Her Story
About Christina
I've dedicated over 30 years to the insurance field, building a career focused on helping people during critical moments in their lives. I began my professional journey with a bachelor's degree in physical therapy in 1989, but when managed care transformed the field and reduced patient interaction time from an hour to just 15 minutes, I knew I needed a change. Inspired by supportive professors at Springfield College who exposed me to the field of rehabilitation counseling, I went back to earn my master's degree in counseling in 1991. Most of my career has been spent in the vocational rehabilitation counseling field, where I set up vocational rehabilitation programs and assisted individuals with disabilities in returning to work. In 2013, I transitioned to the life annuity income settlement claims side of the business, and for nearly 6 years now, I've served as the Director of the Annuity and Income Settlement Claims Team at MassMutual. I'm responsible for leading a team of 16 people who process annuity and income settlement claims once a death occurs, ensuring we follow SEC regulations, IRS regulations, and state and federal regulations while processing claims in a timely, accurate, and empathetic manner. We're assisting people at probably one of the worst times in their life, and that responsibility is something I take very seriously. I'm a certified rehabilitation counselor with a CRC certification and have also completed certification for massage therapy. In 2012, I received the Leadership Excellence Award. My approach to leadership is grounded in integrity and building trust, because I believe people won't buy into what you're trying to accomplish if they don't trust that you're doing what's right for them, the company, and keeping us competitive and relevant in the field.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Christina
01What do you attribute your success to?
I would say very supportive professors at Springfield College. They were very supportive and gave us a lot of exposure to really understand what field we wanted to be in, what opportunities were available, and just what you could do in the field of rehab counseling. They were truly inspirational with regard to the field of rehab counseling and working with individuals with disabilities and returning to work. That exposure and support really helped me find my path and succeed in this field.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received was from a huge mentor of mine, and her advice was: be present. We all have a million things going on at the same time every day of our lives, but whatever you're doing, be present. When I'm speaking with my employees and I have a meeting with them, I need to be present, not checking my emails or text messages or looking distracted. I need to be present for them. That advice has actually done very well for me in my career and has actually been recognized by people.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say for those entering into the field, understand what it is you really want, and then go after it. Especially in the insurance field, it's typically a very male-dominated field. So understand what you want, go after it, and don't let anything stop you.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The economy is obviously a big challenge. We're working with products that are variable and fluctuating in the market, and there's the competitiveness of who can offer the best product. We need to ensure that we're offering not only the best products, but the best customer service on the back end, because ultimately, we're selling a promise. We don't have anything tangible - you're not buying a piece of clothes. You're buying a promise that when somebody passes away, we're going to take care of their family or whoever they deemed as their beneficiaries, and that's meaningful to us. We want to make sure that we honor that promise.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would definitely say integrity is very big on my list, along with building trust. I think in many perspectives in my career, both working with individuals and being a leader, trust is essential. When working with individuals, in order to really be effective, they had to trust me and trust what I was trying to do for them. As a leader, you don't really get folks to buy into what you're trying to do and accomplish if they don't trust you - trust that you're doing what's right and what's best for not only them and the company, but what's going to get us moving forward, keeping us competitive in the field, and ensuring that we stay relevant.
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