MR ZACHARY’S INTRODUCTION TO WORKERS’ COMPENSATION WAS DUE TO HIM BEING AN INJURED WORKER:  When Bill was a senior in high school, his father passed away. He was working his way through college working for a city recreation park. While on the job, two girls were engaging in a fight. When he attempted to break it up, eight guys appeared and attacked him. One of the attackers stabbed him, and the knife went through his lung, back, diaphragm, and spleen. He was hospitalized for a week and needed his spleen removed. He was extremely fortunate to survive his injuries and return to work.

HIS EXPERIENCE DID NOT MAKE HIM WANT TO BE AN ADJUSTER:  When he graduated from college, his goal was to find a job where he made more than one thousand dollars a month, which was considered a lot during that time. He had just gotten married and had returned from his honeymoon when he learned about a job opportunity. He was on a softball team when one of the players told him about his job at California Casualty Management Company. He did not realize at the time that this was an adjuster job. Four interviews and two weeks later, he was a claims adjuster. That initial job was just the beginning of a wonderful career.

HE IS PASSIONATE ABOUT CLAIMS MANAGEMENT: A claim adjuster’s job is to ensure the injured worker gets care, benefits, and treatment and that they return to work. A great claims adjuster makes sure this happens in a seamless manner. Many friction points and issues can occur during a claim, so it is critical to address them promptly and ensure the injured worker is taken care of.

DOING THE RIGHT THING ACTUALLY SAVES A LOT OF MONEY:  Earlier in his career as a risk manager, he changed how his company managed Workers’ Compensation claims. The adjusters had to unlearn certain mindsets and behaviors. It took a lot of time, but the efforts paid off. He had changed the company culture, and this led to huge savings. When he first started, the annual budget was two hundred and eighteen million dollars, but within five years, he had it down to one hundred and five million dollars. By taking great care of the injured worker, they reduced litigation. There were so many direct and indirect savings.

IT CAN BE VERY CHALLENGING FOR AN ADJUSTER TO TRANSITION TO A SUPERVISOR:  Most Claims Adjusters’ successes come from micromanaging claims. They manage attorneys, nurses, medical treatment, and everything else going on with the claim. During the transition to supervisor, one of the hardest parts is giving up the micromanaging process and empowering the team. Some of the most impressive adjusters are not cut out to be supervisors due to the inability to give up micromanagement.

MISTAKES PROVIDE THE GREATEST LESSONS: It is crucial to allow your team to make mistakes so they can learn. While it is important to prevent them from making catastrophic mistakes, allow them to make mistakes with “guardrails.” These guardrails can be settlement limits or payment parameters. When they make a mistake, do not make it a negative learning environment, or your team will be afraid to make decisions. This is called DITMR (Deer in the middle of the road), and indecision will derail their learning. The teams that are allowed to thrive will be the most successful.

SUCCESSFUL COMPANIES KEEP THEIR EMPLOYEES: It is harder than ever for companies to keep great employees. Provide opportunities for growth for your great employees, or another company will. These new opportunities do not necessarily mean being a supervisor, but they can be positions that challenge them and utilize their talents.

THE BENEFITS OF EMPOWERMENT: When your team feels empowered and their successes are recognized, they will be engaged in what they do. They will be more productive. They will flourish when they understand the “why” and how they impact the company’s success. The pros of empowerment far outweigh the cons.