About Us

Before we tell you about us, you need to meet Alice.

Unlike Alice in Wonderland, ALICE in America refers to anyone who is asset limited, income constrained, and employed. In other words: Most of us are are ALICE.

The bad news is: ALICE is struggling. These workers tend to follow the rules when it comes to budgeting and saving for retirement—but as expenses surge and wages stagnate, working and saving isn’t always enough. When employees can’t get ahead no matter how hard they work or how much they try to save, it creates problems for everyone. Not only do the workers themselves struggle, they can create problems for their employers (via lower productivity or high turnover) and even drag the economy overall.

That’s where Synchronomics comes in. One of the biggest barriers to success for ALICE? High healthcare costs that make it hard to save for retirement and build a nest egg. That gives you a secret weapon: Better benefits.

When you improve your benefits package to lower healthcare costs for employees (and for yourself!) you give them more flexibility to save and get ahead. Adding a strong retirement plan offering to the mix means you’re setting employees up for long-term success. That’s a powerful combination if you’re trying to attract and retain top talent.

At Synchronomics, we work with existing: Brokers, advisors, providers, third-party administrators, and covered service providers. We work as your fiduciary, protecting your interests, which translates to better benefits for your workers. We do all of this in a fully agnostic way: No one else pays us; we only work for you.

The Synchronomics edge

Independent review. We don't work for anyone but you. That means we aren't trying to sell you on a specific insurance provider or investment fund. In other words: When you hire us we're going to find what's hidden in the fine print of your plans; we're not going to add more fine print to the mix.

Dual expertise. We're the ONLY firm in the country to act as a 402(a) fiduciary on both retirement and healthcare plans. Your employees are going to review your healthcare and retirement offerings as two sides of the same coin; you should, too.

Keep your providers. If you like the providers you're working with, keep them! Because we aren't trying to sell you on things, we aren't going to pressure you to leave your existing provider if you (or your employees) are happy with them. We will, however, tell you if current offerings are putting you at risk and help you negotiate a solution.

Varied levels of involvement. We offer several packages that range from a one-time consulting fee to review your current offerings all the way to a full takeover of your benefits, so you never have to worry about liability again.

Work with industry pioneers. Our founders have started working in employer-sponsored benefits long before the industry stepped into a legal and regulatory spotlight. This hard-won expertise means regulators and litigators keep members of our team on speed dial when they need an expert opinion. We put that expertise (and those connections) to work for our clients.

Meet the team

James Holland

James started his career as a consultant working with employee benefits and quickly homed in on retirement plans as his area of focus. He spent 14 years developing his expertise—first at Kornreich MIA and then independently at JPH consulting—before joining Rick Canipe at the team at Millenium Investment Retirement Advisors and eventually becoming a partner. As an investment specialist and a business owner, James understands the unique challenges employers face when it comes to creating cost-effective benefits packages that meet employee needs. As an avid NY Mets fans, James doesn’t scare easily; unlike the Mets, however, James excels at solving complex problems and creating Ws for clients.

Jamie Linkowski

For more than 20 years, Jamie has worked to improve the benefits employers offer their teams. He began his career focused on retirement plans at OneVision and PRIMESolutions Advisors before joining Questis in 2019. During his time at Questis, Jamie saw first hand how taking a holistic approach to benefits—that is, looking beyond retirement plans toward healtcare offerings—improved outcomes. These days, Jamie focuses his energy on helping companies offer robust and compliant healthcare to employees…. and improving their EBITDA along the way. Much like his beloved Steelers, Jamie chases excellence in everything he does.

Rick Canipe

After leaving the Air Force as a Captain overseeing intercontinental ballistic missiles, Rick spent years managing hundreds of complex employer-sponsored plans for banks in North Carolina in Virginia. Those plans covered a range of employers, from small businesses to huge corporations including Wendy’s and Papa Johns. Eventually, Rick realized he could create real value by helping employers putting a dollar sign on the risk they faced thanks when they didn’t follow ERISA regulations. The resulting PlanAnalyzer is so effective it’s been patented. The tool, combined with Rick’s expertise, make him a go-to expert for both litigators and regulators looking for insights on retirement plan regulations. He’s also an IRS Enrolled Agent, making him a true guru amoung experts.

Laura Bornyas

Laura specializes in working with self-insured health plans. Her analysis helps firms uncover hidden costs, strengthen their fiduciary compliance, and improve transparency across the board. She helps employers protect plan assets by identifying and addressing gaps in governance while enhancing employees’ access to quality care.