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Building Your Own Expert Network - How Expert Personas Help you Organize & Develop Your Talent Pool
As business continues to evolve at an unprecedented rate, companies need new ideas and strategies that help them rapidly transform to keep pace and grow. This explains the massive popularity that expert networks are having as companies look to connect with subject-matter experts with specialized sector and functional expertise who can accelerate their transformation efforts. Expert networks now represent a multi-billion dollar industry, helping companies in a variety of ways. From helping build primary research to assessing new market or acquisition opportunities to conducting due diligence for new technology purchases or competitive benchmarking, expert networks provide a valuable service. While many companies are increasing their use of traditional expert networks, there is also a trend toward organizing and developing internal talent by implementing a "knowledge management platform" or "employee skills marketplace." These can also be extended to engage broader audiences when experts are listed publicly as part of an Expert Center, Media Room, or Speakers Bureau. Depending on the scope and market visibility organizations wish to commit to in sharing their expertise, such programs can yield the following benefits: Improved access to shared knowledge throughout the organization Faster innovation through an improved discovery of key experts available for project opportunities Higher amount of cross-functional engagement between departments A more collaborative relationship with employees through better knowledge engagement and skills development Less reliance on outside consultants and traditional expert networks Improved brand reputation by engaging experts in thought leadership activities Increased media coverage and speaking engagements Improved business development opportunities by engaging experts earlier in the sales process Improved connection with the local community Additional ways to foster Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion throughout the organization What is an expert network? An expert network is a service that matches clients with experts who are willing to share their knowledge and advice via short conversations. These are usually in the form one hour long expert interviews conducted with the client. Expert networks such as GLG, AlphaSights, Guidepoint Global, Third Bridge, and Coleman Research help match the client's interest to specific experts in their private database of experts on call. They also look after logistics such as scheduling the expert interviews and have detailed processes for qualifying experts to ensure compliance with the exchange of information. And they handle time tracking and billing of interviews which are typically charged based on an hourly rate. They also handle the payment of fees to the experts following the interview. Building your own knowledge platform There is a growing trend towards organizing their expertise given the profound challenges organizations are facing. And these challenges didn’t just start when the pandemic hit. In a recent Deloitte survey, 63% of executives reported that work in their organizations is currently being performed in teams or projects outside of people’s core job descriptions, 81% say work is increasingly performed across functional boundaries, and 36% say work is increasingly being performed by workers outside of the organization who don’t have defined jobs in the organization at all. Yet fewer than half (42%) of respondents say their organization’s job descriptions do an “excellent job” of specifying the work that needs to be done in their positions. As work becomes far more fluid, packaging skills into rigid job descriptions leads to a lot of untapped human capital in organizations. It’s an issue that hasn’t gone unnoticed by leadership. Research shows that only 18% of executives strongly agree that their workforce is using their skills and capabilities to their fullest potential. 85% of HR and business executives say organizations should create more agile ways of organizing work to improve speed and swiftly adapt to market changes. These issues underscore the need to better organize and develop internal talent by implementing a "knowledge management platform" or "employee skills marketplace." This is for a variety of reasons. With vast amounts of acquired knowledge pooled across various departments and teams, it can be difficult for other employees to access this knowledge when it is outside their area of expertise - as the old saying goes, “people don't know what they don't know.” Organizing your expertise for external audiences also can provide huge benefits for building reputation, relationships, and revenues. How to position your experts as industry thought leaders More and more organizations are looking at employees who can advance their innovation efforts internally, often as part of a cross-functional team or special project. And there are also important revenue-generating activities, such as sharing research and perspectives through content generation (blogging, webinars, podcasting) or speaking (at internal events, industry conferences, or as an expert source for media interviews). Determining how to best identify and put experts to work isn't a simple process. That's because to do this right requires a more disciplined approach to assessing and developing the talent across your organization. One that goes beyond linear career paths and traditional job titles we assign to employees. It also requires a more progressive approach to diversity and experience. One that is not simply correlated to seniority or authority in an organization. Given the current state of the talent market, most organizations are also recognizing the importance of managing their talent, listening more to employees, and helping them achieve their goals - both professional and personal. And that extends to how best to tap into their skills that can benefit the organization both internally and externally. That's why we developed a talent framework that helps identify opportunities where subject-matter experts can best contribute as well as potential options for professional development. To make this process more intuitive, we have developed a model that outlines 4 "expert personas" that detail the various characteristics related to experts in an organization along with a potential development path. Level 1: Experts in the "Practitioner" persona group can offer their organizations a wide range of skills. Our research and in-field experience with companies focused on innovation reveals that organizations can realize significant gains by tapping into this broad pool of talent. To better engage practitioners, we have helped universities better engage their Ph.D. candidates who are approaching graduation to conduct research and writing content that promotes their work and institutional brand to prospective students or donors. This also extends