aflac’s reachweb27.streamhoster.com/pebennett/flipbook/employee...you are our business july /...
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Y O U A R E O U R B U S I N E S S J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 3
An Employee Shares
STEPHANIE’SSTORY
A Success Story
COLUMBIA’SBACK-OFFICE
A Testimonial
ANDREA
VAN HOFWEGEN
How You Can
MAKE WAVES
Timeless Tip
JUST BE NICE
AFLAC’S REACH
One of my co-workers was telling me about the last time she went to the dentist
and the interesting conversation she had with the dental hygienist — or as inter-
esting as a one-sided conversation can be when the patient is rendered speech-
less by all the paraphernalia that accompany a thorough dental cleaning.
Turns out the hygienist’s father had worked for
Aflac years ago when it operated out of a frame
house on Wynnton Avenue in Columbus. After
a long stint here, he applied for a position as
Regional Sales Coordinator and transferred to
Savannah, where he worked until his retirement.
The hygienist said that not only did Aflac provide
a secure and stable upbringing for her family, it
also proved invaluable as they dealt with the ac-
cidents, hospitalizations, and even cancer, that
so many families face.
This conversation made me reflect on how
widespread Aflac’s reach is. Whether through
employment or helping customers — or both,
in some cases — there are millions of people
affected directly or indirectly by Aflac.
You just never know how your actions affect
others, or how far-reaching they are. That’s why
it’s so important to be mindful that the strong
tradition of caring, genuine and personal service
we’ve upheld since Aflac’s beginning should be
nurtured and kept alive. You can do that every
time you help a customer, whether that custom-
er is internal or external.
Your commitment to delivering top-notch cus-
tomer service extends Aflac’s reach beyond the
immediate, and empowers you to personally
help Aflac reach its goals.
I truly appreciate your commitment, and would
like to echo what Audrey Tillman expressed
during the Columbus Employee Appreciation
Week: “Thank you for everything you do and
the way you do it.”
REACHING
OutA M E S S A G E F R O M
DAN AMOS, CHAIRMAN, CEO
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1
C O N T E N T S
E D I TO R Janet Burden // C O N T R I B U TO R S Janet Burden, Susan Goodsell, Somer Mason
ART DIRECTION/GRAPHIC DESIGN Rank Studios // PHOTOGRAPHY Jerry Ballas, Ana Brubaker, Curtis Mansell, Chris Rank, Oz Roberts
YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME | Employee Matters magazine, 1932 Wynnton Road, Columbus, GA 31999 | fax 706.243.8175 | email [email protected].
Printed by Communicorp Inc., for Aflac Worldwide Headquarters. © 2013 by Aflac. All rights reserved.
J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 3 | I S S U E 4
R E A C H I N G C U S T O M E R S
AFL AC’S RE ACH
THE RIPPLE EFFECTHow far our reach extends ... PAGE 18
COLUMBIA
THE BACK OFFICE Identifying – and fixing – a real need ... PAGE 14
GIVING BACK
SWIM ACROSS AMERICAThe Aflac family plunges into charity ... PAGE 24
A GRATEFUL POLICYHOLDER
ANDREA VANHOFWEGEN
What an Aflac agent’s words meant to her family ... PAGE 16
JIM KRAUSE
TIMELESS BUSINESS TIPSSuccess is as easy
as being nice … PAGE 22
STEPHANIE MIRCH
HER OWN STORYWhen the employee is
also the claimant … PAGE 4
| D E P A R T M E N T S | Q U I C K C LI P S , PA G E 2 | N EW EM P LOYEES , PA G E 2 6 | ALL I N TH E FAM I LY, PA G E 2 8
ON THE COVER: Policyholder Andrea Van Hofwegen and daughter.
2 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
Q U I C K C L I P SWHAT’S HAPPENING AROUND AFLAC
In May, several Aflac employees got a compli-mentary taste of white water rafting at its best. The new course, the longest urban white water course in the world, is sponsored in part by Aflac.
Rafters included: Carmen Buckner, IT Technology Service, Michael Hope, Inventory Services, Joey Horton, IT Technology, Brent Spivey, Administra-tion Training, Stephanie Verdree, NBS Manage-ment, Clint Tyra, Sales Operations, Luis Hernan-dez-Rosado, Claims, Earl Lawrence, Partnership Control, Chris Graham, Marketing, and Laura Bartlett, Fraud Analytics.
ROLLING ON THE
The River
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 3
Aflac Channel on YouTube Follow the Aflac Duck’s progress via the Aflac Channel on YouTube
The pressure is on for the Aflac Duck’s speech therapist, Allison Weber. Once she gets him talking again, the Duck’s fans are going to scrutinize every nuance of his famous voice.
But she isn’t worried, and neither is he, because with cash from Aflac helping cover his bills, all he has to focus on is getting his quack back.
Check out the latest on the duck’s recovery at YouTube.com/Aflac.
V I S I T A F L A C I N T H E N E W SStay informed about Aflac activities and industry news by visiting Aflac in the News on the employee intranet. The rolling news ticker spotlights breaking stories from top media sources from around the globe.
Where’s the Duck … print?
The Aflac Duck is play-ing hide and seek in this issue of Employee Mat-ters. Find the Duck’s foot-
prints hidden somewhere in the pages of this issue and you could win a prize. Email the page number and page location of the footprint to [email protected] by August 21. All correct entries will be entered into a random drawing to win prizes. All employees are eligible to play this hide and seek game.
