Shon Nelson

Background

About Shon Nelson

Your benefits plan is either serving your people… or someone else’s profit margin. I help employers know the difference—and do better. At Shepherd Insurance, I work with employers (typically up to 500 lives) to bring clarity, strategy, and bite to their employee benefits. We don’t do lazy renewals or hide behind buzzwords. We help HR leaders, CFOs, and business owners build smarter, leaner, more human benefit programs. What makes me different? I’ve lived the system from all angles: Inside a TPA/carrier Clinical experience working directly with patients Experience working in a large health system Direct-to-employer contracting And now—advising from the outside with full transparency That full-circle perspective helps me see what’s broken, what’s real, and where leverage lives. I also founded CourtStrong, a 100% volunteer nonprofit inspired by my late wife, Courtney, to help families fighting cancer. We’ve reinvested over to meet real needs and create space for families to make memories together. No red tape. Just help. I’m a proud husband and father to four incredible kids—and in my spare time, I front a 90s alt-rock band, Holland Exit. We play loud and mean it. So yes, I wear a few hats—but they all point the same direction: Make life clearer, kinder, and better for real people. Let’s talk if you want a partner who listens, builds with purpose, and isn’t afraid to challenge the norm.