to corporate innovation. A recent example of this was our collaboration with a Fortune 500 company in the CPG sector, where we completed the build of an internal expert network. One of the key challenges this organization faced was the inability to quickly engage with “practitioners” - subject-matter experts across the organization who could help with specific R&D and innovation projects. While this organization had legacy HR and intranet communication platforms, they had experienced a number of challenges engaging their researchers. To make things worse the pandemic forced many to work from home, creating the need for more opportunities to engage online. They needed the ability to conduct simple searches to find other researchers relevant to their work who could help them with projects. Our research/writing team started the process by taking an inventory of experts and then developed profiles for each researcher in collaboration with the company’s research/innovation team using the ExperFile SaaS software platform. With the unique data structure used to categorize this broader set of biographical information, we then enabled advanced search capabilities to build a private, SOC2 (security) compliant expert network which was easily integrated into their existing talent platforms. With thousands of researchers across the globe, they now have the ability to quickly search for experts on areas such as skills, topics, work experience, research publications, company/industry experience and IP/patents. It’s important to note that activating all this hidden expertise not only lays the groundwork for faster innovation. It also can reduce the fees associated with outside expert networks and consultants, maintains tighter internal control of proprietary research information and forges stronger collaborations between experts across the globe. Level 2: The "Ambassador" category represents experts with a more developed set of skills and a reputation both inside their organization and within their community of practice. Working with them to generate more exposure through internal speaking engagements and within their local community is a great way to create market visibility. For example, we have worked with a number of professional services firms to make experts at this level more visible in their local markets. Building reputation and generating new client opportunities with thought leadership activities such as blogging, webinars and speaking at local business events or on podcasts is a proven way to tap into this talent. These activities have allowed organizations we have worked with to bring in new clients and increase revenues across various practice areas. Ambassadors are also perfect for involvement in on-campus recruitment events where competition for talent is high. Particularly in fields such as engineering, law and accounting. One way to make these experts more approachable to a wider audience is by creating a speaker’s bureau. Remember that not all your experts will be comfortable speaking to the media, however, they can still meaningfully contribute as a keynote speaker or panelist at an event. Organizing your experts on key topics enables local event and conference organizers to find you more easily in Google search results and on your website. In addition to getting your experts on the podium, it’s a proven way to get your expert's guest appearances on webinars and podcasts. Given the growing importance of these channels, we recently formed partnerships with the leading marketplaces for webinars and podcasts - BrightTalk and Podchaser to help our clients promote their experts for speaking opportunities. Level 3: Experts in the "Authority" category have developed a strong reputation as an expert in their field, often speaking at academic or industry conferences. At this level, they have also developed a degree of proficiency in speaking as an expert source with the local or national media. They can be found speaking as a guest on podcasts to share their knowledge and are often active on social media. In higher education, these people are critical to helping media relations and other departments generate media coverage that is essential to building a reputation. We have worked with many organizations that effectively engage their Authorities by staying connected to their research and publications and collaboratively creating regular content with them to reach a broader audience. You will find regular opportunities to boost coverage with local and national media by utilizing this group of experts. We work with media teams to conduct Google Search (SEO) analysis to identify what topics their target audiences are searching for. This allows them to more strategically focus on key experts to promote. They are also focused on delivering more engaging content formats such as video interviews and Q&A to boost Google PageRank and audience engagement across their website. And they are working collaboratively with their faculty to post media advisories and a regular stream of content that contributes to higher rates of discovery by journalists looking for expert sources. Level 4: Experts in the "Evangelist" category are those go-to experts that you often see in the media as key spokespeople representing a certain topic. They are seen as notable authorities with deep domain expertise within their community of practice which has often been earned through heavy research and publications. Chances are they have also authored books that provide a path to speaking engagements at conferences and media interviews. These are also the people who have developed a regular audience through blogging or by hosting a podcast and have a well-established social media following. Ultimately, what separates this group from the others is the significantly broader market profile they have earned as a thought leader. These individuals have an intuitive sense of how to communicate complex topics in a relatable way that both educates and engages. That makes them particularly valuable to the organizations whose brands they represent. Given the degree of qualifications required to operate at this level, it’s to be expected that you will find far fewer “evangelist” category experts in any organization. Many are naturally found within the ranks of the executive team. These are the people who are comfortable in interviews, and most have extensive public speaking experience appearing on a large stage and on radio and television. At this level, organizations need to be far more strategic about how they utilize this talent pool to build a reputation and reach a wider audience. We have seen first-hand how strategic thought leadership programs can build a platform for these experts that can pay huge dividends. One healthcare system we have worked with recently forged a relationship with ABC News to feature one of their medical experts (a medical doctor) on a weekly segment related to important Covid-related health topics. Given the frequent appearances this expert has made on television, this was an earned media