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Vice President
T&H Benefits LLC ¿ Alliant
New York

Clients and colleagues alike agree: Chris Reynen continually demonstrates out-of-the-box thinking that not only saves money for clients, but also improves employee-benefits and wellness programs.

After beating out several major competitors to win the benefits account of a large, New York-based real estate owner/manager, Reynen immediately helped the client recover $22,000 in long-term disability overpayments and retooled the benefits program he inherited.

One of the cost-saving strategies of the new program was changing the coverage from an employer-paid benefit to an employee election to avoid a taxable event if a covered employee went on disability.

In addition, his negotiations with in-force carriers resulted in renewal reductions in the client's medical plan -- an annual net cost equivalent of $1.5 million -- along with multiyear rate guarantees in the dental program.

T&H Benefits, which was bought by Alliant Insurance Services last year, also took a shared program of risk management for many prominent buildings owned or managed by many real-estate companies, and created a dedicated product which saved clients approximately $1.5 million annually and provided protection solely for right of first refusal without shared limits and deductibles.

Reynen's expertise is not limited to bottom-line savings: He recently suggested that Goya, a food manufacturing client, hire a nutritionist to use the studio/kitchen it built to film TV commercials to hold regular nutritional cooking demonstrations for its employees with the help of the company's executive chefs.

"He's somebody who can really cover your back in the workplace," said Tony Rico, Goya's director of human resources.

Vice President
T&H Benefits LLC - Alliant
New York, N.Y.
Category: Disability Benefits

A Mentor and a Leader

Chris Reynen, vice president with T&H Benefits LLC - Alliant in New York, recently discovered that one of his clients had paid too much in long-term disability premiums over the four-year term of the benefits contract. After an audit of the benefits program, Reynen helped the client recover as much as $22,000 in overpayments.

Benefits consultants like Reynen are why Alliant Insurance Services, one of the nation's largest specialty insurance brokerage firms, decided to buy T&H Benefits in early 2011. And when it comes to extracurricular activities outside of work, Reynen is tough to beat.

He's served on the church council of the Advent Lutheran Church in Wyckoff, N.J., for eight years, supporting charities such as local food shelters and Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit dedicated to refurbishing homes for families in need of shelter.

Reynen, who is active in the Boy Scouts and the organization's mentoring programs, has also participated in Disabled Sports USA. The organization sponsors events for disabled Americans, including war veterans.

For several years, Reynen has participated as a captain for the New York MS Bike Tour, a 100-mile bicycle ride. He's been personally responsible for raising an average of $3,000 a year over the last few years for the multiple sclerosis research fundraiser.

Perhaps no more activity is more hands on with regard to improving the lives of those around him and minimizing risk than Reynen's volunteer participation in the Community Emergency Response Team in Bergen County, N.J. CERT provides help ranging from natural disaster preparedness to storm clean-up, crowd control and event management.

It is examples of efforts like these that make Reynen, a 1991 graduate of the University of Vermont, stand out.