Pros
Dean has a majority market share in Dane and the surrounding counties as a Health Insurance Provider. This means that there is no immediate concern of this company moving as it's firmly rooted here in Madison. The quality of employees is, like most companies, a mixed bag, but I find that many people at Dean Health Plan (DHP) take pride in their work and are motivated by doing it well. I still keep in contact with many former co-workers and frankly that's the most bittersweet aspect of no longer working there.
Cons
Prior to the SSM acquisition of Dean Health System (DHS) and Dean Health Plan, DHP was run for most intents and purposes as it's own autonomous company. There were tie-ins with DHS and SSM, but corporate policy was dictated internally and the company was run as an Insurance Company. After SSM finalized the purchase of the Dean system, a large-scale integration effort was performed. While there are many similarities between a hospital chain and a Health clinic chain, neither of those industries has much business cross-over with Health Insurance. Sure, all systems talk with one another, but providing care to a patient and resolving a claim filed by that patient are two entirely different processes and workflows. After the acquisition, DHP was no longer able to operate as an autonomous company, nor even a seperate business entity. Frankly policies that only had merit within a Health Care system found there way into the Insurance Company as well even though the provided no benefit. Since the acquisition, mandatory flu shots has been put in place (this makes sense in clinics and hospitals, but the insurance company that rarely sees clients in person??). Average Annual Raises have significantly decreased (or outright frozen in certain cases), and capital budgetary items have been dramatically cut. Just not the same place it was before the acquisition and this was frankly my main reason for leaving.