home run and a great way for this healthcare system to build visibility and trust within the community by providing accurate medical information. Their commitment to making their medical experts more discoverable and approachable online has also helped them promote their strengths in areas such as cardiology, neonatal, cancer, and genetic research. And the results are impressive. Over the past year, they have doubled their national media coverage and are currently outperforming much larger healthcare systems in their area. How to organize your experts Personas by their very nature are designed to provide a more standardized approach for planning using "clusters" of talent that are grouped against common characteristics. However, we're very aware that they cannot possibly capture all the nuances you will find within your organization when it comes to talent. But our experience helping leading organizations in knowledge-based industries to better manage thousands of experts shows that having a more methodical approach pays off. It optimizes the internal/external contributions and the development paths of experts to create win-win opportunities. but it also helps forge a stronger connection with employees who feel their organization is taking the development of their professional skills more seriously and more actively creating avenues for them to engage and contribute. With an understanding of these personas, we can then focus on another important consideration - where can we best engage our experts to more effectively tap into their skills inside and outside the organization? To help answer that question, we developed a "Talent Assessment Grid" (TAG) that helps you identify key areas where each of these personas can contribute. As a planning tool, it's meant to provide a more organized approach that helps you assess your bench strength and create a more tangible system for measuring progress over time in areas such as skills development or contributions to cross-functional innovation projects or outside industry consulting. Playing to the individual strengths these experts have while moving them out of their comfort zone to develop additional skills also yields additional marketing benefits. Contributing content; speaking at conferences or community events or to the media are proven ways to build market visibility, establish trust and generate revenues - and experts play a vital role in this process. A thriving network where knowledge is easily discoverable inside an organization and strategically shared outside in the community and beyond can make a huge difference in boosting innovation and culture. When properly promoted, these experts will also help you grow your reputation, relationships, and revenues. Although this process requires commitment, it positions you to be more agile and outperform your competition by ensuring you are optimizing every employee’s true potential and making them more discoverable both inside and outside the organization. How are you putting your expert talent to work? Do you have a process you use today for identifying and engaging your experts? We would like to hear from you. For more insights on how you can organize your experts online to support your internal knowledge management or promote them to a wider audience, visit us at https://expertfile.com/resources to learn more.
The Christopher J Hewitt Prize for exceptional student citizenship in the College of Life and Health Sciences at Aston University has been awarded to Hanan Tahir a fourth year MPharm student, in recognition of his support in helping colleagues to develop and achieve their goals through mentoring and for his positive and supportive outlook, felt by all those around him. The prize is named after and in tribute of Professor Christopher J Hewitt FREng who was pro-vice chancellor and executive dean of the School of Life and Health Sciences and professor of biological engineering from November 2014 until July 2019. Chris sadly passed away on 25 July 2019 at the age of 50; an eminent scientist and truly devoted family man. To commemorate Chris’s life and to celebrate the values that he held dear, the Christopher J Hewitt Prize was established in 2021 to recognise exemplary citizenship through support of other students, contribution to the Aston University community or achievement in the face of adversity. The judging panel, which consisted of four research fellows and Chris’s widow Sandra Hewitt, felt that Hanan had achieved a lot through his work with Aston University student societies, where he is president of the Aston Pharmacy Society. Hanan also set up a mentoring scheme for first and second year students to help ease them into University life after the Covid-19 pandemic. The judges noted the substantial amount of charity work undertaken by Hanan including hiking up Snowden to raise £9000 for Syrian Refugees. They were also impressed by the nominations outlining the sense of fun and joy Hanan has helped to foster amongst his student peers. On receiving his award, Hanan said: "It's within our human nature to care for and support each other. We've grown to be so successful because we have always chosen to look out for others rather than isolate and try to go it alone. And I have always believed that an integral key to happiness is community. “I am honoured to have received this award. I am even more honoured that my efforts have been noticed and recognised. Aston University has always put inclusivity and community in everything it does and I hope that we all continue to emanate the values of this University as we progress through our lives." Sandra Hewitt, Chris’s widow, added: “It was an honour to once again be able to be part of the judging panel for the Christopher J. Hewitt Memorial Prize. Again, this year the candidates all exhibited the qualities and values of the prize, however we felt Hanan was a worthy winner for all the reasons mentioned above. Chris worked hard but he liked to party harder so the fact that Hanan’s nominations also mentioned his sense of joy and fun was especially relevant." Professor Anthony Hilton, executive dean of the College of Life and Health Sciences, said: “I am delighted Hanan is this year’s recipient of the Christopher J Hewitt Prize. It makes me exceptionally proud to see members of the College demonstrating the culture and values we hold dear and being held in such high regard by their peers.” The panel also highlighted the exceptional achievements of Negin Gholampoor for her work as the Aston Medical School representative to the British Medical Association and for striving to improve the systems around her and effect change for the benefit of her peers. A special mention was made for Erika Pond for her commendable display of citizenship when providing CPR to a stranger in need. For more information about the College of Health and Life Sciences please visit our website and for information about studying Pharmacy at Aston University go to our course pages.
Ask an expert: Are children mentally rebounding back to a sense of normalcy?
