Meet Our Team
Tonya Burson
Finance & Accounting Director
Finance & Accounting Director
Bill Brown
Managing Director, South Central
Bill Brown serves as Managing Director, South Central Region, covering Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Missouri, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas and Kentucky. His responsibilities include oversight of employee benefits, property and casualty insurance, wealth services and retirement services across the region. Working closely with Alera Group’s senior leaders, practice leaders and fellow regional leaders, Bill is focused on enhancing growth activities, creating new opportunities for colleagues to improve client relationships and produce meaningful outcomes.
One of the founding partners of Alera Group, Bill has over 20 years of industry experience. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in economics.
Heather Eshaghpour
Regional Vice President, Employee Benefits Practice Leader
Heather is the Regional Employee Benefits Practice Leader. In her role, Heather collaborates with firms across the region leading initiatives on our client experience, our people, growth, and operational efficiencies. Heather sits on our national employee benefits leadership team working with other practice leaders to drive innovation and growth within the employee benefits practice.
Heather has over 25 years of experience in employee benefits having worked previously for both small and national consulting firms in client-facing and leadership roles. Heather lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband, son, and two Labrador retrievers. She is an avid Nashville Predators Hockey fan.
Mike Inman
Vice President, Property and Casualty, South Central
Vice President, Property and Casualty, South Central
EXPERT EDUCATION
Events and Webinars
Employee Benefits
Q4 Compliance Update
Alera Group's quarterly employee benefits compliance roundup will help you stay current on the latest national regulatory developments impacting employers.
December 3, 2024 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
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Employee Benefits
Setting Your Strategy for the New Year: Alera Group's 2025 Employee Benefits Market Outlook
Our experts will highlight key results from Alera Group’s 2025 Employee Benefits Market Outlook Report and explain how these trends can impact your benefits program this year.
January 16, 2025 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
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Wealth Services
State of the Markets
Join us as we unveil the factors that drive the nation's financial pulse and how they may impact your personal finances.
January 22, 2025 at 12:00 pm CT | Virtual
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THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Insights
Employee Benefits
Avoiding an Employee Lawsuit Over a Tobacco Surcharge Claim
Tobacco surcharges on health insurance premiums for employees who use tobacco products are attractive options for employers looking to keep their workforce healthy while lowering their organization’s healthcare costs. But surcharges can go too far, and many employers may be unaware of the limitations. Alera Group's new whitepaper on tobacco surcharges is designed to assist employers in complying with federal regulations.
November 19, 2024
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Employee Benefits
Q4 Considerations: New HIPAA Privacy Considerations
Earlier this year, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a Final Rule titled HIPAA Privacy Rule to Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy.
November 15, 2024
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Spotlight on 2025 Benefit Limits
The IRS has released the 2025 benefit plan limits. The following chart shows some of the key limits for the 2023, 2024 and 2025 tax years.
November 15, 2024
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Courts Ablaze with Tobacco Surcharge Class Action Lawsuits
Tobacco surcharges, or an increase in premiums for employees who use tobacco products, are attractive to employers looking to keep their employee population healthy and lower their healthcare costs. But they can go too far, and many employers might not be aware of the limitations.
November 15, 2024
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