Joel is General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer (CLO) at Benefitfocus. He joined in March 2021 and has a strong growth mindset aligned to our mission. Our mission… that’s what reeled him in. In the midst of the pandemic chaos, he saw first-hand the importance of benefits in meeting the needs of an ever-changing workforce and workplace. In a previous life, Joel was a high school basketball coach and, with the same tenacity he brought to the court, he brings to the organization. His collaborative nature and focus on building strategic partnerships makes him a vital part of our team.
Roles & Responsibilities
Joel oversees the day-to-day operations of the Corporate Legal and Compliance Department teams. He combines his experience in building legal, sales operations and business development functions with his technical expertise in the legal world to cultivate strong partnerships across all our teams.
Street Cred
Joel started his career in education. He was a special education teacher and was even Head of Learning Support in Tokyo for the American School in Japan. He made the shift to law, starting at the law firm Ropes and Gray, LLP, and has been practicing for two decades. He’s been in-house counsel at many private and public organizations; including, Assistant General Counsel at Sonus Networks (now, Ribbon Communications), General Counsel at Enservio, Inc. and, most recently, Chief Legal Officer and SVP of Business Development at QuickBase, Inc. Joel has a lot of letters after his name – B.A., M. Ed., JD, MBA. He received a Bachelor of Arts from UNC Chapel Hill, a Master of Education from NC State and a Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration from Northwestern. Joel previously served as an advisor to Ursa Health and is currently an advisor to Generus.
Hobbies & Interests
Joel is an avid college football fan. Having grown up in Ohio he is a diehard Buckeye fan and can often be heard shouting “O-H” and waiting for an “I-O” in response. He loves hiking, biking and fishing and when he’s not playing board games with his kids, he’s out honing his soccer, golf and tennis skills.
Inspiration
"Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
– Reinhold Niebuhr