Joel Hoffman
Senior Vice President, Financial Advisory & Actuarial Services
Ingenix Consulting
Excellence in HealthcareConsultants talk a lot about building long-term, trusting, client relationships. But few can measure up to the human connections built by Joel Hoffman.
“My best friends in life are people I met as clients. And after 25 years, I’ve got best friends all across the country. I’ve gotten to know their families, and they know mine. I truly am concerned about them being successful,” he says. “When my clients learned that my Dad went into the hospital, I had lead medical directors calling me. I just sat back, with tears in my eyes, realizing how deep these relationships have been built over the years.”
Last year was a particularly important year for Hoffman—not despite the economy, but because of it. “If you truly have a trusted relationship, the state of the economy means less. If anything, clients need you more when the economy is down.”
And in addition to his usual portfolio of the nation’s largest private healthcare companies, Hoffman was also called to advise the White House. He led an effort to assist the Obama Administration on numerous evaluations of health policy, including advising on the financial impact of various proposals.
All the while, he deepened his relationships with longstanding clients—five of whom reached out to Consulting on his behalf. Most notably, the Chief Medical Officer of UnitedHealth Group Enterprise Services and OptumHealth shared: “As a longstanding client, I have greatly benefited by the remarkable depth of his intellectual contributions, the limitless bounds of his work effort, and the unquestioned integrity of his deliverables.”
And the COO of HealthPlus of New York added: “Joel is at the top of my list of industry experts. Oftentimes, l go to him with an issue that is outside of his expertise, not directly looking for an answer but rather a partner to work with me to find a solution. He never disappoints.”
Leading an $80 million practice also requires he focus on internal matters—something he does with the same personal touch he gives to clients. A fellow vice president in the actuarial practice shared, “He has a unique talent to recognize what motivates people so that his management interventions leave our professionals feeling driven and energized.”
—Jess Scheer
>> Full list of Top 25 Consultants 2010