With kids heading back to class and schools facing a new normal, there's a lot to consider about life post-pandemic, especially when it comes to America's children. Recently, we sat down with Augusta University's Dr. Dale Peeples, a child and adolescent psychiatrist who treats young patients and educates parents on psychological disorders such as anxiety, ADHD and depression. Throughout the pandemic, Peeples has also been the go-to psychiatrist for media and parents, providing tips to maintain mental wellbeing. Q: Are children mentally rebounding or adjusting back to a sense of normalcy? I think we are seeing an impact from the pandemic that’s continued even though life is getting much closer to what we consider normal. The impact with kids largely focuses on school, both through education and through those social interactions. I still see kids who are struggling to make up for things after falling behind during the pandemic and struggling to work back to that classroom setting when they developed a little bit of anxiety for such extended periods. You also are seeing kids dealing with a lot of regret having missed out on life, on friendships and connections, and some kids have been really struggling with how to deal with a bunch of people again. Q: Is there a certain age group that you’ve seen that may be struggling more than others? I think the older kids are, because when they were going through this, the more impact it had. A couple of reasons for that: Peer relationships become a lot more important as you become a teenager as compared to when you are little bit younger. Also, school becomes more demanding and sometimes that catch-up on work that was missed is going to be a little more challenging than younger grades. Q: What would your advice be to parents to help their children mentally in these increasingly challenging times, specifically as we begin the new school year? Communication, obviously, is still ideal. Families want to make sure that they are still getting together, having dinner as a family, discussing how the children's day went, so parents are in the loop about what kids are dealing with, trying to maintain that open line of communication. Parents also want to kind of generally be on the lookout for symptoms of depression. Obviously that's the changes in mood, feeling sad, feeling down, but also when kids kind of socially withdrawal and they lock themselves in their rooms and they don't want to go out, be around other people, do things they enjoy. When you see grades begin to decline, those are warning signs that there might be a little bit more going on here. Q: What can children do to help themselves and make sure they feel heard? Any time I'm sitting down with a patient for the first time and we're talking about treatment options, we'll talk about medication sometimes. We generally talk about talk therapy, behavioral and cognitive interventions. They also always talk about lifestyle interventions, healthy lifestyle, and there is a ton there that people can really do to make a big difference. The biggest thing I see kids struggle with, honestly, is sleep. Sleep has a huge impact on mood and anxiety and getting proper sleep is really tough in this day and age, when you've got cell phone notifications going off around the clock. Q: We know kids are resilient. Those who have struggled the most over the last two years, can they turn the corner and get better? Absolutely, I 100% agree that the kids are resilient. I'd say almost always, I share that optimistic attitude that if they have a hard time, they're going to get better. Sometimes it's just putting out the safety guards to support them and make sure that they keep on that right track. Q: Unfortunately, school shootings are again in the news and seem to be on the rise in recent years. Are you seeing more concern and stress for children or maybe even from their parents as it relates to safety in school? I try to remind my patients that part of the reason they get a lot of national attention is because they're infrequent and they're rare. So part of it is parents kind of controlling media for younger kids. Teenagers, obviously, they understand what's going on, and it's going to be a little bit harder for parents to monitor the media, but having those open dinner table discussions can let parents know when their kids are having worries. This is an important topic, especially as students are heading back to school and beginning a fresh start to a new academic year. If you're a reporter looking to cover this topic, then let us help. Dr. Dale Peeples is available to speak with media. Simply click on his icon now to arrange an interview today.
Inflation: Simple Causes But a Complicated Cure JULY 2022 We face a wave of strikes, intended to restore the purchasing power of wages in face of inflation. But strikes cannot succeed in restoring everyone’s purchasing power. In the near term, inflation’s impact on living standards can be significantly mitigated only by importing more and so increasing our trade deficit, financed by foreign borrowing. Unwillingness to do that means we are likely to prolong the wave of strikes and so suffer a bruising recession created by restrictive monetary policy. This will cause yet more damage to living standards. However, debt-funded importing of consumption items in order to maintain living standards is poor policy longer-term. It can’t stop the harmful redistribution effects of inflation that are already emerging. Most important, it doesn’t address the longstanding source of our lagging living standards – too little economic growth and economic resilience due to our failure to grow productivity. Without increased productivity, debt-funded consumption repair will cumulate to tomorrow’s fiscal crisis. Therefore, we face a very difficult policy challenge. We must act to support living standards over the next year or two, mitigate the social problems that inflation is already causing and, simultaneously, divert our priorities (and our continuing borrowing) to foster much improved productivity growth. Causes This is a simple story. Today’s inflation demonstrates that we are poorer than we were three years ago. The value of what we, collectively, produce and earn, has shrunk, relative to the cost of the things that we seek to consume. Inflation constricts our consumption options to what we can now afford. We are poorer for two reasons. First, because we produce and earn less domestically, and second, because the things that we don’t produce but import have become scarcer, forcing us to pay more to get them. • Brexit caused an immediate and seemingly permanent devaluation of Sterling, raising the costs of everything that we import. It also seemingly permanently reduced our exports to the EU, our largest trading partner. No new trade possibilities are similar in scale, so there is a long-term loss of income. Moreover, increased non-tariff barriers have raised the cost of imports from the EU beyond the exchange rate effect. • The pandemic has reduced the worldwide supply of all sorts of goods, therefore raising their prices. This is due to supply chain problems, the zero-Covid China lockdown, the reduction in UK output because a significant portion of the population