(By the way, the tracks above don’t count for anyone thinking that this is going to be easy!)
integrityintegrity
ACT LIKE A DUCK2 0 1 2 C O R P O R AT E C I T I Z E N S H I P R E P O R T
Z130206 3/13
See what Aflac employees are doing to make a difference
2012 Corporate Citizenship ReportEveryone at Aflac takes pride in our reputation of being a company com-prised of good corporate citizens. The 2012 Corporate Citizenship Report details the many accomplishments that underscore our dedication to making a difference in the lives of em-ployees, customers and the planet. Read Aflac’s full 2012 Corporate Citi-zenship Report at Aflac.com to see just a few of the many activities that help us help others.
4 | J U L Y / A U G U S T4 |||| J U L YJ U L YJJ U L YJ U L YU L YJ U L YLJ U L YJ UJ / A/ A// A/ A A/ A/ A/ / / / U G UU G U SU G U SU G U SU G U SU SU SU SU SU G U SU SS TTTTTTTT
“I feel so much pride in knowing that regardless of the situation, our
policyholders will be treated like family.”
Stephanie MIRCH
H E R O W N A F L A C S T O R Y
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 5
When Stephanie Mirch, lead specialist, Albany, learned of an essay contest to be held in conjunction with Aflac New York’s May 14 Town Hall Meeting, she immediately knew what story she wanted to share.
The night of Nov. 13, 2011, she awoke to the cries of her nine-year-old son, Michael. After what should have been a 24-hour hospital stay developed into four days, Stephanie learned how important a combination of supportive co-workers, efficient management, Family and Medical Leave Act provisions and an Aflac New York insurance policy would be to her family.
S T E P H A N I E ’ S S TO RYOne of the worst feelings in the world is having your child wake up crying in pain. Although it was almost two years ago, I remember it like yesterday. Sheer panic came over me as my youngest son was crying with severe abdominal pain. He never complained, so I knew something was really wrong. I didn’t want to over re-act, so I contacted the doctor who agreed to see us. After a quick exam he sent us directly to the emergency room to be checked for appendicitis.
After several hours waiting in at the hospital — along with several minor tests — appendicitis was confirmed and surgery scheduled. My son was admitted and transported to a room in the pediatric ward.
As I settled into the hospital chair next to my son’s bed for the night my mind started to race and the stress started to set in. It was late in the year and I had only a few days of PTO left. I wasn’t sure how much my hospital deductible was, or what my other out-of-pocket expenses would be. I had converted to the new hospital policy that year, but couldn’t remember all the benefits, so I decided to pull my hospital policy up online with my phone.
As I reviewed my policy a huge sense of relief came over me; the surgery benefit, the inpatient benefit, the anesthesia benefit, the room benefit would all apply. These benefits were enough to cover any out-of-pocket expenses and make up for my lost wages. As a single mother I could stop worrying about the financial burden and concentrate on my son getting better.
I called Debbie Walker, then HR business partner, now retired, the next day and explained what was going on and how my PTO was very limited. She explained the FMLA procedures and assured me that she would take care of everything. It was nice to know that I could count on her to take care of the business part of the situation.
Unfortunately, there were complications that arose and the simple appendectomy became a bit more complicated. Our twenty-four hour stay turned into four days! It was an extremely stressful time to say the
least, but knowing I had my Aflac New York insurance policy really made a difference.
The following week my son was doing much better and I was able to return to work. The outpouring of support and well wishes from my fellow co-workers was overwhelming. It was so wonderful to work with so many people that cared so much. And although I had contacts in the claims department, I decided to just file my claim like any other policyholder. I didn’t need any special treatment. So I filled out the forms and just faxed them in. To my amazement my claim check was in my hand within a week. I couldn’t believe how quickly it was processed.
I had always been so happy to be an Aflac New York employee, but this experience as a policyholder made me really proud to say Aflac New York was my employer. It wasn’t just the stellar products that helped me financially through a difficult time; it was Debbie who helped me file my FMLA claim and made sure it went smoothly so I didn’t have to worry. It was my co-workers who prayed for my son and sent me lots of well wishes. And it was our claims department who swiftly processed my claim. All of these people are the face of Aflac New York.
After my experience I had an overwhelming feeling of gratitude for Aflac New York as a company and the products we sell. Thankfully, I only had to deal with a bout of appendicitis; I can’t even imagine having to deal with a serious accident, cancer or loss of a loved one.
I feel so much pride in knowing that regardless of the situation our policyholders will be treated like family. I see it every day in my team with their dedication and hard work in processing files; the charity work we do and financial contributions we give, and the stories we hear every Tuesday at the Weekly Assurance. And it doesn’t stop there; the Amos family has made sure that as employees we get wonderful benefits, Employee Appreciation Week and especially, work-life balance! What other company does that?
We are the face of Aflac, we stand together, and we stand proud!
6 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 7
In observance of Earth Day on April 22, Aflac volunteers suited up for some investigative analysis of the waste that filters through the Aflac campuses. What the rubber gloved, galoshed and goggled dumpster divers proved was that although Aflac’s green efforts are mostly successful, many recyclable items are still disposed of in regular trash containers and end up in landfill sites.
