Benefit Authority Insurance Solutions
group medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, individual insurance, & Medicare insurance
a deborah o'connell company
(408) 313-7349
About Us
Deborah O'Connell, President
Benefit Authority is a premier insurance benefits agency serving individuals and small- to mid-size companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. Located in Morgan Hill, CA we have a passion for helping our clients build a secure and healthy future. We understand people’s frustrations and concerns regarding the complex terrain of health and life benefits, and we respond with unique solutions appropriate to their particular needs. By building rapport and trust through respect, compassionate concern and a willingness to help, we forge long-lasting relationships with our clients. Our motto is “HOPE”—Helping Other People Every Day.
Our Mission:
Our mission is to identify fiscally responsible benefit plans or programs that are appropriate to the specific insurance needs of our individual and corporate clients. Our processes of situational and business analysis, coupled with strategic planning, ensure that our clients receive information regarding all suitable benefit options available for their geographic location. We are dedicated to client service and support in the implementation and administration of chosen plans and programs, treating each customer with the same kindness and respect that we would a member of our own family.
Our Core Values:
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Teamwork: Creating and maintaining an environment in which team members are treated with dignity and respect, as we collaborate and support each other’s efforts toward common goals.
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Communication: Building credibility, trust and value through open and clear communication with ourselves and our clients, striving for honesty and fairness at all times.
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Growth and Improvement: Continually expanding our skills and industry knowledge to provide increasing value to our clients.
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Excellence in Service: Performing consistent, high-quality work with individual commitment to customer satisfaction and professionalism at all times.
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Fun: Enjoying ourselves, our work, the people around us, the time we spend together, and sharing our positive energy with others.
Deborah O’Connell’s Personal Statement
I founded my full service insurance agency, Benefit Authority, because I had a vision of what customer service should be. I based my vision on what I would expect of someone who was helping me select a product or service and how I would expect them to support me throughout our relationship.
Prior to this, I had worked in Corporate America for many years. My first career was in high-tech executive management, and then I did a stint as an insurance agent with a corporate agency. I found that many large corporations become so bureaucratic that they lose sight of what is important – the customer. I found many corporations asking their sales and support staff to communicate features, advantages and benefits to customers that were not true statements. In one situation, I was trained to sell features and benefits that did not exist for customers in California! So unbeknownst to me, everything I was telling my customers was false! There is nothing worse than not living up to commitments with customers. Then it hit me, “if you want something done right, do it yourself.” So that is what I did.
I wanted to control the quality of service and support, and I wanted the customer experience to be exceptional and stress-free. I have a high degree of honesty and integrity, and I approach each client’s situation with the same compassion and concern that I would for my own family. My focus is always on the well-being of my customers. Most importantly, I do what I say I am going to do. Follow-through and keeping your word are the two most important things in leadership and business.
People must be able to trust you, like you and want to do business with you. By creating my own agency with the mindset I have, I can control the quality of our service and support. My company works with the “top-down” management philosophy so that I demonstrate what is expected when dealing with customers. My people believe in what we are doing and our customers are loyal because we have forged long-lasting relationships built on integrity, trust, compassionate concern, and a general willingness to help.
Testimonials
“We had the pleasure of working with Deborah O’Connell since 2006, when we first started looking for affordable health insurance for our small business. Deborah had always been very efficient and proactive in researching on various insurance products, including 2014 ACA-compliant plans.
Consistently, she was able to get us high quality benefits at a great rate. Thanks to Deborah, recently, we were able to capitalize on the discount
programs offered to employer groups that elected benefits in Dec. 2013 vs. a January 2014 effective date. In order to help us make informed decisions, she takes whatever timenecessary to explain to us in detail the differences in benefits, plans and networks. With her endless patience, Deborah is always readily available to anyone in our company whenever we need help with any issues we might have.
I would highly recommend Deborah to anyone I know, and indeed have often done so. Always courteous and cheerful, you know that you are in good
hands when you work with Deborah. You can feel that she truly cares and is passionate about finding the right insurance product for you.”
Lisa Yong
Partner
Y Studios LLC
A design and research company based in San Francisco
“Deborah O’Connell with Benefit Authority provides outstanding service and customer support. She came out to our small nonprofit and gave an educational talk to our College of Adaptive Arts staff about benefit options. Deborah is so knowledgeable, kind, resourceful, and willing to go the extra mile for her clients. I’m so thrilled to have found Deborah with Benefit Authority – and I know she’ll be right there to support our employee’s benefit needs as we continue to grow and expand.”
DeAnna Pursai
Executive Director
College of Adaptive Arts
"Deborah has provided outstanding help and support in helping my company navigate the maze of health and dental insurance. While the Affordable Care Act makes insurance more accessible, it also makes the process more complicated. Several times during the signup and renewal, we were thrown curveballs by insurance providers, but Deborah has worked hard to make sure my needs were dealt with quickly appropriately. Do not try to work this yourself--hire Deborah instead."
Linda Popky
President
Leverage2Market Associates
“Deborah O'Connell solved all of my benefits problems after being laid of a year ago. She had alternative solutions to complex problems. I would recommend her to anyone!!!!! Thank you, Deborah.”
Kristin Hendricks
Loeb Law Group
“Deborah was able to help me with my personal insurance needs and guided me towards HR needs.”
Doreen Jattan
Roman Paradigm
“Great person to work with!”
Ofelia Molino-Torres Slater
OSpa
Deborah Hendricks O'Connell (Benefit Authority Insurance Solutions) is great resource for Insurance ~ Sharing my great experience after referral through Judi Lewinski Garcia:
"If you find yourself or your business in need of insurance, even if you are starting from square one, not sure what to do, Deborah is the perfect person for you. She is very knowledgeable about the plans, and helped me determine best choice options. I worked with Deborah about 5 years ago for the first time. She came highly recommended by my colleague. I'm self-employed so it's always a stress area for me. I have been with her through a transition to MediCare supplemental insurance more recently. She is detailed and one of the most responsive professionals whom I know.I'm super appreciative of Deborah's time and work with me and very happy with the results."
Marianne Adoradio
Founding Director at Silicon Valley Blues Society