is out with Covid at any time. Crops are left rotting in the fields because there aren’t enough domestic agricultural workers and, of course, no more EU farm workers. • The war in Ukraine has escalated the costs of energy and food grains. In the future it will propel redirection of domestic resources to the production of war material, which is not edible. Consequences Inflation not only makes us, collectively, poorer, it differentially distributes the pain. • Everyone in the UK could go on strike to try to raise their wages enough to maintain their real consumption. But as the pie has shrunk, that is impossible. The extra money people get will simply chase the same, smaller amount available and the prices of goods and services will rise further. If the ensuing price rises provoke further wage increases, we chase our tails. This is the wage/price spiral that the Bank of England fears. • Some groups have more wage bargaining power than others. Perhaps the railway unions can indeed hold the country to ransom and regain their purchasing power. But then others, less empowered than railway workers, will become greater losers. • Inflation causes a flight to real assets – houses, commodities – whose values float up with the price level. Because ownership of real assets is very unequally distributed, the asset-rich minority is likely to come out better than before while the asset-poor majority lose even more. The purchasing power of people living on fixed-return assets such as retirement annuities would be devastated by a wage/price spiral. Similarly, as interest rates rise with the price level (or even faster if the Bank of England has its way), debtors on floating rate loans will be hit hard. • Different geographic areas have different mixes of people who would be gainers and losers from a wage/price spiral, exacerbating our substantial regional inequalities. Cure Part 1: Near-Term Mitigation How is it possible to offset the fall in current consumption which is provoking the wage/price spiral? People can consume more than they earn only by borrowing. The key is how that borrowing is undertaken. Households could borrow from private UK lenders, or the state could sell bonds to UK citizens and give the proceeds to other UK citizens to spend. But if all they can spend it on is the total value of UK output, that pie is shrinking. More money from borrowing would only raise prices, that is, add to inflation. Total UK consumption can exceed the value of UK output only if the extra is imported. Because the imports are paid for in another currency, borrowing to pay for those imports must be borrowing from foreign sources. The debt (public and private) that the UK owes others must rise by the value of the excess consumption. However, consuming more today by adding to our overseas debt isn’t a miracle cure. • Not everything can be imported. Domestic services of all types are provided, well, domestically. GP visits and houses and hotel rooms and haircuts will cost more as a result of wage inflation, no matter the amount of net foreign borrowing. These price increases will continue to provide some impetus to a wage/price spiral and make it more likely that the Bank of England will end up pushing the economy into recession to stop it. • The problem with debt is that you have to pay it back, and in the meantime, you pay interest on it. More consumption today means surrendering a greater amount of potential consumption in the future. Only if there is strong UK productivity growth will this foreign debt repayment not cause significant future trouble. Sadly, the UK has lagged in productivity growth among advanced economies for many years. Cure Part 2: A More Productive Economy The policy most likely to maintain social cohesion in the near term, and greater prosperity in the longer term, is a tricky two-step. We need to borrow to defend most people’s consumption in the next year or two, but then switch the budget to support growth and productivity-enhancing investment. Unless we do this, our debt repayment obligations will grow to unmanageable levels and meanwhile our level of consumption will continue to shrink relative to that of our peers. Our political system has not been good at tricky two-steps. It can manage short-term stimulus, funded by debt. But for decades the UK has failed to invest sufficiently in physical, technological and human capital to create productivity comparable to our peers. The inflation crisis is a call to action. Not only to mitigate current deterioration in living standards but to build a modern economy that sustains rising living standards into the future.
What does back to school look like this year? Augusta University expert talks challenges
Students will be back at the bus stop with school starting soon, but what can parents expect as their children return to the classroom after the effects of the pandemic years? Dr. Stacie Pettit, associate professor in the College of Education and Human Development at Augusta University, said not being in the classroom full-time has had an impact. Pettit said it’s documented that reading scores are down and many students were unaccounted for during at-home learning. But students also developed other skills during this period of time. “On one hand, you can’t completely make up for learning loss,” said Pettit. “Teachers just need to assess where students are and both students and teachers do the best you can from this point. On the other hand, students didn’t just stop learning altogether. There are important life and family skills that were gained during quarantine and the months after. I believe we should look at students from 'funds of knowledge' perspective rather than a deficit lens in order to recognize the cultural resources that a student’s household contains.” She added some students did become isolated and will need to relearn social skills, but many found a lively community online through social media during the pandemic. Pettit also pointed out students are resilient, as well as teachers. They didn’t stop teaching, but rather found new skills in instruction to make learning accessible in the new reality. There are some challenges going back to in-person instruction after the last couple of years. “Overcoming fear they’ve picked up through other people and the news,” she added. “”Feeling uncomfortable with their faces exposed after getting used to hiding behind a mask and dealing with germ phobia. Students also have the additional challenge of another recent school shooting in Uvalde, so not only are they getting used to being back in school full-time, but they also have safety concerns.” Pettit added there are still a few groups of students who could struggle being back in the classroom full-time. “Certainly kids who missed kindergarten. Students from foster care. Students in special education who didn’t have the support they needed during at home learning.” If you're a journalist covering education or are looking to line up your back-to-school stories this year, then let us help. Pettit is a respected leader in middle level teacher education and meeting the needs of marginalized young adolescents. She's available to speak with media - simply click on her icon now to arrange an interview today.
