Alumni Spotlight: Joan Bruxvoort

Doretha Jones, our intrepid HR reporter, had a chance recently to catch up with one of our Alumni, Joan Bruxvoort. Joan started with Pinnacol Assurance in 1995 as a claims representative reporting to Debra Sue Scott and then she worked for Amy Newton. She remained in the claims role until she retired in 2005. Prior to joining Pinnacol, Joan worked for Waste Management. She enjoyed learning about workers’ compensation and claims’ processing at Pinnacol since this was a new experience for her. Joan has thoroughly enjoyed working with the different teams and the opportunity to meet new business directors and co-workers. A few of the teams that she has helped as a returning alum include BMS, BLP, BLS, BMW, SSO, SAC, and the State team. Joan likes to help the teams whenever she is requested. Her knowledge of claims continues to expand through the various assignments. Joan was one of the top participants in the Alumni Program temporary pool and all the teams have greatly appreciated her assistance.

Joan and her husband Gregg purchased a new home in the Fall of 2009. She was excited to move closer into Conifer again. Initially when she retired, they moved to a smaller home in Bailey. They enjoy the mountains. She has been working on several projects around the house including expanding their master bedroom's closet, adding an office adjacent to the kitchen, staining the cabinets, and putting in a matching countertop and painting.

She has 2 children, Scott and Kallie, and 3 grandchildren. All live in Denver. Joan and Gregg have 2 dogs,  Annie and Cole, a black and a yellow Labrador.

A couple of times a year, Joan and her husband ride the jeep trails in Moab. In Joan’s spare time, she enjoys reading and she sells Mary Kay. On occasion, she helps a friend with administrative duties in her business. She looks forward to visiting her brother in Tucson the end of April where she plans to play golf and relax.

Should the next "Apprentice" be a two year old?

I have to admit that I am an occasional fan of "The Apprentice" on NBC. This year's group of celebrities includes the former Governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, who recently was fired by Donald Trump after demonstrating an utter lack of technical (computer) skills. During one episode he struggled to figure out how to simply turn on a laptop, and on another it became apparent he really had no clue on using e-mail or text messaging. In contrast, I came across the following video on one of the business blogs I follow (http://www.bnet.com/) that showed a young child's first interaction with the new Apple I-Pad. Watching the video I could only wonder at what the capabilities of the newest generation will be when they enter the work force in about 18 years. This 2 1/2 year old takes to the I-Pad like the proverbial duck to water. Watching her made me realize the challenges facing those of us already in the work force in terms of keeping up with change, including constantly evolving technology.

I can remember working for Pinnacol when we first got internet and e-mail (I can hear the gasps from all of those who have grown up with these things), but that was only about 12 years ago! I still see candidates spanning the spectrum from this toddler to Mr. Blagojevich. We do typing tests for some types of positions and I can pretty much guage the applicant's computer skills by the way they simply interact with the keyboard. Some of us love the new technology, some of us tolerate it, but watching this 2 1/2 year old made it abundantly clear that none of us can any longer avoid it. What are your thoughts?

Pinnacol In Action: Giving Back to Colorado

As an alumni you may recall that Pinnacol has a very active employee volunteer program called Pinnacol In Action, or PIA for short. PIA has grown through the years and in 2009 Pinnacol employees volunteered more than 5,000 hours in the community. We thought you might like to see a short video highlighting some of your former co-workers volunteer efforts. As Sherry Mars, one of our claims representatives, says: "I want to make a difference in life" and Pinnacol is pleased to give employees the opportunity to do that through PIA.

Pinnacol in the News: Separation Efforts end for 2010

You may have seen a lot of recent publicity regarding the end to efforts to separate Pinnacol  from the state in 2010. The following is Ken's official statement:

March 30, 2010

STATEMENT from Ken Ross

President and CEO, Pinnacol Assurance

"Today we were advised that Pinnacol's proposed plan to separate from the State of Colorado will not be considered by the Colorado General Assembly during the 2010 session. We are disappointed that this proposal does not appear to be moving forward because we believe it would have benefited our policyholders, protected injured workers and brought stability to Colorado’s workers’ compensation market. Of course, we will remain open to further discussions with our elected officials to attain these goals.

While this is not the outcome Pinnacol was seeking, we remain committed to providing reasonable rates, issuing dividends, serving injured workers, offering superior customer service, and covering Colorado’s residual market.

This announcement does not change the ongoing concerns we have with certain bills that came from the Pinnacol Interim Committee that are now being considered by the legislature.

We are especially concerned about the impact of three bills:

 House Bill 1009 would change the makeup of our board of directors, disrupting the management of Pinnacol at a time when it has been highly successful at lowering rates, issuing dividends and ensuring the delivery of excellent customer service.

 House Bill 1356 would cap our surplus at an arbitrary rate, threatening our ability to remain solvent and provide protection to our policyholders and their injured workers.

 And House Bill 1012 would impede the ability of all insurance companies to conduct legitimate investigations and scrutinize fraudulent claims, benefitting those who engage in fraudulent activities while increasing the costs of workers’ compensation insurance for everyone.

If passed, these bills would be detrimental to Pinnacol's business operations and governance. They would also have a negative impact on Colorado’s business-friendly workers’ compensation market —– a market that has helped make the state a place where businesses want to relocate or expand their operations, creating jobs for our citizens.

We are calling upon the business community to join with us in telling their legislative representatives that these bills will harm Pinnacol's business operations and are not good for Colorado companies as they slowly emerge from the current economic downturn.”