2012 recycling efforts that saved an estimated 2,263 cubic yards of landfill space, combined with powering down electronics, lights, heating and cooling systems plus a digester that diverts food waste out of the chief garbage pipeline all help reduce Aflac’s environmental footprint.
As Earth Day volunteers learned, though, even small efforts made by Aflac employees can definitely help further Aflac’s green initiative.
Earth DayAflac employees wade into recycling research
In observance of Earth Di
A
Explore the many ways you can make a difference by going to the employee intranet > About Aflac > Aflac Goes Green.
8 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
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E A W | 2 0 1 3 PASSION DRIVE PURPOSE
I G N I T EC O L U M B I A
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 9
Far Left: Columbia
gets pumped for EAW.
Clockwise from top
right: Sean Newell,
Demetrius Fleming,
Candace Alexander,
LaTiesha Gibbs, Jason
Swinford and Marty
Pearson. Center: Volun-
teers: Center: Candace
Alexander, From left :
Ashley Turner, Tameka
Footman, Taddanekka
Harvey and LaTiesha
Gibbs. Below:
Aflac Group talent
winner Louis Hall.
Left: Joy Alexander
dances during the Ignite
U Celebration.
1 0 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
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Top Left: Audrey Tillman and EAW host Michael Hoffman welcome The Quack Dynasty
to stage. Above: Tina Catlin, Sheila Rushing and Veronica Goodwin. Top Right: front to back: Eddie Bussell, Nate Klein, Kayla Baumann and Jason Swinford enjoying Family Fun
Day at Carowinds. Center: Sonja Corley-Brown, Daisy Seymour and Naomi Patterson,
Spirit Shakers. Right: Akeila Jackson and Robin Minter styling.
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1 1
Top Middle: Sarah
Thacker and host
Michael Hoffman. Top
Right: Joseph Zezza.
Above: It may be time
for a shave for these
Columbia employees!
Far Left: Moustached
Monica King. Left:
Kalieshia Henderson
and Robert Fewell show
some team spirit.
1 2 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
E A W | 2 0 1 3 PASSION DRIVE PURPOSE
I G N I T EA L B A N Y
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Top: Renee McLaughlin
looks on as Sarah Smith
displays her prize.
Center: Meg Iaconetti,
Jessica Weaver, Stepha-
nie Mirch (background)
and Renee Dye. Middle
Right: Beth Ballard and
Scott Melanson during
gift distribution.Left: Enjoying the Lake George cruise
brunch are Cari Urbanczyk, Linda Volpe
and Sandey Decker. Above: Big Game
ticket holder Rebecca Catricala.
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1 3
Above: Kelly Dell winning
big at The Big Game
tailgate picnic. Left: Prov-
ing that you shouldn’t be
photographed in front of
Bob Ottman (second from
left) are Renee McLaugh-
lin, Jim Yando, Kristen
Williams and Sarah
Smith. Left Middle:
Maureen Reyer, Sandey
Decker, Ginny Krug and
Melissa Lagone at The
Big Game tailgate picnic.
Below: Matt Morrissey
receives a gift.
Above Middle: Tenure lunch attendees Melissa Lagone, Sherry Douty, Kelly Dell, Nikki
Bowman, Beth Maycock, David Kusaywa and Mary Wilmot at the Albany Country Club.
Above: Total Nerd Tuesday contest winners Beth Maycock, Ginny Krug, Linda Volpe,
Ellie Garnsey and Beth Ballard.
1 4 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
The Back-Office at Aflac Group was formed in May 2012 to answer an ap-peal for assistance from its Customer Service Representatives. Previously, CSRs answered calls, conducted their own research, made callbacks once the research was completed and main-tained quality and performance stats.
Whew! Sometimes it got very overwhelming.
Management heard a call for help and, with CSRs’ input, helped develop The Back-Office. The Back-Office takes over when the call ends but an issue still needs further attention for final resolution or to prevent future recur-rences.
Now, CSRs can email requests for research to The Back-Office, whose team members include specialists Sheri Barnes, Shondora Ricks and Arlisa Waiters. The assigned team member will then contact the necessary depart-ments to assist with the research item. In-depth research is conducted for those inquiries that cannot be answered during the initial phone call because the information is not readily available. Areas of investigation include claim errors, cancelation requests, premium issues, premium refunds, coverage issues, incorrect or incomplete infor-mation submitted by agents, stop payments/check reis-sues and more.
The research turnaround goal is within 72 business hours and The Back-Office staff works hard to reach that goal. The Back-Office services allow our front-line CSRs to concentrate and focus on each customer that they have on the telephone at that moment, providing better customer service and meeting department metrics.
From every Columbia CSR who has grown to rely on the expert research and resolution skills of The Back-Office, a great big THANK YOU to Sheri, Shondora and Arlisa!
“Working in The Back-Office has taught me the true mean-ing of the Aflac Commitment to know your stuff. I have to know my stuff about our products and to know which department to contact to assist with get-ting our customer’s problems solved.” S H E R I B A R N E S
WHEN OPERATING THE AFLAC WAY SPARKS CHANGE
Columbia Back-OfficeO N E - Y E A R A N N I V E R S A R Y M A R K S S U C C E S S
“We come together to make a difference. I believe that teamwork makes the dream work.”S H O N D O R A R I C K S
B Y C A R L A C A L L A H A M
From left: Sheri Barnes,
Shondora Ricks and Arlisa
Waiters.