Well before the uncertainty of the pandemic, Orion Travel Insurance, a CAA company, decided to change the way travellers access travel insurance online. Working with a team of anthropologists, the goal of the redesign was to better understand how humans think about travel and safety. Researchers scoured opinions online, analyzed media and sat down with travellers to document their feelings around travel. “The traditional way of building an online quoting system just wasn’t sufficient,” says Kellee Irwin, VP, Orion Travel Insurance Company. “We didn’t feel that the online experience was putting the needs of the traveller first, so we turned it on its head and approached things differently. We are confident that this new approach to accessing travel insurance and information about travel insurance online is going to be an industry game-changer.” Traditionally, online quoting systems for travel insurance have been designed with business needs at the forefront, rather than designed to reflect what customers need to confidently purchase the appropriate protection. “As a company founded to deliver the protection that our members deserve, this antiquated way of doing things wasn’t good enough. Our mission was to create an online buying experience that was inspired by what it’s like when a traveller engages with a CAA Associate at a store,” adds Irwin. The end result of this in-depth work is the launch of a reinvented online travel quote and purchase system that makes learning about and buying travel insurance an easy and seamless experience for travellers. "Our research told us that travellers want to feel like 'their own best expert'. This new online experience enables travellers to explore and learn about the different types of travel insurance and compare the cost of various levels of protection all at their fingertips," says Irwin. The new system helps customers clearly understand the protection they are viewing and why qualifying questions are being asked. No longer will customers be forced to click through a series of prompts, only to discover that their selections do not reflect their needs and they must start all over again. As they explore coverage and learn more about what protection is right for them, travellers can get to a price in just seven clicks. Plus, they can alter their choices and the system will give updated quotes in real time. It also allows customers to use our SMART FAQ search engine in which the customer enters a question and immediately receives a matched answer. The new online buy flow is now in effect, click here to experience Orion’s reimagined online travel insurance system.
The economy may be slowing - but remains strong according to Georgia Southern expert
Georgia Southern’s Economic Monitor Q1 reports regional economy slows, retains strength Georgia Southern University’s latest Economic Monitor, which reflects Q1 2022, reports that growth in the Savannah metro economy moderated during the opening quarter of the year. “The broadest indicators of economic activity — overall regional employment and electricity sales to residential, industrial and commercial users — continue to signal strength,” stated Michael Toma, Ph.D., Georgia Southern’s Fuller E. Callaway Professor of Economics. “After good performance in the fourth quarter, there was a mild pull-back during the first quarter in tourism and port activity. In general, the regional economy maintained its forward momentum, but slowed its rate of acceleration. Toma also noted that the Savannah metro economy will grow approximately 2% through the remainder of 2022, noticeably slower as compared to the rebound year of 2021. The economic future is somewhat murkier now as inflation surges, the Federal Reserve tightens, and global energy and commodities markets remain rocked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he said. Overall Strength, but Some Sectoral Weakness The business index for the Savannah metro economy increased 1.3% in the opening quarter of 2022, roughly half the pace of the previous quarter. The index of current economic activity increased to 207.3 from 204.7. The index was buoyed by solid employment growth of 1.6% during the quarter and electricity sales growth of 2.1%. Indicators of port activity, tourism and retail sales slowed during the quarter. Metro Savannah employers added 3,100 jobs pushing total regional employment to 197,500 — more than 5,000 jobs and 3% higher than the pre-pandemic peak of 192,100 in the fourth quarter of 2019. The Georgia Department of Labor recently completed its annual benchmarking process for employment in which the monthly payroll survey data is benchmarked against headcount data. Total employment data did not change significantly but business and professional industry services were revised downward while the information sector, including the film and entertainment industry, was revised upward substantially. A full media release detailing key indicators such as Employment Trends, Housing Market, and that Slowing Regional Growth Expected is attached. About the Indicators The Economic Monitor provides a continuously updated quarterly snapshot of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area economy, including Bryan, Chatham and Effingham counties in Georgia. The coincident index measures the current economic heartbeat of the region. The leading index is designed to provide a short-term forecast of the region’s economic activity in the upcoming six to nine months. Looking to know more - then let us help. The Economic Monitor is available by email and at the Center’s website. If you would like to receive the Monitor by email send a ‘subscribe’ message to CBAER@georgiasouthern.edu. For more information or to arrange an interview - simply reach out to Georgia Southern Director of Communications Jennifer Wise at jwise@georgiasouthern.edu to arrange an interview today.
