Kim Shepard, Cigna

Healthcare remains a top concern for employers and employees, but the elements involved continue to evolve as healthcare itself advances.

The healthcare industry, for instance, is playing an increasingly immense role in working with the business community. The pandemic has demonstrated the importance of prioritizing both the physical and mental health of the nation’s workforce, as we have witnessed an unprecedented need for behavioral health care since COVID hit. In response to this growing need, Cigna has created one of the industry’s largest networks of virtual behavioral care providers that will better support both employers and employees, and place an emphasis on whole-person care. The reality is that we need to treat the body and mind as one to keep people healthy. The combination of fatigue, burnout and stress has proven to be a barrier to business growth. That is why it’s essential for us to work in lockstep with companies to invest in innovations that advance the health of their most valuable asset — their people.

Many different angles help fill a picture of the healthcare landscape for employers, with voices sharing their expertise in various aspects. These range from benefits professionals and healthcare insurers — including myself — to educators to attorneys to direct healthcare providers. With this broad approach, this month’s cover story provides a look at trends in healthcare and in workplace relations. 

Tech offers another area where a variety of input fleshes out an optimal whole, as Roman Davydov describes in his feature article on enterprise resource programs, “Five e-Commerce ERP Integrations Improve Business Performance.”

Richard Tollefson describes another opportunity to use data to tell a story, with his Nonprofit feature “Transform Mundane Financial Statements into Compelling Stories.” It’s a perspective we don’t often think about. And Eric Bailey offers another new perspective in “Messaging a Warm Reception” as he explores the different ways that different people will receive the self-same message.

Business leaders may find some surprises about their potential responsibilities and liabilities when they read Todd Rallison’s Legal feature “Environmental Health & Safety Considerations for Business Operations”; considerations are not only expanding but may be applied to earlier situations even when standards of that day had been observed.

And this month also includes In Business Magazine’s annual “Healthcare Decisions: Open Enrollment & Healthcare Guide for Business.”  

With the usual monthly broad range of content, the October edition of In Business Magazine offers relevant information to help strengthen and grow our business community. I’m pleased to help bring you this edition, and hope you enjoy the read.

Sincerely,

Kim Shepard
General Manager for Cigna Arizona
Cigna 

Kim Shepard is president of Cigna’s Arizona market. She is responsible for driving market growth and leading Cigna to be the partner of choice for employers, healthcare providers, community organizations and customers in the state. She serves on the boards of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center. She is a member of Greater Phoenix Leadership and is actively engaged with the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley, Muscular Dystrophy Association and the American Heart Association.