Cornerstone Group Expands Benefit Advisory, HR Consulting and Retirement Divisions

WARWICK, RI – Cornerstone Group, one of New England’s leading benefit advisory firms, announced today the addition of three new employees.

• Chris Basse. Chris Basse has joined Cornerstone Retirement Advisors as a Client Relationship Manager. In this role, he is responsible for managing the overall experience for Cornerstone’s retirement plan clients. Chris has more than 16 years of experience in the retirement services industry, where he has focused on both helping plan sponsors provide more robust retirement plans for their employees and assisting those employees in understanding the specifics of their plans. Prior to joining Cornerstone, Chris was the Mid-Market Client Relationship Manager for the New England territory at Great-West Retirement Services, where he serviced 401(k) clients with assets ranging up to $45 million.  Previously, he worked at Principal Financial Group as a 401(k) Account Executive and, prior to that, held positions at Putnam Investments in Defined Contribution Plan Operations, Conversions, and Participant Services. Chris received a BA in Spanish from Dickinson College in Pennsylvania. He currently holds FINRA Series 6 and 63 licenses.

• Jeff Minuto. Jeff Minuto has joined Cornerstone Group’s Benefit Advisory division as a benefits consultant with more than 10 years of industry experience. In his new role, Jeff leverages his market knowledge, claims review experience, and healthcare reform expertise to assists employers with tailored benefit strategies based on their unique employee populations and needs. Before Cornerstone, Jeff worked at Mastors & Servant Ltd. (purchased by USI Insurance Services LLC in 2010), where he was part of the agency’s Employee Benefit team, specializing in Construction, Manufacturing, Not for Profit, and the High Tech industry. Jeff attended the University of Rhode Island and is currently pursuing the designation of Certified Employee Benefit Spet (CEBS) through the Wharton Business School.

• Diana Lane. Diana Lane has joined Cornerstone Group as a Senior Human Resource Consultant with nearly 20 years of experience in the field. In her role, she works as a hands-on partner, providing clients strategic advice and tactical support on issues such as employee relations, employment law, workplace policies and procedures, sexual harassment, discrimination and compliance. Previously, Diana was the Director of Human Resources at Lycos, Inc. and QualityMetric, where she was responsible for performance management, recruitment, benefits administration, workers’ compensation, training and employee relations. She also served as Human Resources Manager at the Boston Ballet, Corporate Director of Human Resources at Aerovox, Inc. and Vice President of Human Resources at Watermark Donut Company.  Diana graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and is state certified for mediation through Mediation Works.  She is a member of the Northeast Human Resources Association (NEHRA) and Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

About Cornerstone Group

Founded in 1993, the Cornerstone Group has forged a reputation as a leading benefits advisory firm, serving more than 1,500 employers nationwide. As its clients’ needs have changed over the years, Cornerstone has evolved to meet them with an expanding selection of services designed to address all aspects of employee management. From benefits advisory, payroll services and human resource consulting, to compliance advice and retirement solutions, Cornerstone’s rapid but measured growth results from the expansion of core services clients want and expect from a full-service advisory firm.

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