MEDIA RELEASE: Ten travel tips Ontarians should consider before flying this summer
CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO) has compiled a list of ten things that Ontarians should be aware of if they are considering travelling this summer – both inside and outside the country. “Those who are considering booking a trip should make sure they understand the scope of what travel looks like at the moment,” said Nadia Matos, manager external communications, CAA SCO. “The checklist for planning a trip has changed and we want to help people navigate this new environment. “Airports are experiencing delays with varying degrees of impact, and Ontarians should be prepared.” Through consultation with its top travel agents, CAA SCO has identified ten key considerations that potential travelers may not be aware of. Anyone who is considering travel in the current environment should remember that travel requirements and regulations are continually changing. Expect itinerary changes. CAA SCO travel agents say our members are experiencing schedule changes for flights. Subscribe to the airline’s text message service to be immediately notified of any changes, and book connecting flights with more time in between than you normally would if available. A travel agent is also a valuable resource if this happens. Consider packing a carryon instead of checking luggage. Potential baggage delays mean that your luggage may not arrive with you or take extra time to be unloaded off the plane. If you bring a carryon, make sure it fits the size requirements for all the airlines you are flying on, and with any tour operators. When using a carryon to travel, you still need to follow the 3-1-1 rule: three ounces of liquid, gel, aerosol, cream or paste that fit in one quart-sized resealable bag. If you are checking luggage, make sure your carryon has your hygiene essentials, any medications, and a change of clothing. Expect longer wait times at the airport. The old standby of being at the airport one hour before takeoff for domestic flights and two hours before international flights no longer apply. CAA currently recommends arriving at the airport a minimum of two hours before domestic flight departures and at least three hours for international flights. Make sure all your documentation is in order before you book. Your passport should still be valid six months after your travel date, as this is required in several countries. Passports themselves are taking longer than usual to renew, so it should be done several months before you travel. Each destination has varying documentation requirements, so make sure you fully understand what information you need to have ready and in what format. Buy travel insurance and understand what is covered. Make sure you have $5 million in coverage for emergency medical situations and that illness related to COVID-19 is included. Understand your entitlements for situations like denied boarding in the event of a positive test, trip cancellation or delays, what luggage is covered and what isn’t. Car rentals need to be booked months in advance. High demand as well as a shortage of vehicles means a shortage of rental cars. Some rental agencies, particularly on the east and west coasts, are not allowing vehicles to be rented in one city and left in another. A travel agent can help you navigate this. COVID-19 is still a major consideration. Confirm the COVID-19 situation at destination prior to booking. Understand the risk level associated with travel to a particular destination by checking the Government of Canada Travel Advice and Advisories website. Individual travel advisories remain on a country-by-country basis. It is important that Ontarians understand the ongoing uncertainty associated with international travel, whether that be related to the continued community transmission of COVID-19, or state of health care systems in destinations hit hard by the pandemic. Canadians returning home must have all required documentation loaded onto the ArriveCAN App or website. Stay connected. It is important to have access to trusted, up-to-date information while travelling so you can monitor changing conditions and requirements and adapt accordingly. Bookmark the Global Affairs Canada website prior to departure and check it regularly while abroad. It is also a good idea to sign up for Registration of Canadians Abroad and stay in touch with a family or friend that has knowledge of your travel plans. Find these and more information at www.caasco.com/travel Confirm change and cancellation flexibility with your travel service provider. Many airlines and hotels have been providing more flexibility when it comes to refunds and changes to bookings. Make sure you understand any key dates related to cancellation and changes and whether you are entitled to a refund or a future travel voucher or credit at the time of booking. Be patient, be kind. Around the globe, airlines are dealing with staff shortages and luggage handling back-ups. Keep in mind that the staff at the airports are there to help you, and that things may take longer than usual.
ChristianaCare is out to revolutionize health care. One of the country’s most dynamic health care systems, ChristianaCare is partnering with two leaders in medical and therapy services to provide comprehensive, integrated virtual health services 24/7 to colleges, universities and other institutions of higher education. Together with PursueCare and SimpleTherapy, ChristianaCare created a bundled health care product that combines general medical services from ChristianaCare’s Center for Virtual Health, mental health and addiction treatment programs from PursueCare and hyper-personalized musculoskeletal care from SimpleTherapy. ‘The future of health care is virtual’ “At ChristianaCare, we know that the future of health care is virtual,” said Sharon Anderson, MS, RN, FACHE, ChristianaCare’s chief virtual health officer and president of ChristianaCare’s Center for Virtual Health. “When college students are able to access medical, behavioral health and musculoskeletal services through their phone or laptop, from their dorm room or a private space on campus, they’ll be more likely to get help when they need it. This is about delivering care to students on their terms, so that they can be healthy and supported with high-quality care throughout their college experience.” Personalized virtual health solutions will be available to students at participating higher education institutions through a customized portal accessible from any computer or mobile device. Students will be able to access assessments, resources and virtual treatment via modules or telemedicine sessions with licensed providers. The offering provides students with unlimited, on-demand care from a multidisciplinary team solving for a multitude of conditions. “For college and university student health services and administrators, this partnership offers a powerful new way