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1 5
D E PA R T M E N T P H O N E / FA X E M A I L / W E B S I T E
Aflac Credit Union [email protected]
Aflac Customer Service Center
(Aflac Policies/Claims)800-992-3522 www.aflac.com
Aflac Health Services 706-596-3612 [email protected]
Aflac HR Benefits
P.O. Box 5248, Columbus GA 31906-0248
706-596-3344Fax 706-596-3256
Aflac Payroll Department 706-596-3518 [email protected]
Aflac Shareholder Services
800-227-4756Option 3Fax 706-596-3488
Aflac Stock Options706-596-3562Fax 706-596-3488
Employee Advocacy/
Diversity/Sam’s Club
706-596-7657 or 706-596-3291
[email protected] [email protected]
Employee Assistance Plan
Bensinger, DuPont and Associates (Password: AFLAC)
800-807-1535 www.bdawiw.com
Employment Verification
The Work Number
800-367-5690 Employee code 13189Agent code 13339
www.theworknumber.com
Family and Medical Leave
Reliance Standard877-202-0055 www.matrixeservices.com
Medical – Anthem Medical Plan 888-893-6366 www.anthem.com
Dental – Ameritas Dental Group 800-487-5553 www.ameritasgroup.com
Pharmacy – Caremark Plan 866-818-6911 www.caremark.com
Milliman – Aflac Pension 866-767-1212 www.millimanbenefits.com
T. Rowe Price – 401(k) Stock Plan 800-922-9945 www.rps.troweprice.com
VSP Vision Plan 800-877-7195 www.vsp.com
WageWorks
(Flexible Spending Accounts)877-924-3967 www.wageworks.com
Ever draw a blank when you need to contact someone and you can’t get to the employee intranet directory? Keep this handy list close-at-hand and you can enjoy the kind of customer service that Aflac is famous for.
“In The Back-Office, your problem is my
problem. We take over where the CSR on the call leaves off by
ensuring that all of the policyholder’s inquiries are resolved in a timely manner and our goal is to shoot straight in a respectful way.”A R L I S A W A I T E R S
Contact!
1 6 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
Team up with Aflac agents
to extend our reach
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1 7
Aflac policyholders since 2002, the Van Hofwegen family of Minnesota discovered that a helpful Aflac agent asking the right questions can make a huge difference in the lives of its customers.
When my baby girl was born premature at seven months, my husband was laid off and my company didn’t have much of a maternity plan. We struggled to pay the bills, but managed to make it, barely, mostly by using credit cards, which created a large debt.
About 18 months after our daughter was born, we had our annual enrollment. I had planned on can-celing our Aflac hospital intensive care insurance policy. My Aflac agent cautioned me that the in-tensive care policy was very valuable and I should think twice about canceling.
I mentioned how I almost ended up in ICU with pregnancy complications so my daughter was born early. She started asking questions about my daugh-ter’s hospital stay. I reminded her that we had nev-er enrolled our daughter. There was so much stress at her birth it was never a thought for us.
Our agent then explained a new baby was automati-cally enrolled for 30 days after birth. We filled out the paperwork, submitted the claim for processing, said a prayer and two weeks later, we received a benefit check.
I can’t tell you how far it went to help repay all the credit debt we accumulated during our daughter’s six week hospital stay during my husband’s lay off. Our agent was truly looking out for my family.
Needless to say, I didn’t cancel our policies and have been advocating applying for Aflac ever since to anyone who will listen.
A N D R E A V A N H O F W E G E N
T E S T I M O N I A L
1 8 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
YOUR WAKE
B Y S U S A N G O O D S E L L
Catherine Tommey, left, and Carolyn Windsor.
The Incredible Power of
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 1 9
Picture a power boat speeding across a lake. Behind it and spreading outward is a wake – a wave of displaced water – rippling across the surface of the lake all the way to the shoreline. To another boater, a wake can cause a mild rock-ing motion or it can cause waves that swell over the gunwale, potentially cap-sizing their boat.
Aflac employees are making wakes in our pond every day. We impact the lives of our co-workers, our poli-cyholders and our families. Because of the power of our wake, we may change the lives of people we will never know. There are several ways that Aflac lead-ership knows when employees are using their power to influence our business; one of them is through The Aflac Way recognition program.
A recent recognition sent to Carolyn Windsor, Field Contracting, demonstrates how a little investiga-tive work can make the difference for our field and our customer. When the Georgia-South state office contacted Aflac regarding business pending due to licensing errors, Carolyn researched and discov-ered that the sit code linked to the corporation agent numbers of the STC and SSC caused it to pend be-cause neither held an Alabama corporation license. As a result of her research, Carolyn created a new sit code for the associate and referred the apps back to
New Business advising them to process using the new sit code. Doing this allowed the business to pro-cess and commissions to be paid.
Tripp Amos, state sales coordinator at the Georgia-South state office, said in an Aflac Way Honor, “Car-olyn has been wonderful to work with! We have had the pleasure of calling her a few times in regards to pended business with licensing errors. Carolyn has not only offered her assistance, but let us know what the error was and how we could prevent this in the future. This is a great deal of help to our associates. We appreciate her willingness to go above and beyond!”
