Island Group Plans

What Island Group Plans does

Island Group Plans is a privately held employee benefits brokerage and consulting firm founded in September 2000 by Ken Dunne and headquartered in Holbrook, New York. The firm serves small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) primarily across the New York Metro area and the broader East Coast, providing strategic benefits planning, brokerage services, and ongoing compliance support. Its client base spans multiple industries — including personal services, media, healthcare, manufacturing, transportation, engineering, and marine/recreation — with named customers such as Cactus Salons and Pennysaver, indicating a diversified SMB book rather than a vertical-specialist model.

The firm's core offerings include health, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance brokerage, supplemented by voluntary benefits consulting, HRA consulting, wellness program design, HR hotline support, and multi-state compliance services. Technology-enabled administration is delivered through the Ease platform, which the firm has integrated to streamline benefits enrollment and management for its clients. The firm draws on an ecosystem of more than 30 insurance carrier partnerships to source coverage, giving it quoting breadth across carriers without building in-house underwriting capacity.

Commercially, Island Group Plans operates on a commission- and fee-based revenue model tied to placed premiums and advisory engagements, with multi-year client relationships structured around annual benefits renewal cycles. The firm runs a white-glove service model organized around dedicated specialist teams and is led by founder Ken Dunne alongside Managing Partner Ken Prechtl (joined 2007) and Vice President of Sales Cindi Berdon (joined 2011), under whose tenure the client base reportedly grew approximately 200%. The firm is self-funded, privately held, with no disclosed outside capital and an employee base of approximately 25+, consistent with a small-to-mid-sized regional brokerage operation.

Name

Island Group Plans

Legal name

Island Group Plans

Website

https://islandgroupplans.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Island Group Plans is a private employee benefits brokerage founded in 2000 serving SMBs across New York Metro and the East Coast. It delivers strategic benefits planning, Ease platform administration, compliance support, and multi-carrier partnerships across health, dental, vision, life, and disability.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bohemia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Employee Benefits Consulting and Brokerage: Revenue generated through commissions and fees from providing employee benefits consulting services including group health, dental, vision, voluntary benefits, life, disability insurance, COBRA administration, compliance support, and wellness services to businesses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Island Group Plans is an employee benefits brokerage and consulting firm that advises businesses on group health, dental, vision, life, disability, voluntary benefits, COBRA administration, HRA design, wellness programs, and regulatory compliance (PPACA, COBRA, HIPAA, FMLA). The firm delivers white-glove service through dedicated specialist teams and provides an Ease-powered online portal for enrollment, policy management, and ID card access at no extra charge to clients.

Product overview

Island Group Plans is an employee benefits insurance firm offering a portfolio of consulting services rather than a single software product. Their core offering is employee benefits strategic planning and consulting for group health, dental, vision, voluntary benefits, COBRA administration, life, disability, compliance support, and wellness services. This consulting service is enhanced through technology: they provide a white-glove service with dedicated specialist teams and leverage the Ease platform for online benefits administration, enabling online enrollment, policy management, and ID card access. Additional technology-enabled services include an HR Hotlines module staffed by HR professionals, a Provider Search tool linking to insurance carrier portals, and a Legislative Brief publication providing compliance updates on PPACA, COBRA, HIPAA, and FMLA. Their services are delivered to businesses throughout New York Metro and the East Coast region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Employee Benefits Consulting Strategic planning and customized consulting for group health, dental, vision, voluntary benefits, life, disability, COBRA administration, compliance support, and wellness services, delivered to businesses through dedicated specialist account teams.
• Online Benefits Administration Platform (Ease) Personalized online client portal enabling online enrollment, group policy management, and ID card access via web or mobile app on any smart device, provided at no charge to 100% of clients.
• HR Hotlines On-demand HR advice service staffed by HR professionals, accessible by phone, email, and online chat forums for clients seeking general HR support beyond benefits questions.
• Compliance Support and Legislative Brief Proactive compliance monitoring service providing up-to-date healthcare reform information, industry insights, and a Legislative Brief publication summarizing federal and state legislative developments in insurance and employee benefits.
• Voluntary Benefits Consulting Advisory service helping employers offer voluntary benefits including permanent life insurance, disability income insurance, AD&D, supplemental health, long-term care, dental/vision, and other employee-elected coverages.
• Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) Consulting Advisory service for designing and implementing Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs), enabling employer-funded reimbursement of employees' out-of-pocket medical expenses to lower healthcare costs.
• Wellness Services Wellness program research and advisory services to help clients design, implement, and run employee wellness initiatives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 93% of Employers Want Access to HR Tools & Services, Only 43% of Brokers Offer These Tools — IGP Offers Them at No Charge to 100% of Clients

