Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | March 4, 2019 | Worcester Business Journal 33 Filling the leadership vacuum Anti-discrimination law will create more uninsured V I E W P O I N T E D I T O R I A LS W e're not even a quarter of the way through 2019, and yet it seems a whole class of business leaders have retired or announced their intentions to do so. e list of who's moving on includes a num- ber of long established leaders: Toni McGuire at Edward M. Kennedy Health Center in Worcester, Rick Bennett from Main Street Bank in Marlbor- ough, Frances Anthes at the Family Health Center of Worcester, Paul Richard from SHINE Initiative in Worcester, Susanne Morreale Leeber of the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce, Kathy Hunter of YMCA of Central Massachusetts and Philip Grzewinski at the Community Foun- dation of North Central Massachusetts and the United Way of North Central Massachusetts. Retirements are a natural part of a healthy turn- over in leadership, and as the old guard moves aside new blood gets to assert their vision and in- fluence. Yet it seems the region's loss of institution knowledge is particularly acute among women leaders at nonprofits. In addition to the previously mentioned retirees, Joyce Murphy from Com- monwealth Medicine at UMass Memorial Health Care, Jill Dagilis at Worcester Community Action Council, Pam Boisvert from Massachusetts Edu- cation and Career Opportunities Inc., Ann Lisi at Greater Worcester Community Foundation, Mary Ann O'Connor from VNA Care in Worcester, and Honee Hess at Worcester Center for Cras have all recently stepped down or plan to transition out of their organizations in the immediate future. Losing that many leaders is a big transition, yet it's also a moment to celebrate their accomplish- ments and support their successors. Bob Kennedy was suitably feted in his departure from Mechan- ics Hall and has been replaced by the facility's O n Jan. 10, Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law a bill aimed at keeping insurance companies from discriminating against any individual by charging them more for disability insurance. is sounds like some- thing we should all morally get behind. Unfortunately, this is a case where the government didn't realize what sounds good on paper, isn't going to play out that way in reality. is legislation was born from a good place: Women pay more than men for the exact same disability insurance coverage. at doesn't seem fair, does it? Well, it turns out, insur- ance companies have been issuing DI policies and paying claims for more than four decades. Insurance compa- nies determined women make more claims on their policies than men. As a result, Mass. women pay an average of 23.5-percent more for identical DI coverage. How is this any different than a teenage driver? Are they discriminated against because of their age? Or does history show they are a higher risk, thereby justifying the increased premium? Are men discriminated against because they pay more for life insurance? Or, do men pay more because they die sooner? Is anyone proposing legislation so men and women pay the same for life insurance? An insurance company is a for-profit enterprise. ere is no reason for a company to lower premiums for women in Massachusetts. Instead, the price of DI insurance for men will increase. One theory is the insurance companies could come out with a blended rate, lowering females' prices and increasing males' prices. at would make sense for the consumer, but not for the insurance company. e far more likely scenario is all males' policies will increase an average of 23.5 percent and females will stay at their current rates. Ev- eryone will pay an equal amount. is scenario is most prob- able because the efficiency of the market has been removed by the state. It is all reward and no risk. Insurance companies have no incentive to do anything other than maximize prof- its, with no risk because all the other insurance companies selling DI policies need to play by the same rules. is isn't sour grapes because I am a male. My worry is this increase will prevent someone from getting needed coverage. If you look at your insurance premium and add 23 percent to it, would you still be able to afford it? Would you have made the decision to buy it in the first place? is law will certainly cause some men to make tough decisions on their policy to keep the cost down. ese are precisely the people who can't afford to not have appropriate coverage. So, congratulations Massachusetts. You have given insurance companies selling disability insurance policies in our state a 23-percent bonus on every policy they issue on a male, while simultaneously making it harder to afford for the person who needs that coverage the most. e path to Hell is paved with good intentions. Ryan Wagner is a financial representative in the Framingham financial advisory firm Robert Fine & Associates. Reach him at rwagner@robertfineassociates.com. BY RYAN WAGNER Special to the Worcester Business Journal Ryan Wagner The Worcester Business Journal welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Please send submissions to Brad Kane, editor, at bkane@wbjournal.com. long-time second-in-command, Kathleen Gagne. Aer Dennis Rice retired from Alternatives Un- limited, the Whitinsville human services nonprofit merged to create the new Open Sky Community Services led by Ken Bates. Kevin O'Sullivan's de- parture from the Worcester incubator Massachu- setts Biomedical Initiatives led the way for Chief Operating Officer Jon Weaver. With Tim McGour- thy leaving the Worcester Regional Research Bu- reau – although not through retirement but a job in the state's economic development office – the WRRB board has the chance to elevate someone who can play as big of a role in the economy as McGourthy has for the past 13 years. Whether the successors to these power players are picked from inside the organization, are local people switching organizations, or are recruited through national searches, we have been fortunate to have a pipeline of talent to fill this leadership vacuum. Programs like Leadership Worcester and the Community Leadership Institute from the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Com- merce are helping to set the bar high for the next generation. More organizations are investing in leadership development and looking to grow the potential of their current team as recruiting new talent gets more difficult. ese initiatives are crit- ical to keeping our economic engine humming. e names listed here are just a few of the many executives moving on in the coming year. We're in the heart of the Baby Boomer retirement cycle, so we should not expect any slow down in this trend for years. So to those who are heading to retire- ment and the pursuit of other interests, we wish you all the best. And for those new to the lead- ership mantle, keep your mentors close, be a be a good listener, and know you're in a community with a lot of support for what you're doing. W W WO R D F R O M T H E W E B Tweets of the week "Another move putting Worcester on the global cannabis map." - Carol-Anne Renee (@carolanne_renee), Feb 26, on a WBJ story about Worcester manufacturer of canna- bis skin patches, Manna Molecular Science, inking a licensing deal with a Canadian marijuana firm, Aphria Inc. "With articles on #women #business #leaders in #CraftBeer & #cannabis, this week's @WBJournal is intoxicating." - Bruce Mendelsohn, (@brm90), Feb 25, on the WBJ's Feb. 18 issue on women in leadership Facebook feedback "That's awesome! He was an asset to the City of Worcester!" - Jody Kennedy Valade, Feb. 26, on a WBJ story about former Worcester Regional Research Bureau Executive Director Tim McGourthy being hired as deputy secretary in the state's Executive Office of Housing & Economic Development "Why a Boston brewery when they could have kept the business right in Worcester." - Harry Richardson, Feb. 26, on a WBJ story about Harpoon Brewery in Boston and Worcester-based Polar Beverages collaborating to produce a hard seltzer

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