After laying off over 2000 employees in 2025, we were notified in an all hands meeting near the end of November that they were done with cuts "for the rest of the year." During an IT All Hands meeting in December, Brian announced that we should expect a 25-40% reduction in staff due to AI implementation (which they strongly pushed on everyone).
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@73z I heard his new place down here in FL was $7.2 Million. Don't know where though.
Dude is a complete phony. Impersonal, egotistical and downright mean. On numerous occasions he has belittled people in front of large audiences, simply for asking questions.
What he says and what he does is completely opposite. Laying off thousands of people for the sake of operating expenses, while spending tens of millions on renovations to offices that have been closed since COVID and for the sake of building “culture”. Meanwhile, his latest executive order, a “voluntary severance package” for those employees over 50. I guess culture only applies to those 50 and under.
Loyalty means zero to this man.
Employees mean nothing to this man.
Members mean nothing to this man.
Only his ego seems to matter. He is shallow and extremely callous and after 15+ years of being a proud Florida Blue employee, I cannot wait to leave.
@15vh he hired a complete id--t to roll out “AI”. That’s why they need more cash, approach is 2/3 years behind.
@16ac
Sleazy Leadership Team i think..
@16ac Senior Leadership Team
@16ac
Senior Leadership Team i think..
@150a SLT?
@OP heard they are cutting the local markets staff, that was Pat and Chuck’s baby, and how FB served the local communities. Makes sense, always heard that the local markets, other than sales, was a terrible waste of money and cheesy marketing, LinkedIn posts of executives in expensive suits holding cans of soup for food shelf distribution, then leaving after the photo ops. They’ve stopped posting those photos for a reason.
@OP tha rate at which Btian is laying off staff at Guidewell/Florida Blue is astonishing and there is 0 tact in doing it, and now buying out everyone 50 years old and older ,and or 5 years at the co. Is cold and calculated, there is 0 empathy or sympathy for the people who have worked half thier lives to make Florida Blue /Guidewell what it is (ordhould I say was), and for what? So Brian can play with AI and the expense of the customer? AI cannot replace humans there is a reason that human interaction is important, we all need eachother, and should be able to cont on eachother, this is the most Inhuman treatment of people ive ever witnessed.
@15pn yes but you have to be over 50 with five years service. Have to apply and be accepted. Then work until December to March depending on your value. Expect more cuts Q1.
Someone posted that they received an email about a new VSP being offered by Florida Blue? Anyone else hear about that? So I guess more layoffs are coming?
He’s hiring incompetent cheerleaders. CIO has been a failure and looks to continue that trend. These people come in and profit off the previous visionaries. By the time the failure surfaces the damage is done and the perpetrators make off with millions.
I’m a current GW employee, though I won’t disclose which area I work in. From my perspective, BP’s leadership has been extremely deceptive and lacking in transparency. There seems to be a continued push to add more and more members to the SLT, presumably at substantial salaries, while simultaneously cutting deeply into the company’s experienced, high-quality talent and long-standing employees.
The impact on the workforce has been undeniable. Morale isn’t just low—it’s lower than linoleum.
@97b I bet he said he was "incredibly excited"about whatever BS he was spewing, right? He's a nasty, dishonest autocrat. Keep your head down, Florida and jump the first chance you get.
At CF, BP bought and approved an $800,000.00 board room table. Saw the bill with my own eyes. That is not fiscally responsible. This guy will wreck the company financially. Left CF in financial distress. As a difference maker, I feel sorry for the people we served.
@yf3 this is the same cr-p he did at CareFirst. He invested millions in renovations, closed buildings we had owned for years, leased a horribly expensive new space in DC. He will run you all into the ground. He treats the company funds like his own private hedge fund.
@h1n He literally just announced some hair brain “return to purpose” renovation of the main campus VS 7 months ago the company is in “dire financial straits” but somehow they came up with millions of dollars all of the sudden to renovate the main campus working areas. Sounds like his blueprint
@gr8 speaking from the CareFirst perspective, BP’s email message sounds very familiar. Likely a cut/paste and minor edit/update from the multitude of similar email messages CareFirst associates would routinely receive. Get used to it, much more similar drek will be on the way.
