DMEC is pleased to announce that two new board members, Francis P. (Frank) Alvarez, Principal at Jackson Lewis P.C. and Jeff Oldham, Chief Revenue Officer at Nayya, have joined its Board of Directors. Michael Crowe, who has served on the Board of Directors since 2017, completed his term on Dec. 31, 2020.

“DMEC has carved out a leadership role in the field of absence and disability management” said Kevin Curry, Chair of DMEC’s Board of Directors. “I know our members share my excitement at the addition to the board of two industry experts uniquely qualified to further advance DMEC’s mission.”

Frank Alvarez is a principal in the White Plains, New York, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He is the founder and co-leader of the firm’s Disability, Leave and Health Management (DLHM) practice group.

Applying more than thirty years of experiential knowledge, Alvarez closely collaborates with clients to “operationalize” these laws, including building leave management and reasonable accommodation programs that incorporate statutory and voluntary paid and unpaid leave programs. His goal is to help clients design systems that comply with the letter of the law, take care of employee needs, take control of legal and business risks, and develop a human resources narrative that significantly reduces employment litigation risks.

In 2017, DMEC awarded Alvarez its Partnership Award for his passion in advancing absence and disability management. He is routinely invited to speak on leave and accommodation issues.

“I am truly honored to have an opportunity to serve on the DMEC Board,” said Alvarez. “DMEC does really important work; it’s always out front, influencing positively absence management programs at our nation’s leading employers.  Especially now, as employees tackle unprecedented life events and work-family challenges, it is a privilege to work with DMEC’s Board and leadership team to support absence and disability professionals.”

Jeff Oldham is the Chief Revenue Officer of Nayya, an AI and machine learning platform helping employees choose and use their benefits. Oldham is also the co-founder of Informed Consulting, a firm working with venture capital and early-stage companies to connect digital health and financial wellness products with benefit ecosystem distribution partners.

Oldham has 25 years of experience working with enterprise employers, insurance carriers, benefit administration companies, and consumers. Prior to Nayya and creating Informed Consulting, he held various sales leadership positions in his 12 years at Benefitfocus, a benefit administration company, where he developed distribution markets for early-stage digital health and financial wellness companies. Prior to BNFT, Oldham was in insurance carrier sales for 13 years for Prudential, Unum, and Nationwide.

Oldham was named by Employee Benefits Advisor in “30 Benefit Thought Leaders to Know” and “30 People to watch in Benefits 2017” and has been featured in CNBC, Inc Magazine, Forbes, Employee Benefits News, US News and World Report, SHRM Magazine, and numerous other publications.

“The leadership and support of DMEC’s Board of Directors is invaluable to me as the CEO,” said Terri L. Rhodes, DMEC CEO. “We are lucky to have Kevin Curry as Board Chair, and with the addition of our two newest board members, DMEC will be launched into its next phase of growth.”

View the full list of DMEC board members.