What is the power of Carolyn’s wake? She resolved a pended business issue which directly impacted sales. She also communicated information to the state office to prevent future pended business and eliminate the need for future calls. Although the customer may never know what happened behind
2 0 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
the scenes, they benefited too because their busi-ness can be processed efficiently.
The Customer Assurance Organization shares sto-ries like Carolyn’s in their Weekly Assurance Bul-letin. Sometimes we use our power to impact an individual, which can also have far-reaching re-sults. Recently the bulletin featured, Catherine Tommey, Claims, who pulled a claim from our disability queue that was more than 2,000 pages long (keep in mind the average disability claim is under 10 pages).
The customer was in an ATV accident in 2011, which caused paralysis, a number of surgeries and hospitalizations. We had paid some of the benefits, but not all that should have been paid, and some were x-noted items when the customer should have been contacted. Catherine not only handled the lengthy claim, but also reviewed the prior claims to ensure those were correct. As a result of Catherine’s diligence on behalf of our claimant, the customer re-ceived a claim check for $47,875.
What is the power of Catherine’s wake? This is what her customer said, “WOW! Thank you for taking the time to review all of my claim documents to ensure we get all the benefits which were due.” Catherine’s dedication meant that one customer, who was seri-
ously injured, will be able to pay bills and maintain their household. For Aflac, it could mean retention of one, plus referrals for potential sales later.
It’s easy to understand how our everyday actions influence those around us, but have you ever con-sidered how far and wide you can reach? Consider two employees who are impacting not just our cus-tomers’ lives, but also their co-workers and an even greater community outside our walls.
Making waves at the company for 30 years is Rachel McCallister, IT. In addition to the people she interacts with on the job, Ra-chel is a long-time Aflac and community event volunteer. If there is something happen-ing in Columbus, you can bet you will run into Rachel there lending a hand.
As a 28-year member of Toast-masters, Rachel estimates that she has coached and mentored more than three hundred em-ployees through the commu-nication and leadership pro-grams. What’s more, those
“It’s easy to understand how our everyday actions influence those around us, but have you ever considered how far and wide you can reach?”
Catherine and Carolyn with, left,
Barbara Iriye and Ramona Luker.
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 2 1
Everyone is an influencer. Look for ways to control your wake.
W O R K L I F EUse the Aflac Way system to recognize co-workers who make a positive impact on the organization by delivering exceptional customer service.
FA M I LY L I F EParents are the primary influencer in a child’s life. If you’re raising children, your influence will mold them into re-sponsible adults, good citizens and role models of your family’s values. When life gets challenging, use the resources available at school, on the Internet or through the company’s Employee Assistance Program to help you fulfill your parenting mission. Go to the Ben-efits community page on myAflac.com for information on the EAP.
C O M M U N I T Y E N G A G E M E N TFind a community organization that has meaning to you and volunteer. Use the power of your wake to support your local community.
S O C I A L M E D I AIf you have a Facebook page or Twitter account, you can create a wake through your status updates and tweets. Mike Koger, Communicorp, uses his Face-book page to share his outlook on life. With hundreds of friends reading, liking and sharing, Mike’s posts represent the sunny side of life … with a shot of coffee.
A recent post from Mike says, “There is a vitality, a life force, an en-ergy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique.”
hundreds of people have coached and mentored dozens more. She mentored fellow club member Nate Klein, Pro-cess Innovation and Control, Quality and Risk teams at Aflac Group, who became proficient in public speaking and even competed in a state level speech contest.
A six-year veteran of the company, Nate gifts his time and talent without reserva-tion. The members of his team feel the effect of his upbeat nature every day. You just have to listen to his outgoing voice mail message to know that Nate is a posi-tive force bringing exceptional customer service to everyone he engages. In addi-tion to the impact he makes on the job, Nate also volunteers at company events and shares his knowledge as a mentor through Aflac’s TEACH initiative.
Nate doesn’t just make waves at work; his wake takes on global proportions. From rebuilding houses in New Orleans to offering his time to support the Litera-cy Alliance, to volunteering at the United Way’s Live United Youth Camp to earn-ing a master’s degree at Emory Universi-ty and now studying to earn a doctorate, the power of Nate’s wake is incredible, or as he would say, “wondermous.”
What is the power of your wake? You are just like the power boat. The path you
take through life and with your work also creates a wake. Your actions create a figura-tive wave that is far-reaching. How you drive your boat – at high speed with reckless abandon or at a controlled speed with deference to your fellow boaters – defines who you are and how you contribute to the organization.
When combined, the wakes of Carolyn, Catherine, Rachel, and Nate have an exponen-tial effect, resonating through every corridor of our company. These four employees alone have impacted thousands of lives. And yet, there are thousands more employees whose actions and activities make waves that are also far-reaching. They drive their boat with such skill, deliberation and energy that they uplift everyone in their wake.
Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Be the change you wish to see in this world.” You have the potential to influence the world, perhaps in very big ways. It’s up to you to steer your boat with care – and control the power of your wake.
2 2 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
Is friendliness necessary in work relationships?
We all know that treating external customers with genuine, caring and personal service is the standard that our founders set for us.
But have you ever asked yourself …
B Y J I M K R A U S E
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 2 3
Is being friendly really necessary at work? Like me, you have prob-ably given this question some thought, so I thought it would be im-portant to answer the question once and for all: Yes, friendliness is important to build relationships, and it does have an impact on per-formance. Allow me to explain.