AP came across as reasonable at first, but what a 🍑🕳️
Expect cuts in the IT department. AI promises = Offshore mask. IT leadership will toot the ho-n of AI, while controlling costs with offshore. Perception is AI is saving, but reality is more jobs are moved out of the US. Need to get rid of these con man leaders.
@esr yes, there was. In February. I was "displaced" along with my leader a (VP) and his leader ( a Sr. VP). Both had over 30 years with the company. The cuts started in late 2024. There were big rounds in May 25, Aug 25, October 25, and Jan/Feb 26. I got a good package and was less than a year from retiring, so it didn't su-k for me.
@2wv i believe you ,but Pat G stood there and said he personally picked Brian and "knew right away he was the right person to lead" Hard to tell what is the truth these days.
Brian took CareFirst down to bare bones due to a potential merger, after he had overextended CF financially with his hairbrained multi million dollar renovation of office space and taking on new office space that NO ONE WORKS IN! Merger fell through now new CEO will come in and clean up Brian's mess. Good luck FL.
One of his monthly cringe emails:
All GuideWell Team Members
As part of our last AI-Employee Town Hall, I had the chance to connect on campus with colleagues who were volunteering in support of this year’s Employee Giving Campaign. Seeing more than 200 team members step forward to serve was inspiring and reflected the shared purpose and intention that define us at GuideWell.
What I saw was the best of who we are: our team rolling up your sleeves and making someone else’s day a little brighter. That’s the culture we’re building here: service, compassion, and possibility put into motion.
As our Employee Giving Campaign continues, I encourage each of you to participate in a way that reflects what this campaign means to you. For some, that’s financial giving. For others, it’s dedicating time and energy through volunteerism. And for many of us, it may very well be both — showing up with our resources and our presence, fully invested in the communities we serve. Every contribution, every volunteer hour, every act of service creates real impact for people and communities who need it.
We’re not just a company that operates in communities — as individuals, we’re a part of them. And it goes beyond an annual campaign. It’s a year-round commitment and a key part of what makes us GuideWell. When we show up together, we send a message about who we are and what we value. That’s what Unite and Serve looks like in action
This week, Future Ready showed up in two ways: in how we’re working inside the company, and in real progress across the industry.
What I’m hearing from you
Earlier this week, I sat down for a conversation about what I’m seeing from 30,000 feet and our momentum as a company. Your questions and feedback shaped the discussion.
• Thank you to Human Resources for submitting questions for this conversation.
• Their questions got to the heart of what employees are wondering – how AI is changing their work, and what it means to use technology in service of real people.
• I encourage you to watch it and keep the questions coming.
Moving the industry
We have a health care system where it can take 17 years to move clinical evidence into practice, and where 25 to 30% of care delivered is, at best, ineffective and, at worst, harmful.
• Prior authorization did not create that problem, but it has become one of its most visible symptoms.
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) and AHIP released a report this week sharing measurable results on the prior authorization commitments that health plans across the industry made last summer.
• Across participating plans, 11% of prior authorizations have been eliminated – representing 6.5 million fewer prior authorizations for patients.
• That matters. And it’s the first step toward eliminating the barriers that stand between people and the care they need.
GuideWell – Florida Blue and Triple-S – signed on immediately last summer. And over the past year, we’ve been doing the work: focusing on the first of the three industry commitments while driving our own efforts to reduce prior authorizations, simplify requirements, and strengthen how we communicate with and support our members.
• One example: Triple-S has trained nearly 70 nurses in intentional listening and empathetic communication – not scripts, but real skill-building – to improve how members experience prior authorization calls.
• That’s what it looks like when you start with the person, not the process.
The progress is real, but so is the underlying problem. Most clinicians are doing their best in a system that doesn’t get them the right information at the right time. That’s what we’re working to change.
• AI can help close that gap by bringing evidence and patient context together at the point of care, in real time.
• In that future, prior authorization doesn’t just get faster, it becomes less necessary. That’s the system we’re building toward.
The thread between these two things – showing up differently inside our company in how we work, how we treat each other, and how we make decisions – and showing up differently in the industry are not separate efforts. They’re the same commitment, applied in different rooms.