Named customers7 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

30 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• OptumRxcoreOthersInsurance carrier partner providing pharmacy benefit management services included in employee benefits packages offered to clients.
• AmeritascoreOthersDental and vision insurance carrier partner offering coverage options through the firm's benefits packages.
• PrincipalcoreOthersInsurance carrier partner providing retirement and benefits solutions integrated into client offerings.
• Anthem Blue CrosscoreOthersMajor health insurance carrier partner offering medical coverage options.
• AetnacoreOthersHealth insurance carrier partner providing medical and related benefits coverage.
• CignacoreOthersHealth insurance carrier partner offering medical and dental coverage options.
• United HealthcarecoreOthersMajor health insurance carrier providing comprehensive medical coverage solutions.
• Empire Blue Cross Blue ShieldcoreOthersRegional health insurance carrier offering medical coverage for New York and East Coast markets.
• Delta DentalcoreOthersDental insurance carrier partner specializing in dental coverage.
• MetLifecoreOthersInsurance carrier partner providing life, dental, and other benefits.
• GuardiancoreOthersInsurance carrier partner offering dental, vision, and life benefits.
• OscarcoreOthersHealth insurance carrier partner offering individual and small business coverage.
• HealthfirstcoreOthersRegional health insurance carrier serving New York market.
• EmblemHealthcoreOthersNew York-based health insurance carrier partner.
• The StandardcoreOthersInsurance carrier partner providing disability, life, and voluntary benefits.
• UnumcoreOthersInsurance carrier partner offering voluntary benefits, life, and disability coverage.
• OxfordcoreOthersHealth insurance carrier partner offering medical coverage.
• Nippon Life BenefitscoreOthersInsurance carrier partner providing employee benefits solutions.
• Fidelis CarecoreOthersHealth insurance carrier partner serving New York communities.
• Health EquitycoreOthersHSA and benefits administration platform partner for health savings accounts.
• AmeriflexcoreOthersVoluntary benefits and consumer-directed benefits administrator.
• InsperitysupportingOthersPEO (Professional Employer Organization) partner offering HR outsourcing solutions.
• TriNetsupportingOthersPEO partner providing HR services and benefits administration.
• PrestigePEOsupportingOthersProfessional Employer Organization partner for HR solutions.
• Choice StrategiessupportingOthersBenefits administration and technology solutions partner.
• Clarity Benefit SolutionssupportingOthersBenefits administration and compliance solutions partner.
• ConnectYourCarecoreOthersBenefits administration platform partner for HSAs, FSAs, and related accounts.
• Shelter PointcoreOthersDisability and life insurance carrier partner.
• Health Pass New YorkcoreOthersRegional benefits network partner serving New York employers.
• EasecoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology platform partner providing online benefits enrollment, policy management, and ID card access through personalized client portal.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• OneDigital: OneDigital is one of the largest US employee benefits and HR consulting brokerages focused on SMB and mid-market employers, offering the same suite of group health, dental, voluntary benefits, retirement, and HR advisory services as Island Group Plans; the two compete directly for East Coast SMB benefits clients with comparable white-glove service models.
• CBIZ Benefits & Insurance Services: CBIZ is a professional services advisor with a dedicated Benefits and Insurance practice targeting mid-market and SMB employers with group health, voluntary benefits, compliance, and HR advisory services; comparable to IGP in segment focus and East Coast presence, with a similar multi-carrier brokerage model.
• Conner Strong & Buckelew: Conner Strong & Buckelew is a mid-Atlantic-based insurance and risk management broker with an Employee Benefits division serving mid-market and SMB employers in NY/NJ/PA; it directly competes with IGP for regional benefits accounts and offers analogous carrier-agnostic advisory and enrollment services.

Broad incumbents

• USI Insurance Services: USI is a top-10 US insurance brokerage with a dedicated Employee Benefits practice serving middle-market and large employers through proprietary consulting tools (e.g., USI ONE); it overlaps with IGP on group health, voluntary benefits, and compliance but operates nationally with far greater scale and proprietary technology.
• Brown & Brown: Brown & Brown is a publicly traded national insurance brokerage with a sizable Employee Benefits segment (including the Benefit Consultants Group); comparable to IGP in core offerings (group health, dental, retirement, compliance) but with significantly broader geographic reach and acquired producer networks across the East Coast.
• Hub International: Hub International is a large North American insurance brokerage with deep Employee Benefits capabilities across the Northeast US; comparable to IGP on benefits consulting, voluntary products, and HR advisory, but Hub operates as a PE-backed roll-up with regional offices competing directly in IGP's NY/East Coast footprint.
• NFP (Aon): NFP is a mid-market-focused insurance broker and benefits consultant (acquired by Aon in 2024) with strong presence in the Northeast; it directly competes with IGP for SMB benefits accounts and offers proprietary technology platforms (e.g., NFPLink) that compete with IGP's Ease-powered portal.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Gallagher is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm with a large Employee Benefits consulting practice serving mid-market employers; comparable to IGP on group health brokerage, compliance, and voluntary benefits, but operating at much larger scale with proprietary analytics and actuarial tools.
• Marsh McLennan (Marsh & Mercer): Marsh McLenna's Marsh and Mercer divisions offer large-scale Employee Benefits consulting, brokerage, and actuarial services to mid-market and enterprise clients; comparable to IGP on the brokerage/advisory model but with global scale, proprietary benefits administration platforms, and far deeper compliance resources.
• Alliant Insurance Services: Alliant is a specialty insurance brokerage with a growing Employee Benefits practice serving middle-market employers across multiple US regions; comparable to IGP in benefits product mix and service-oriented delivery, but with a national footprint and PE-backed growth strategy that could pressure IGP's regional client base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/igpbenefits
• Facebookfacebook.com/islandgroup.plans.3

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Island Group Plans