Most relationships fall into two categories: business relationships and personal rela-tionships. We know that the second catego-ry relies heavily on the element we will call friendliness, which Webster defines with words such as affability, amiability, cordial-ity and kindliness.
Turns out it’s also sound business practice, and all we have to do is tweak the definition just a bit to make it apply: Relationships em-ployees form on a person-to-person basis rather than on a business-to-business basis.
Friendliness doesn’t mean being everyone’s best friend, lending them money, covering their poor performance or inviting them to your house for a barbeque. Friendliness does mean communicating and acting in ways that are polite, respectful, consider-ate and caring, such as:
• Saying “please” and “thank you.”• Looking at people directly when
you are speaking to them and showing a pleasant face.
• Treating people you are speaking with as you would guests.
• Apologizing when you are late to a meeting or have to leave early.
• Greeting people with a “good morning” or “good afternoon” be-fore talking about work.
• Controlling your emotional out-bursts. You don’t have the right to speak loudly or disrespect a col-league — ever.
• Eliminating sarcastic comments from all dialogue.
There is another side to friendliness that is equally important and can best be de-scribed as showing interest in or getting to know your colleagues. Many times, employ-
ees know no more about their colleagues than the title that comes from their job profile. But you should connect with your colleagues as individuals rather than just someone with whom you work.
Sharing a little bit about yourself opens up common ground between you and your col-leagues. You may find that you have a mu-tual interest in an extracurricular activity, a favorite author or music. Finding a common denominator helps you establish a relation-ship with a colleague — giving you an opening for future encounters and helping to ease the tension if those encounters involve a particu-larly difficult business decision.
On the other hand, dumping all your per-sonal laundry on the person in the cubicle next door turns you into an emotional litter bug. Know when to draw the boundary with your personal sharing and know when to say, “TMI” (too much information) to your neighbor — in the friendliest manner.
In the end, your goal should be to establish many friendly person-to-person relation-ships among colleagues here at work. These relationships allow you to network to get business accomplished. When it comes down to it, maintaining those relationships makes good business sense and has always been a hallmark of Aflac’s culture.
Written by Jim Krause, learning con-sultant, Corporate Learning. Jim brings more than 40 years of experience in Hu-man Resources to Aflac, including more than 15 years as a training manager for FORTUNE 500 companies. He is respon-sible for the development and facilitation of Aflac’s leadership curriculum and is a trained executive coach.
- J I M K R A U S E
“Finding a common denominator helps you establish a relationship with a colleague.”
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E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 2 5
Inaugural Swim Across America
proceeds benefit Aflac Cancer Center
It’s no secret that Aflac employees are philanthropic minded and enthusiastically donate their time and money to various causes including those benefitting the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disor-ders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. On May 5, Team Aflac took that generosity to the nth degree when they braved air temperatures in the 50s and water temperatures in the 65 de-gree range to raise money by swimming in a one mile open-water event at Lake Spivey, south of Atlanta.
Organized by Swim Across America, a national organization that holds community open-water swims from coast to coast to fund-raise for local beneficiaries supporting cancer research, preven-tion and treatment, the event raised more than $250,000 for the Aflac Cancer Center.
The Aflac team, whose members are active in the Columbus Hur-ricanes swim team, swam with, and in honor of, Taylor Williams, who last year was a patient at the Aflac Cancer Center.
Swimmers proudly representing Aflac included:
Brian Abeyta, Administrative Operations
Jacob Abeyta, son of Brian Abeyta
Victoria Abeyta, daughter of Brian Abeyta
Nyssa Goodroe, daughter of Jason and Kristie Goodroe, Customer Service Center and IT, respectively
Elizabeth Reynolds, daughter of Marnie Reynolds, Customer Service Center
Learn more about Swim Across America at swimacrossamerica.org, or contact Buffy Swinehart, Donations, to get involved in this or other charitable activities.
AmericaSWIM ACROSS
2 6 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
N E W F A C E S Say hel lo to some of
Aflac’s Newest Employees.
Daniel Almeida Enterprise Risk Management
Columbus
Jessica Arrington Client Relations (Post)
Columbia
Jennifer Austin Legal
Columbus
Felisha Bagley New Business
Columbia
Claudia Benjamin Compliance
Columbia
Latrice Bush Client Relations
Columbia
Linda Carde Claims
Columbus
Jorge Cardona Security
Columbus
LaShaia Coles Policy Issue
Columbia
Lisa Collins Large Account Svcs
Columbia
Angela Davis Claims
Columbus
Chavon Davis Underwriting
Columbus
Amber Day-Parker New Business
Columbia
Josh DeShong Communicorp
Columbus
Kristen Dubard Field Contracting
Columbia
Gavin Dunn Marketing
Columbus
Donzetta Faulk Customer Service
Columbia
Kari Finley Compliance
Columbus
Tonja Garris Large Account Svcs
Columbia
Mary Goodwin Client Relations
Columbia
Benjamin Harrison Large Account Services
Columbia
Jackie Hornsby Jr. Field Contracting
Columbia
Jennaine Jackson Privacy Compliance
Columbia
Valencia Jackson Claims
Columbia
Matt Johnson Communicorp
Columbus
Kelsey Jordan Communicorp
Columbus
Anuj Kansal IT
Columbus
Crystal Latimer Triage Unit
Columbia
Shilon Lee Claims
Columbus
Shana Martino-Lindsay Client Relations (Post)
Columbia
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 2 7
N E W F A C E S Say hel lo to some of
Aflac’s Newest Employees.
