About Us
TRUEbenefits is embracing our Alera Group brand to reflect our national capabilities, industry expertise and expanded resources in all areas of our business.
In 2017, TRUEbenefits and 23 firms across the nation joined to form Alera Group. Six years later, we are 180 firms strong, working together to leverage powerful relationships, industry experience and resources with the goal of supporting our clients’ business strategies and elevating the experience of working with us. By embracing our new branding of Alera Group, we will continue to bring our clients a personalized set of solutions while reflecting our expanded capabilities. What remains consistent is holding our clients at the core of our business.
We are excited about this next step in our evolution as we continue to build a great company with clients at our center. Through collaboration and teamwork, we will continue to offer you the resources of a national firm along with the personalized experience of a local partner.
As Alera Group, we are stronger together!
Beyond Benefits as Usual
We ask questions you haven’t heard before. Digging deeper gives us the understanding to customize cost-effective solutions that advance our clients’ business goals, see them through times of rapid change, and help recruit and retain the best people in their industries. Our clients know they can count on us for total transparency and an independent point of view. Our firm attracts passionate, industry-experienced people who value the time we give them to go above and beyond for our clients. It’s not enough to be reactive around renewal time. Together, we bring the strategic thinking, attention to detail and proactive perspective that employee benefits need all year round.
By delivering measurable results and client satisfaction, we have earned a Net Promoter Score of 88 —much higher than those of leading Fortune 500 companies. Most important, it earns our clients’ confidence that they’re getting higher value from every benefit dollar.
Meet Our Team
Meet our Team
Cherise Reese
Managing Partner
Cherise Reese, Managing Partner, has over twenty years of experience in the benefits consulting industry after first developing her business skills in retail management and human resources. As Managing Partner, Cherise focuses on developing and growing the Alera Group team, creating new avenues for success as they serve clients with excellence. With patience, integrity, and optimism, she works tirelessly to implement strategies that further the goals of the Alera Group team and their clients. Cherise is a member of the Alera Group Inclusions & Diversity Steering committee as well as an active member in our Women’s Mentorship program. Cherise has been with Alera Group Seattle for 14 years and plans to continue to serve her team with dedication for many years to come. She is a graduate of the University of Washington, and enjoys boating around the San Juans, collecting sea glass, watching football, and reading.
Brent Schlosstein
Founder & Senior Partner
Brent Schlosstein, Founder & Senior Partner, is an entrepreneur and recognized employee benefits expert focused on building high performance health plans for progressive and employee-focused organizations. Passionate about transforming healthcare in an environment of transparency, collaboration, and professionalism, Brent’s responsible for driving growth and building a world-class consulting organization. Brent holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Washington and is one of just 250 healthcare consultants in the U.S. to be accredited by Health Rosetta. He’s Past President of the Lake Washington Human Resources Association and a member of numerous insurance Advisory Councils in Washington state. In his spare time, Brent continues to work on his golf game where, one day, he plans to shoot his age.
Astrea Arguello
Senior Employee Benefits Executive
Astrea Arguello, Senior Employee Benefit Executive, has worked as a mid-market employee benefits Producer and Consultant for fifteen years. She loves helping employers attract and retain a quality workforce through offering creative, well-balanced, cost effective employee benefit solutions. Driven by a desire to exceed her client’s expectations, her honesty, integrity, knowledge, and energy truly differentiate her within the industry. Astrea joined Alera Group in January 2018. Outside the office, Astrea enjoys spending time with her family, reading, camping, watching football, and travelling.
Amber Oldham
Director of Client Services
Amber Oldham, Director of Client Services, has eighteen years of experience with employee benefits, working with clients of all sizes. Amber is passionate about ensuring our Client Service Team is well-equipped to provide an excellent service experience for our clients and their employees. She has oversight for team training, new client assignments, team workflow, and development. She currently serves as the compliance liaison between the Seattle office and the regional & national Alera Group compliance division. Amber enjoys doing home improvement projects with her husband, camping with their two dogs, and cheering for the Seahawks in her spare time.
EXPERT EDUCATION
Events and Webinars
Employee Benefits
Driving Communications and Engagement: Open Enrollment
Our experts will walk you through a strategic planning process to make sure you’re sharing in a way that not only drives employee awareness and engagement but also reaches your workforce across platforms with what they need to know about choosing the right benefits for them and their families.
August 15, 2024 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
Sign Up
Employee Benefits
Q3 Compliance Update
Alera Group's quarterly employee benefits compliance roundup will help you stay current on the latest national regulatory developments impacting employers.
September 3, 2024 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
Sign Up
Employee Benefits
Collaborative Conversations: 2025 - What to Expect and What You Need to Know
Save the date for a conversation in September where we will discuss the impending PLO changes by BOLI and the Employment Department, their impacts, and other critical considerations.
September 12, 2024 at 08:30 am PT | Virtual
Sign Up
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Insights
Employee Benefits
Benefits Benchmarking Webinar: What To Do With the Data
If you’re designing your company’s employee benefits program, you want to know what your peers and competitors are offering. Employee retention and talent acquisition are largely dependent on whether you offer a benefits package that meets or exceeds the standards of your industry, location and company size while managing costs in an increasingly expensive market for healthcare and pharmaceuticals. That’s why Alera Group places a high priority on using benchmarking data and analysis to inform and otherwise serve our clients.
July 1, 2024
Find out more
Employee Benefits
How To Lower Healthcare Costs While Improving Benefit Offerings
Join us on June 20 for a one-hour webinar designed to help you eliminate wasteful healthcare spending while providing your employees with benefits that attract and retain talent. We’ll take you through our three-step solution.
June 11, 2024
Find out more Employee Benefits
Legal Alert: PCORI Fees Due by July 31, 2024
Employers that sponsor self-insured group health plans, including health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) should keep in mind the upcoming July 31, 2024, deadline for paying fees that fund the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) via Form 720, which was recently updated and released by the IRS.
June 7, 2024
Find out more Employee Benefits
Legal Alert: CMS Redesigns the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Program Beginning in 2025
As a result of the changes to Medicare Part D under §11201 of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, on April 1, 2024, CMS released Final Redesign Program Instructions (“Final Program Instructions”) for the Medicare Part D prescription drug program, which are effective starting in 2025.
May 30, 2024
Find out more