Future Ready is a practice. And this week, the practice is visible.
More to come.
Brian
Seems like an absolute travesty to go from Pat Geraghty to this clown. P.G spoke with conviction and empathy, his messages meant something and he truly put people first, B.P does not.
Thomas Kuntz (GuideWell Board of directors) needs to remove him asap.
@gnc . I was hired 27 years ago. Pension was gone long ago.
@czv Anyone hired since 20teens doesn't get a pension or retirement healthcare anyway. Nothing to lose really.
@e5f I worked there 40 years ago expecting health insurance from the ins company I worked for. But they cut that option for retirees. I was part of the buyout and the COBRA for me & spouse was $2500 a month.
They set up a HRA and all you get is 1500 for not of us if we take a CF product. That’s barely a quarter of the premiums. That’s the thanks i get for giving the company 40 loyal hardworking years.
Original post reported an announced "25-40% reduction in staff" back in Dec. Did anything ever come of that? I haven't seen/heard anything about cuts that big from my contacts at FL Blue.
@d2x CareFirst retiree here. When CF offered the voluntary separation package in 2025, here’s what was offered:
For under 65, a one time opportunity to get $4000 for the former employee and $2000 for the spouse toward a CareFirst plan on the Exchange. That is it. Coverage similar to the group plan I had (CareFirst Open Access PPO) would cost me $33K annually and after the stipend $27K until Medicare.
Used to be if you had 10+ years of service and age 55 or over, you got the group coverage for life. BP took that away.
Good luck in Florida. He is the worst. Talks a great game bug in the end it is all about his public image and external optics.
@cz - “he is a snake oil salesman, knows how to walk the walk and talk the talk. It's all BS!”
Sounds like his IT hire.
@d2x CareFirst retirees were NOT grandfathered in for retiree healthcare benefits. For those under 65, they have to go to the market place to purchase their healthcare. Those of us over 65, had to go through Medicare.gov to find and pay for a medicare supplemental, plus look for and pay for Dr-g, Dental and Vision plans. Currently, CareFirst is providing retirees a $1500 HRA ($1000 for retiree and $500 for spouse) per year to help subsidize these premiums, deductibles ONLY if you select a CareFirst MedPlus Supplemental plan (which is a much higher premium than other MedPlus plans offered in MD). I'm sure that $1500 HRA will be the next to go in a year or 2.
@czv when they cut the retiree healthcare, did you lose your healthcare benefits too (or were you grandfathered in) ? Just curious as I know many who retired prior to the benefit cut. I just retired in the January VSP wave and am so happy to be rid of that toxic environment.
@czv Mark your calendars! October 1 is one year after abandoning CareFirst ... pretty sure the typical anti-poaching agreement is one-year. Wait till he pulls his buddies over to Florida Blue!
@OP Brian destroyed CareFirst of Maryland in 7 - 8 years. We are a Not for Profit company, so no stock involved. I know this is not helpful, but GET OUT OF THE FLORIDA PLAN ASAP. If you survive the multiple downsizing, and reorganizations, your benefits will start being taken away from you, i.e. earned PTO, pension, retirement healthcare. As others have said, he is a snake oil salesman, knows how to walk the walk and talk the talk. It's all BS! Tenure means nothing to him and will force out anyone who understands the inner workings of the organization. My words are not vindictive or out of hate. As someone with 40+ years at CareFirst, I experienced many changes over the years, but no one brought down the organization like Brian did. I don't know if it was on purpose to position the organization for a takeover or sheer stupidity. Luckily, I retired several years ago and took my pension lump sum. I hope those in Florida will be able to do the same.
@740 This is 100% true.
I feel bad saying this, but he's your problem now! Brian will smile to your face and stab you in the back.
@740 'tis true. He lists his worthless online degree on his linkedin page. Total dodo bird.
@bg he bought it for 2.something million and sold it for 6 million when he ran off to Florida after ruining CareFirst BCBS of MD. Guy is a snake oil salesman. On 2nd thought, snake oil is actually more useful than what this con man is selling.
No wonder his previous companies stock plummeted.
Looks like this guy jumped ship right before it started sinking. Sounds like he’s bringing same toolset here. Buckle up.