ShaBarbara McCray Distribution
Columbus
Tia McFadden Client Relations (Post)
Columbia
Angelena McFadden Large Account Svcs
Columbia
Ashley McNeal Claims
Columbus
Coneitra Miller Customer Service
Columbia
Natonya Mims Cliams
Columbia
Donna Moore Compensation
Columbia
Dwayn Myers Communicorp
Columbus
Leon Parisoe Client Relations (Post)
Columbia
Jackia Pittman Field Contracting
Columbia
Holly Ritter Escalation Team
Columbia
Michelle Roberts Compliance
Columbus
Richard Rook Actuarial
Columbia
Kendall Saxon Distribution
Columbia
Jake Sealey Field Contracting
Columbia
Jennifer Smith Brittain Marketing
Columbus
Steven Smyth Security
Columbus
Michelle Soeur Marketing
Columbus
Raiza Soto Customer Service Center
Columbus
Tunisia Staten Legal
Columbus
Lashona Sudduth New Business
Columbia
Ryan Thor Client Relations
Columbia
Jennifer Weller Customer Service Center
Omaha
Tiffany Wilkes Escalation Team
Columbia
Mykel Wilson Customer Service
Columbia
Marco Youman Distribution
Columbus
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S
2 8 | J U L Y / A U G U S T
ALL IN THE FAMILY
C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S T O
Theodore Abner Jr., who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Camille Anderson, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Jacob Anderson, who was promoted from accountant II, Budget, Cost and Fixed Assets, to business process consul-tant, Business Analytics.
John Anderson, who was promoted from senior operations analyst to business process consultant, Business Analytics.
Amylie Aponte, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service specialist IV, Customer Service Center.
Tracy Arnold, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Chasity Austin, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Christian Baker, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service specialist III, Customer Service Center.
Brad Barnes, who was promoted from editor/writer, Field Force Communications, Marketing, to senior editor/field force writer, Content and Marketing PR.
Bridget Berryman, who was promoted from compliance analyst I to senior compliance analyst, Compliance.
Deirdre Besteder, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Bridget Boggs, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Karen Bonner, who was promoted from quality specialist to quality auditor II, Quality Assurance.
Dominic Bryant, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Jacqueline Burchfield, who was promoted from operations analyst II, Sales Financial Management, to compliance data analyst, Aflac Trust.
Enrique Carolaguna, who was promoted from accounting specialist II to business process analyst I, Pre Sales-Process Innovation Control.
Christopher Chapman, who was promoted from claims specialist I, to business process analyst I, Aflac Group.
Cameron Cheney, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Tashmarie Cheney, who was promoted from financial ana-lyst I to budget accountant II, Budget, Cost and Fixed Assets.
Kimberly Clevenger, who was promoted from senior com-pliance analyst to compliance consultant, Compliance.
Yvonne Corbin, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Ana Davidson, who was promoted from supervisor, Opera-tions, to manager, Partnership Control.
Monica Davis, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Terri Donnelly, who was promoted from business process analyst I to business process analyst II, Business Tech Solutions.
Nehemias Duarte, who was promoted from quality specialist to resource planning analyst I, Pre Sales-Process Innovation Control.
Cherish Ehrhart, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Rhonda English, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service specialist IV, Customer Service Center.
Jaymes Fikes, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Zachary Foster, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Kerry Frazier Jr., who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Catherine Friou, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Connie Gates, who was promoted from compliance analyst II to compliance analyst III, Compliance.
Joni Gilbert, who was promoted from compliance analyst I to compliance analyst II, Compliance.
Tamara Graham, who was promoted from senior compli-ance analyst to compliance consultant, Compliance.
Dana Haines, who was promoted from executive assistant II, Broker Sales, to executive assistant III, Aflac Benefit Solutions.
Jerita Hair, who was promoted from customer service specialist II to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Casie Harbin, who was promoted from associate manager, Content and Marketing PR, to manager, Compliance.
Joshua Henderson, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Jeffrey Hendrickson, who was promoted from digital/online writer and editor to associate manager, Content and Marketing PR.
Theresa Hilton, who was promoted from quality specialist to quality auditor II, Quality Assurance.
LaTonya Holston, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Shiree Hopkins, who was promoted from quality specialist to quality auditor II, Quality Assurance.
Joshua Howell, who was promoted from supervisor, Busi-ness Analytics, to compliance data consultant, Compliance.
Ulisser Huckaby, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Billy Jackson, who was promoted from account representa-tive, Aflac Business Development, to account executive, Selling.
Armanda Knight, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service specialist IV, Customer Service Center.
Katarzyna Kuhlman, who was promoted from accounting specialist III, Premium Collect and Billing, to quality auditor, Quality and Audit.
Benjamin Lamb, who was promoted from investigator II, Special Investigations, to business quality manager, Aflac Trust.
Curt Mansell Jr., who was promoted from assistant pro-ducer to producer, Event Production.