to provide comprehensive, affordable health solutions that benefit students,” Anderson said. “In a highly competitive recruiting environment, these solutions are easy to implement and can add tremendous value. We are excited to partner with colleges and universities to strengthen their student health programs by creating a comprehensive virtual care solution to meet their student’s health care needs.” Through a single digital portal, participating students can access internal and family medicine providers from ChristianaCare’s Center for Virtual Health. PursueCare’s Joint Commission-accredited mental health, psychiatric and medication-assisted treatment providers, and SimpleTherapy’s licensed physical therapists specializing in musculoskeletal care, acute or chronic pain management, and strength and mobility training can all be accessed through the portal. Students will also have the option of using PursueCareRx for their pharmacy needs. PursueCareRx is a competitively priced full-service pharmacy that accepts most major insurance and delivers directly to customers. “Young adults face an escalating mental health and substance use crisis,” said Nick Mercadante, founder, and CEO of PursueCare. “Colleges and universities are frequently unable to comprehensively serve the increased need, and research suggests substance use, mental health and suicide carry a significant social stigma. Our goal is to work collaboratively with campus health resources to bring a low-barrier solution students can access privately, any time, on their terms. Additionally, partnering with a world-class health system like ChristianaCare means we can help support whole-person care needs.” “Chronic musculoskeletal disorders have never been more prevalent and traditional care pathways are often ineffective and costly,” said Arpit Khemka, co-founder and CEO of SimpleTherapy. "SimpleTherapy removes barriers for students allowing them to take control of their musculoskeletal health, reducing their need for high-cost, high-risk services, such as surgery and opioids, to manage pain. This results in higher compliance rates and more successful outcomes." Customized and co-branded product The product is designed for colleges, universities and all other higher education institutions. For a flat fee, a school will be able to offer care that is customized and co-branded with school-specific content to be an extension of existing campus health services. It provides curated resources for rapid pre-assessment, on-demand chat and discreet, personalized access to care for students on or off-campus. The innovative patient portal aims to improve and strengthen how schools offer health care solutions to their student population while reducing any potential interruptions of academic and athletic pursuits by making it possible for students to conveniently access care from anywhere. In addition, the offering eliminates social stigma and other access obstacles for students who are at-risk or potentially at-risk, making it more likely that students will avail themselves of treatment options and remain in school. These services are currently licensed to operate in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland. Applications for licenses are underway in other states. ChristianaCare has long been a trailblazer in virtual health. Among its achievements, during the COVID-19 pandemic, ChristianaCare developed a COVID-19 virtual monitoring program that helped 37 companies in 14 states safely reopen with daily symptom monitoring, testing and connections to care for more than 10,000 employees. It’s Center for Virtual Health makes receiving care radically convenient, offering a full continuum of virtual care delivery programs. These programs include virtual primary care, specialty care programs and a Hospital Care at Home Program bringing hospital level of care to a patient’s home. The Center for Virtual Health cares for thousands of patients using state-of-the-art virtual care capabilities supporting patients in receiving care anytime, anyplace, including in the comfort of their own homes. For more information about the program, visit StudentCareSolutions.com.
Ontario drivers say they aren’t feeling as safe as they used to on highways, and they’re seeing more dangerous driving behaviours on the roads. A new study by DIG Insights on behalf of CAA South Central Ontario (CAA SCO) indicates that 98 per cent of Ontario drivers witnessed unsafe driving behaviours in the past year – up three per cent last year. This increase in unsafe driving behaviours could also explain why six per cent fewer drivers are feeling safe on our roads, specifically on highways with speed limits of 100 km/h. “Ontario police services continue to report significant amounts of speeding, stunt and aggressive driving. Although the pandemic amplified the awareness, the issue was growing well before that,” says Michael Stewart, community relations consultant, Government and Community Relations, CAA SCO. About half of respondents point to speeding as a big problem in Ontario which is no surprise considering the most common behaviour seen was speeding, followed by aggressive driving, unsafely changing lanes and distracted driving. “Traffic returning to pre-pandemic levels could be the reason why we’re seeing this increase in unsafe driving,” says Stewart. “Some drivers even admit to doing it themselves.” In total, 58 per cent admitted to engaging in dangerous driving behaviours. Forty-three per cent of Ontario drivers admitted to speeding, 17 per cent say they’ve driven distracted, eight per cent say they’ve made unsafe lane changes and six per cent have driven aggressively. Most of the time, these behaviours are witnessed on higher-speed highways, says Stewart. “It can be nerve-wracking when you come across a driver who is behaving this way,” he says. “If you do come across a speeding or aggressive driver, the best thing you can do is stay calm, focus on your driving and do not engage with the other driver. "If possible, drivers should safely pull over and call 911 if someone is driving erratically or you believe their behaviour could be an immediate danger to others.” The rise in speeding and stunt driving prompted the Ontario government to introduce tougher fines and penalties in 2021, called Moving Ontarians More Safely Act. While most drivers say they believe photo radar helps deter speeding and that photo radar should be in school zones and community safety zones, one in three Ontario drivers say they try to avoid roads that have photo radar, and 43 per cent say they accelerate after passing a photo radar camera. “Drivers need to be mindful of driving to the posted speed limit, because speeding isn’t worth the risk of a collision, fine or penalty,” says Stewart. Our research partner Dig Insights conducted this online survey of 1,503 Ontario drivers aged 18 and older from April 7 to 14, 2022, as a follow-up to research CAA conducted in 2021.
