In great anticipation of John Torinus headlining this year’s Human Capital Summit on March 13, 2014, we are sharing his blog content on the 5 Steps To Control Health Costs. This content was derived from his book The Compay That Solved Health Care. In addition to this topic, John will bring new insight during our event from his latest book Opt Out On Obamacare, Opt Into The Private Heath Care Revolution.

Any organization can take immediate steps to tame the hyperinflation of health care costs and premiums. Innovators in health care delivery in the private sector have paved the way to proven methods for cutting costs. Not surprisingly, managing costs and improving health go hand in hand. Here are the basic steps that managers can take to not just curtail costs, but to reduce them:

This is my 52^nd weekly blog. It’s hard to believe a year has passed since I first gave this blogging thing a shot. Thank you for reading it, thank you for your comments – both public and private– and thank you for your inspiration!

There are plenty of articles that point to the value organizations receive when their leaders actively communicates to stakeholders. Blogging is a great way to do that and I thought I’d share what it’s meant to me.

• Platform For Important Issues:  Every week I have a formal venue to share my thoughts, struggles, goals, plans, or just my feelings on issues I think are important to our company, clients, and community.
• Record Of Gibson: There is a healthy written record of what we believe in at Gibson. If a prospective employee or client wants to know what we’re about, it’s all out there.
• Accountability Partner: I soon realized that every Friday when I publish another blog, in essence, I raise the bar for what others should expect of me.
• I’m Human After All: The thing is I make mistakes. Lots of them. And even I don’t have the discipline to follow my own public advice every time. (Those of you that already knew me well had ZERO doubt about my “human-ness”!) At the end of the day, I’m just a Dad, Husband, Friend, and Grandson myself, facing all the same issues that everyone else does.
• Honoring Mentors: It’s been rewarding for me to share how some truly amazing people took a liking and invested in me over the years. I’ll never be able to fully repay them other than trying to pay it forward to others. But the blog has given me a forum to tell a few more folks about these special individuals.
• Remaining Engaged With Clients, Centers Of Influence, And Other Leaders: Whether they are just being very kind or don’t know what else to talk about, rarely does a business meeting take place anymore without some good natured ribbing about a recent blog or advice for a future one. I’ve gotten some great ideas from them and learned about their journeys as well.
• Reconnecting With Old Friends, Professors And Colleagues: As the blog gained traction, emails and texts started to pour in with memories, fresh advice, and gratitude. Many start out with a “Your blog reminded me of my….” They are great stories and it means a lot that I am able in some small way to help trigger those memories.
• I’ve Learned A Lot: Some of the blogs were just stories I’ve wanted to tell, but others required some research. Even the whole idea of blogging turned me on to some great writers and thinkers. The advice and ideas I’ve received from others along the way has made my blogging experience worth it all by itself.
• I’ve Become A Better Communicator: My apologies for the length of some of my blogs. It’s tough to get your ideas out there in a concise 500 to 1,000 words! I knew I had some work to do when just a few blogs in, my Dad told me that he “really didn’t care for the most recent blog”. Hopefully they’ve gotten better! I don’t know if my 7^th grade Language Arts teacher Mr. Rothert saw it or not, but here I am, a writer of sorts.   
• Renewed Bond With My Grandmother: Yes, the blog about life advice from my Grandma Dorothy Gerber has been the most popular post. While that’s kind of neat and shows you how much people enjoy personal stories, it meant so much more to me. As we played a domino game over the Christmas holiday this year, it was still the topic of conversation with my Grandma, aunt, and cousins.

Knowing what's included in your homeowners coverage before you have a claim can be incredibly valuable!

Over the past 26 weeks, I’ve been studying behavior change more diligently—what is it that motivates someone to begin and then sustain making better choices? The answer is to focus on the intrinsic. By definition, intrinsic means ‘belonging to the essential nature of a thing’. This is unique to every single person. It is also dynamic. Valuing the intrinsic allows a person to elicit his or her best thinking, which in turn enables healthier choices based on what’s important to that person.

Instead of doling out workout plans and diet plans, those of us who want to make healthier choices for the New Year would be better served by asking ourselves a simple, but not so easy question to answer: What is it that I’m wanting for myself that is important to me in relation to ___________ (you fill in the blank)? It’s only when we identify what we want for ourselves based on the intrinsic, and therefore it’s importance, can we truly begin to make lifestyle changes that last.

You hear it often in business: work/life balance is important and when it’s out of sync it can significantly impact employee engagement and your organization’s overall health. Much of it seems to be device and data driven. In this age of instant technology, we have more information than ever before to process and its available 24/7 on our smart phones. Being “smarter” might actually be costing all of us at the end of the day.

We are paying a price personally with fatigue and stress and may not even realize it. A study conducted in 2010 shows that information overload costs American businesses just under $1 trillion in employee time lost to needless email and distractions. As Shelly Smith, our Director of Human Resources told me recently, “There is an expectation to tune in and turn on more, but I wonder if we’re getting additional value from it?”

Mega retailer Target revealed last month the unauthorized access of its customers' credit card data to hackers. Approximately 40 million credit and debit card accounts may have been adversely impacted by this breach. This is not the first time hackers have illegally accessed credit card information, and it won't be the last.

No, it’s not the latest Hollywood movie about guys and their need for speed. For those of you who know me well, sarcasm is one of my most endearing traits! So as a follow up to Tim Leman’s New Year Safety blog, I thought it would be fun to share my top driving annoyances. While no one reading this is guilty of any of these driving violations, I’m sure we all can think of someone who is. Not surprising, many of these habits cause the majority of claims each year.

Are you feeling over-whelmed by all the lists of how-tos and resolutions? Perhaps you're deeply engrossed in an elaborate strategic planning process? Maybe you've already broken a promise to yourself for 2014? Don't feel too bad - the odds of success just aren't in our favor.

According to recent research from Protivit Inc. and North Carolina State University, loss of business income relating to specific issues (such as economic slowdown, increasing competition, legislative changes and volatile financial markets) has grown 14 percent in only 2 years, while risk management and crisis readiness have fallen 7 percent. These figures indicate that many organizations have been unable to anticipate and respond effectively to evolving business threats. By simply identifying and assessing these risks, you can protect your organization and take advantage of favorable circumstances which will help boost your bottom line. Here are the top seven risks businesses should fear most in 2014.

Workers compensation fraud can be a major expense and therefore a significant risk to any employer. However, it is easier to prevent that you think. With a few easy steps, you can help prevent fraud from happening within your company.