Thomas Markham, who was promoted from account service specialist II, NBS-Conversions, to business process analyst I, Bus Tech Solutions.
Joshua Martin, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Sammie Mays IV, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service specialist IV, Customer Service Center.
Alex McCallum, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center
Sara McCormick, who was promoted from compliance analyst I to compliance analyst II, Compliance.
Brittanie McCracken, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Candace McKenzie, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Michele McMullin, who was promoted from associate manager to manager, Sponsorships.
E M P L O Y E E M A T T E R S | 2 9
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Lauren Mitchell, who was promoted from accounting special-ist III to accounting specialist III, 371800 Major Group Accounts.
Johnny Moses, who was promoted from contract specialist I to senior agent validation specialist, Agent Validations.
Alissa Nevels, who was promoted from customer service spe-cialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Salina Newton, who was promoted from budget accountant III, Budget, Cost and Fixed Assets, to resource manager, Sales Ops.
Constance Nicklien, who was promoted from actuarial assis-tant to manager, Actuarial.
Richard Overton III, who was promoted from customer ser-vice specialist II to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Joyce Perry, who was promoted from customer service spe-cialist I to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Chandler Rohwedder, who was promoted from staff attorney to associate counsel, Legal.
Angela Rosser, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Trent Rosser, who was promoted from customer service spe-cialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Jaime Sexton, who was promoted from business process analyst I to business process analyst II, Bus Tech Solutions.
Danny Smallwood Jr., who was promoted from trainer I, Administration Training, to senior operations analyst, Business Analytics.
Baxter Smith, who was promoted from account manager II, Client Services, to account manager III, Major Group Accounts.
Courtney Smith, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Jonathan Smith, who was promoted from claims specialist III to lead specialist, Claims.
Stephanie Sparks, who was promoted from compliance ana-lyst III to senior compliance analyst, Compliance.
Kimberly Specht, who was promoted from accounting spe-cialist III to lead specialist, Major Group Accounts.
Shmeika Spencer, who was promoted from business process analyst I to business process analyst II, Bus Tech Solutions.
Bradley Starling, who was promoted from senior strategy analyst to manager, Business Analytics.
Leslie Steele, who was promoted from compliance analyst I to compliance analyst III, Compliance.
Elizabeth Sutcliffe, who was promoted from customer ser-vice specialist I to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Ashley Thomas, who was promoted from content manage-ment analyst, IT, to implementation manager, Product Devel-opment.
Demetrius Thomas, who was promoted from customer ser-vice specialist I to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Ginger Turner, who was promoted from customer service specialist II to customer service specialist IV, Customer Service Center.
Christina Varghese, who was promoted from associate coun-sel to senior associate counsel, Legal.
Vernon Waldrop, who was promoted from lead specialist, Claims, to analyst I, Compliance.
Chaunte Watson, who was promoted from account service specialist I to account service specialist II, NBS-Processing.
Gregory Weaver, who was promoted from supervisor, Digital Print, to manager, Large Press.
Sherry Whitaker, who was promoted from quality specialist to quality auditor II, Quality Assurance.
Ebony Wilcoxson, who was promoted from customer service specialist I to customer service spec III, Customer Service Center.
Ebony Williams, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Raven Williams, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
Traci Winchester, who was promoted from analyst II to ana-lyst III, Compliance.
Randi Windsor, who was promoted from associates compen-sation support specialist to associates compensation specialist II, Field Compensation Core Processing.
Mershia Witchett, who was promoted from customer service specialist I, Customer Service Center Trainees, to customer service specialist II, Customer Service Center.
S Y M P A T H I E S
Members of Shareholder Services send sympathies to Brenda McGregor on the loss of her father, MSG Mack Carter (Ret.) on April 14.
Aflac New York sends sympathies to Kate Stone in the loss of her father-in-law, Terry Stone.
G R A D U A T I O N S
Angela Byrd, Legal, received her Associate of Applied Science in Criminal Justice with high honors from Columbus State Uni-versity on December 14, 2012.
Joyce Perry, Customer Service Center, daughter of Lois Love-joy, Policy Service, graduated from Troy University with a Bach-elor of Science in Human Services with a minor in Sociology on June 15, 2012.
N E W A R R I V A L S
Cindy Cotton, LAS Reconciliation, welcomed a grandson, Jack Conrad Anderson, on April 19.
Michael Porter, Corporate Services and his wife Amanda wel-comed a daughter, Susannah Belle, on December 18, 2012.
E D U C A T I O N A L A C H I E V E M E N T S
Emily Renee Green, daughter of Mandy Green, Administration Training, was inducted into the Herschel A. Jones chapter of The National Junior Honor Society at Arnold Magnet Academy.
P O T P O U R R I
Michaela Coleson, Client Services Support, received a Thanks Badge during the Girl Scouts of Historic Georgia Highest Awards Ceremony in May. The Thanks Badge is a national award that honors individuals whose ongoing com-mitment, leadership and service have had an exceptional and measurable impact on meeting the mission-delivery goals and priorities of the entire council or the entire Girl Scout Movement. Michaela also received a pin and recogni-tion for having been an adult volunteer for 30 years.
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TRAVELING THIS SUMMER?Take the Aflac Duck along, snap a few digital photographs at your destination and send them to [email protected] for possible use on the employee portal.
PHOTOGRAPH CONTRIBUTED BY ADAM JONES.