Senior Consultant

Overview

The Senior Consultant, Health & Welfare, serves as a strategic advisor for large employer clients (typically 5,000+ employees), providing advanced guidance on medical, pharmacy, dental, disability, life, and ancillary H&W programs. This role requires deep technical expertise in H&W plan design, funding, compliance, and-critically-vendor negotiations with national carriers and PBMs.

Key Responsibilities

Client Strategy & Advisory

• Lead the health & welfare strategy for large, complex employer groups.
• Provide insights on plan design optimization, cost management, funding strategies, and emerging market trends.
• Develop multi‑year roadmap strategies aligned with employer objectives and workforce needs.

Vendor Negotiation Leadership

• Serve as the primary lead for negotiations with medical, pharmacy, dental, disability, life, and ancillary carriers.
• Conduct detailed renewal reviews and challenge carrier assumptions, trends, fees, and underwriting methodologies.
• Manage RFP processes end-to-end, including development of requirements, evaluation of finalists, negotiation of pricing, performance guarantees, fees, and contractual terms.
• Drive competitive vendor outcomes using benchmarking, trend intelligence, and data‑driven negotiation strategies.

Financial & Technical Analysis

• Analyze large-employer claims data, plan performance, and carrier underwriting.
• Model plan costs, funding arrangements, contribution strategies, and financial projections.
• Review experience-rated renewals and develop alternative pricing or plan design scenarios.

Client & Project Management

• Act as day‑to‑day lead consultant driving client deliverables, timelines, and workstreams.
• Facilitate client meetings, renewal discussions, vendor finalist presentations, and executive‑level strategy sessions.
• Mentor and guide analysts and associates, providing quality review and professional development support.

Regulatory & Compliance Support

• Provide guidance related to ERISA, ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, MHPAEA, and other regulations impacting H&W plans.
• Ensure client compliance with required filings, disclosures, and regulatory reporting.

Qualifications

Required

• 7+ years of health & welfare consulting experience with large employers (5,000-20,000+ employees preferred).
• Demonstrated expertise in carrier and PBM negotiations, including rates, underwriting assumptions, fees, and performance guarantees.
• Strong analytical skills, including working with large data sets, renewal analyses, and actuarial or financial modeling.
• Deep technical understanding of U.S. employer-sponsored H&W plans, including funding models (self‑funded, level‑funded, ASO).
• Excellent communication and client-facing skills, including leading high‑stakes negotiation discussions.

Preferred

• Experience with national consulting firms, brokers, or large carrier account management.
• Familiarity with unionized or multi-site employer environments.
• Professional designations such as CEBS, GBA, or HIA.
• Bachelor's degree in business, finance, healthcare, HR, or related field.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• A strong negotiator who can challenge carriers using data and strategy.
• Comfortable leading high‑complexity client engagements with large populations and multiple vendors.
• Skilled in translating technical data into clear, executive-ready recommendations.
• Operates with a consultative mindset and drives impactful outcomes for clients.