Marketing 101
Valerie Gerot | VP, Account Management at ConnectureDRX
With over 15 years of experience in the Individual, Group, and Medicare industry, Valerie Gerot has dedicated nine years of her career to ConnectureDRX. In her role as the Vice President of Account Management, she oversees all existing customers, collaborating with her team to deliver strategic support in the most effective manner. Valerie is driven by a passion for cultivating relationships that evolve into enduring and mutually beneficial partnerships.
Medicare Quoting & Enrollment Trends
Bill Hepscher | Owner of The Canadian Medstore
The Canadian Medstore is America’s premier provider of affordable international medications. We are a U.S. company based in Tampa, Florida. Our goal is to help our clients find the best price on their prescription medication, often saving up to 80%. We work with a network of licensed U.S. and international pharmacies to deliver safe, affordable medicines.
A Short History of Drug Cost in the USA
Derek Larabee | Associate Director of SEO
Derek has been working on SEO for B2B SaaS and healthcare partners, with a side of e-commerce. He is happiest when uncovering keyword opportunities and auditing websites for organic growth potential. By breaking SEO strategies down into relatable terms, he is able to win buy-in from clients and team members alike.
The Power of Proximity: Local SEO Strategies for Insurance Organizations
Naama O. Pozniak | Founder & CEO of Rightplan
Naama O. Pozniak brings 30+ years of experience in the benefits industry. As an innovative healthcare professional leader, meditation teacher, and influential speaker, she disrupts the market, inspires change, and educates those around her. Additionally, Naama's global travels enable her to share profound mindfulness and wisdom with individuals worldwide.
A View From Your Peers: Medicare Panel
Entrepreneurial State of Mind
Brett Rosen | M&A Expert & Entrepreneur
Brett Rosen is one of the nation's foremost experts on perpetuation, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and growth strategies for insurance agencies. Brett spent 17 years as Executive Vice President of M&A at OneDigital, during which he saw the benefits of using an advisor but also shortcomings and conflicts that negatively impacted owners. This empowered him to create an advisory experience built on the benefits while fixing the flaws. As Founder and Principal of Rosen Advisory, a boutique M&A consulting firm, he has worked with hundreds of agencies, including those with a focus on employee benefits, HR, individual coverages, Medicare, and retirement.
How to Be a 5-Star M&A Planner Part 1
How to Be a 5-Star M&A Planner Part 2
Mari Tautimes | Business Coach, Speaker, & Author
Mari Tautimes, certified EOS Implementer®, is a leadership development coach, author and speaker. She is also formerly the Co-CEO of Western Asset Protection, a leading Medicare-focused field marketing organization and professional brokerage firm in Phoenix, Arizona, where she, her twin brother, and dad built their family business. Her passion for business and leadership development continued and she began her own company where she has since helped the leadership teams of over 50 organizations get more control, more profit, and more fun out of their businesses.
Entrepreneurial State of Mind
Andrew Tutaj | VP, Strategic Development at ConnectureDRX
After his adventurous stint as a public accounting auditor, Andrew felt the calling to bring his unique set of skills to the healthcare insurtech universe over a decade ago. In his journey through the maze of insurance intricacies, Andrew swiftly discovered the quirks and complexities that make healthcare insurance distribution a bit of a puzzle. Undeterred by the challenge, he embraced the rollercoaster ride and found his passion in crafting solutions that transform the convoluted into the comprehensible. Every day is a new adventure for Andrew as he tackles the distribution challenges faced by Connecture's customers and partners.
Medicare Quoting & Enrollment Trends
AgencyBloc Speakers
Danielle Bond | Director of Customer Success
Danielle started her career as a musician and director of soundtracks for Warner Music Group. While there, she quickly realized the need for a SaaS platform for pitching and delivering music to studios, as well as creating a way to license that music. Through that realization, she took charge of the platform project and learned new skills in the tech industry. Her path in software started from the client side, which is why she is so passionate about client needs and communication. From there, she came to Radius and is helping to build out the future of the AgencyBloc platform.
AMS+ User Best Practices
VoIP for Marketing, Sales, & Compliance
Sarah Brammer | Product Director
Sarah has been with AgencyBloc for over three years and has worked as a business analyst and product manager for 10+ years in previous roles. As a Product Director, she works with clients and our product team in tandem to bring valuable enhancements to the AgencyBloc platform. She also leads the team that recently brought AMS+ to the AgencyBloc platform.
AMS+ User Best Practices
Leveraging AMS+ to Achieve Growth & Efficiency
Near-Term Product Roadmaps
VoIP for Marketing, Sales, & Compliance
Robert Burns | Chief Product Officer
Bob leads the strategic vision and direction for the AgencyBloc platform. Along with his 20+ years of experience at data and software companies, he brings a unique marketing perspective to guiding product development.
Evaluating & Harnessing AI
Near-Term Product Roadmaps
Tasha Fitzgerald | Education Specialist
Tasha has worked in the life and health insurance industry for 20+ years, 14 of those as a life and health agent and the rest at AgencyBloc. As an Education Specialist, she helps clients learn about AgencyBloc's suite of tools, empowering them to use it to enhance their business.
Commissions+ User Best Practices
Erica Kiefer | Chief Growth Officer
Erica began with AgencyBloc in 2014 as the VP of Sales & Marketing and has transitioned into the role of Chief Growth Officer. Prior to joining AgencyBloc, she spent 15 years on sales and marketing teams for other SaaS (Software as a Service) companies. Her passion lies in helping her teammates remove roadblocks to deliver the best client and prospect experience possible.
Kayleen Popp | Product Director
Kayleen joined AgencyBloc in 2021, bringing with her 15+ years of product management and business management experience. As a Product Director, Kayleen is dedicated to driving product innovation and growth that will propel the AgencyBloc suite of products forward. She enjoys staying up to date on the changing insurance industry landscape while making meaningful partner and customer connections along the way.
How to Take the Pain Out of Small Group Quoting with Quote+
Near-Term Product Roadmaps
Supplemental & Ancillary Benefits: Trends and how you can capitalize on them with AgencyBloc
Tim Robinson | CEO
With a background in entrepreneurial and growth organizations, Tim joined The Bloc as Chief Executive Officer in 2023. He has learned that flexibility, an ability to solve complex problems, and quickly gaining trust are keys to success—and a sense of humor doesn't hurt either. His passion is building amazing teams and organizations that can scale quickly and profitably through organic and inorganic growth strategies. As our CEO, Tim spearheads our growth strategy and provides vital support for our culture and team.
Evaluating & Harnessing AI
Cory Schmidt | Co-Founder & CTO
Cory's passion for insurance technology can be traced back to his days at Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, where he was Team Leader of Marketing Systems. Around the same time, he co-founded Spinutech, a website and digital marketing agency. In 2008, he became a founding partner of AgencyBloc. Cory serves as the company's CTO and also spends his time working on strategic initiatives.
Evaluating & Harnessing AI
Near-Term Product Roadmaps
Where Are the Industy Winds Blowing & How to Navigate Them
Questions?
We’re here to help! For questions or comments about BlocBuilder, contact us at blocbuilder@agencybloc.com.