Home > Authors

Alan Cohen

Alan Cohen co-founded Liazon, operator of one of the industry’s leading private benefits exchanges for businesses of all sizes, in 2007. Liazon was acquired by Towers Watson, now Willis Towers Watson, in 2013.

Alan has been a leader in the benefits space for over two decades. Prior to cofounding Liazon, he was CEO and cofounder of Online Benefits, one of the first web-based benefits technology companies in the United States. He led the company through its sale to A.D.A.M, a global provider of consumer health information and benefits technology solutions, and later served as president of A.D.A.M. Prior to cofounding Online Benefits, he worked in the insurance industry for Prudential, Mass Mutual, and Cigna and served as managing director for a division of Northwestern Mutual Life.

Alan is often sought out for his insights on private exchanges, their role in the new health care landscape, and their effect on businesses. His expert commentary has appeared in Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes, The New York Times, USA Today, The Washington Post, Yahoo! Finance, CNBC.com, and numerous benefits publications, including Employee Benefit News and Benefits Pro. In 2016, Alan was a recipient of an “Industry Innovator” award by the Institute for HealthCare Consumerism (IHC). IHC’s 11th annual “HealthCare Consumerism Superstars and Industry Innovator Awards” recognized the year’s top executives for their work in transforming the landscape of corporate health and benefits.

In this book, Alan draws on his in-depth experience in the benefits industry to share how the key principles he used to create one of the first private exchange platforms over 10 years ago is still relevant to anyone interested in forging a better system for all.

Alan holds a BA from Cornell University, an MBA from Columbia Business School, and an MBA from London Business School, where he won the Award for Academic Excellence.

Alan resides in Westchester, New York, with his family and spends summer weekends in Woodstock, New York. The Cohens are avid skiers and outdoors people.