bWise

bWise

Join our hosts, Don Garlitz and Sharon Morrissey, as they connect with founders, CEOs and executives of some of our industries greatest companies. Listen in to hear exciting discussions on entrepreneurship, management and what it takes to build, sustain and grow a successful company and career.

Episodes

February 14, 2025 5 mins

If you enjoyed bWise, it’s time to tune in to bswift Beacon—our next chapter in podcasting! Hosts Denise and Joel will bring you smart, thought-provoking conversations with the movers, shakers, and company culture makers redefining the workplace. Dive into bold ideas, real stories, and actionable strategies to help your workplace thrive. No sales pitches, just honest talk about what’s next in the world of work, benefits, and the ch...

Mark as Played

Join hosts Don and Sharon as they explore the latest AI enhancements to bswift’s groundbreaking AI-powered platform intelligence, Emma. In this episode, we chat with Emma herself (yes, you read that right!) alongside her creators: Jeff Kirk (VP of AI), Vinita Pilani (SVP of Product Engineering), and Adam Perkins (VP of Strategic Product Management). Emma talks with them about the cutting-edge HR tech behind her upgrade. From natura...

Mark as Played

In this episode, Don and Sharon talk with bswift’s VP of AI Jeff Kirk about how artificial intelligence (AI) will transform the workplace and the employee benefits space. Jeff shares his career journey from the early days of the internet to pivotal roles like working on Amazon’s Alexa team. Tune in for thought-provoki...

Mark as Played

Overwhelmed by the accelerating pace of change in benefits administration? The latest episode of the bWise Podcast is a master class in optimizing operations. Listen in as industry heavyweight and bswift advisory council member Maria Yao distills 30+ years of frontline expertise. In this insightful interview, you’ll uncover her three pillars of operational excellence – comprehensive training, rigorous documentation, and continuous ...

Mark as Played

In this episode, hosts Don and Sharon sit down with HR and benefits administration leader Lana Hillebrand, former Chief Administrative Officer at American Electric Power Company, Inc., who recently joined bswift’s advisory council. Lana shares her early career aspirations—which began with a bold declaration as a young...

Mark as Played

On this episode, benefit administration insider Scott Millson shares his unique perspective on his over three decades in the employee benefits field. Listen in as Scott reflects on major industry transformations, from the rise of online enrollment to emerging technologies like AI. He also offers a look into writing hi...

Mark as Played

Listen in as bswift Chief Operating Officer, Amit Jain, talks about his passion for client service, his unique approach to leadership, and his vision for the future. Amit also shares his love for cold therapy (Wim Hof, anyone?), and how it influences his work ethic and dedication to delivering results. He dives deep into the challenges and opportunities in the benefits administration industry, and outlines bswift’s strategy for con...

Mark as Played

How can HR professionals be true people partners that empower and shape company culture? bswift's Chief People Officer Natalie Atwood talks with bWise hosts Don and Sharon about her passion for putting people first. Learn how she's guiding bswift's cultural evolution—focusing on talent, transparency, engagement, and wellbeing. Natalie also discusses key elements of bswift's benefits admin success like sp...

Mark as Played

Get an insider’s look at how bswift’s Head of Operational Excellence, Adam Hostetter, is driving major improvements. Learn how his team is enhancing service delivery, upgrading technology, and aligning workstreams to accelerate growth. Adam shares insights on creating organizational alignment through visibility and communication. Hear how he employs urgency, quick wins, and constant iteration to lead successful change management. H...

Mark as Played

Join hosts Don and Sharon as they speak with Ted Bloomberg, bswift’s CEO, about bswift’s bright future as we emerge as a standalone organization. In this episode, you’ll learn more about bswift’s leadership, what fuels our passion for our clients and partners, and our commitment to deliver excellent technology and service to all those we serve. Don and Sharon will discuss how the fundamentals of transparency, communication, and acc...

Mark as Played

Join hosts Don and Sharon live from bswift's Idea Exchange conference in sunny Orlando, Florida as they speak with Mark Rieder, NFP's head of innovation, about digital transformation! In this episode, we'll explore how digital transformation can improve the employee experience, boost customer satisfaction, increase productivity, and drive greater profitability for the company. They'll discuss cutting-edge technologies like AI, bloc...

Mark as Played

Join hosts Don and Sharon as they meet with the bswift UX Portfolio Owner, Rachel Bates, to discuss all things user interface. During this episode we uncover the gaps that benefit administration systems are tasked with closing when looking closely at providing a contemporary user experience for employees. Rachel reviews the philosophy behind how bswift looks at the employee experience and also briefs ou...

Mark as Played

Join our hosts Don and Sharon as they meet with bswift’s new Chief Technology Officer, John Hansen. During this episode, John discusses bswift's proven ability to deliver flexible and customer-focused ben admin in today's everchanging environment, and how bswift's unique position is being harnessed to drive agility at scale to solve key employer needs, both today and tomorrow. Plus, hear what attracted John to bswift as a company a...

Mark as Played
Jin Oak Ha, President & CEO, on taking bswift to the next level in 2022 and beyond Join our hosts as they meet with Jin Oak Ha, bswift’s new President and Chief Executive Officer. During the discussion Jin Oak lends her thoughts on how employers are faced with different challenges than they faced 18-24 months ago in a pre-pandemic world. Employers have been tasked with helping employees navigate creating safe work spaces, mental he...
Mark as Played

Over the last 18 months, HR teams have been challenged like never before as they have had to adapt to the twists and turns of COVID-19. As the pandemic enters yet another phase, organizations are now tasked with tracking COVID-19 vaccines and test results for employees. bswift has teamed up with CVS Health, who has been at the forefront of testing and vaccine administration since day one, to develop and...

Mark as Played

Join our hosts as they visit with the managing partners of Apprize Technology, Matt Anderle and Melissa Brown. During this episode we dive into how Apprize has used the insurance industry’s top challenges to build a brand focused on white glove benefit administration support.  Listen in to hear what producers and plan sponsors should be considering when it comes to leveraging technology as we move into 2022.

Mark as Played

This panel discussion of experts Kate Taylor (Benefit Technology Resources), Mike Hager (Hager Strategic) and Sean Clem (Brown & Brown) was held in conjunction with bswift’s annual Idea Exchange client conference. The dialogue is presented in two parts, and in part two, we explore questions around how benefits budgets have been impacted by the pandemic, and how employers have reprioritized employee communication and engagement stra...

Mark as Played

This panel discussion of experts Kate Taylor (Benefits Technology Resources), Mike Hager (Hager Strategic) and Sean Clem (Brown & Brown) was held in conjunction with bswift’s annual Idea Exchange client conference. The dialogue is presented in two parts, and in part one, we explore plans by employers to return to the office, the models of co-sourcing vs. total benefit outsourcing for benefits administration, the way the pandemic ha...

Mark as Played

Self-insuring is routine for large employers, and a growing trend for smaller plans. Listen in as Mark Schmidt and Michael Ciarrocchi of Meritain explain some fundamentals to smart change management, the value of interchangeable point solutions, and where this TPA fits in the larger CVS Health and Aetna strategies.

Mark as Played

Tune in to hear Mike DiSimone and Paul Sari share new trends in the consumer directed health and savings account space, and discuss how consumer behavior is driving a transformation of the participant experience to ensure that it is simple for employees to plan, save and pay for their holistic well-being journey.

Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

    If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

    New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce

    Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!

    24/7 News: The Latest

    The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.

    Dateline NBC

    Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

    NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal

    Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.