Think back to your last vendor negotiation. You had terms ready, benchmarks in place, and a walk-away position if things went sideways. Now think about your last benefits renewal. One was a negotiation. The other was a presentation. (You know which was which.)
Why does that feel normal?
The one room without leverage
You built this company by never accepting a first offer. Freight, software, banking, raw materials – every major contract gets scrutiny, benchmarks, and a real alternative on the table. Then the health plan shows up as a number, not a conversation, and nobody blinks. That is not how it has to be done. It is just how it has always been done.
Meanwhile, the people advising you on that number often earn more when you spend more. Not villains. Misaligned incentives that nobody in the room has ever questioned. Advice follows incentives – you know this about every other vendor relationship in your business. This one somehow gets a pass.
What accountability looks like here
The same discipline you apply everywhere else. Full compensation disclosure from your advisor – what they make, from whom, certified in writing. Contract terms you can read without a law degree. Real benchmarks, not reassurance that “everyone is seeing these increases.” And options beyond the same four carriers wearing different logos.
None of that is radical. It is routine, everywhere else in your budget.
This is stewardship, not procurement
You negotiated everything else that built this business. For most companies your size, this spend sits behind only payroll. Every dollar a misaligned vendor extracts from your health plan is a tax on what you created. The renewal room is the one room you have been walking out of without leverage, and someone told you that was fine.
Nobody meant you harm. But it was not fine. And how is that working for you?
Try one question at your next benefits meeting: “How exactly do you get paid on our plan?” Then book 30 minutes with me and compare answers.
