St. Johns County's Risk Management Department has been making headlines and not just within the sunny bounds of Florida. The Department recently snagged the Safety and Risk Management Department of the Year award from Preferred Governmental Insurance Trust, a key player in public entity insurance across the state. Backing the achievement, Laura Dodd, the Assistant Director of Risk Management and Benefits, was lauded as the 2024/25 Risk Management Professional of the Year. According to a statement highlighted by St. Johns County's official website, the local government has pulled off a risk score sitting pretty at nearly half the national average.
"We want to bring that personal touch to it," Laura Dodd told the Office of Public Affairs in their recent video feature. She continued, "We want to care for that employee like they are family. Our motto is ‘Everyone Home Safe Every Day,’ and that means the way you came into work, we want you to leave the same way." It's worth noting that while the risk modification score of the county is 0.51, the Experience Modification Factor is an insurance term measuring how much of a gamble a business might be––the lower the number, the better, as per the St. Johns County.
When you dig into the figures, St. Johns County's Experience Modification Factor is notably less than the average, commanding attention from industry experts. Matt Baker, President of ThompsonBaker Agency, Inc., and the county's insurance underwriter, acknowledged, "In my career as an insurance broker spanning 27 years, I have never encountered any organization, regardless of size, with this low of an experience modification." Baker's experience speaks to the county’s remarkable consistency in achieving a low risk score which underscores a long-standing commitment to safety and professional diligence within the Risk Management Department.
St. Johns County doesn't cut corners; with a substantial workforce and a variety of potential hazards across job functions, the odds are against them to maintain such an impressive safety record. Yet, their claims experience is impressively low. Leading the charge, "We are very proud of the dedication to employee safety that the risk management team, led by our Risk Manager Laura Dodd, has developed through programs that cultivate a culture of injury reduction and overall well-being," Desiree Woroner, Human Resources Director, shared with pride, in her teams who are of sizes and types where such success is rare.
For those in the know, an Experience Modification Factor below 1.0 signifies that a company is doing something right when it comes to managing their risk. St. Johns County's factor, which nearly breaks the mold at 0.49 below the balance point, surely points to a proactive and preventative approach to employee safety that many can learn from. As per industry standards, while any factor exceeding 1.0 suggests there's room for improvement, St. Johns County is, quite literally, on the other side of the spectrum, setting a benchmark that others might well strive to meet.
