When was the last time you had breakfast with your CEO?



Ken teaching
Junior Achievement at a
local school; I had no idea
about his other teaching
background...

 When was the last time you had a conversation with your CEO? At most American businesses its a rare occurrence for an employee to spend much, if any, time with the man or woman heading up their organization. At Pinnacol our CEO, Ken Ross, regularly sits down with employees through his Coffee Talk With Ken series. This morning I had the opportunity, along with a couple of my fellow employees, to chat with Ken on issues ranging from the state of the economy, health care reform, the upcoming legislative session and election, to our company's financial performance. Ken's experience covers both a legal background as well as having headed up the New York state workers' compensation fund. I always learn something new at these sessions which is why I make a point of attending several each year, and today I found out that Ken also has a teaching background having taught insurance classes at the City College of New York. He also indicated that he may have the chance to do some guest lectures with Regis University through their M.B.A. program.

These sessions also give Ken the chance to meet and hear from his employees. This morning he met Curt, one of our newest employees who started with us in July. Curt mentioned that its a fairly steep learning curve upon joining Pinnacol. One of the things I always recommend to new employees is that they attend one of Ken's sessions sooner rather than later and I wish more employees, new and seasoned veterans alike, took advantage of the opportunity.

One thing that always has impressed me with the CEO's I have seen at the helm of Pinnacol Assurance is that they seem to be well grounded with a firm grasp of reality. In this morning's meeting Ken didn't profess to have a crystal ball and he readily acknowledged the uncertainty that the future holds. The nation is in the midst of economic upheaval, Colorado's political climate is up in the air, and the only certain thing apart from death and taxes is that no one on this planet knows for sure what 2011 is going to bring. As another employee, Wendy, pointed out, insurance is all about managing risk, and these sessions with Ken are a nice touch point to get some reassurance that the organization is on track to deal with whats potentially on the horizon.