MZQ may sound like any other business with last name initials, but in truth, the letters aren’t initials at all. In fact, there’s so much more to it. MZQ, at its heart, is a family business. At its inception, the whole family got involved, except for Emily (Emmsie Q). Living abroad and with a career of her own, she wasn’t able to be part of the new business. Wanting to find a way to include her somehow, they named the business after her…and MZQ was born.
MZQ Consulting was founded in 2014 by a daughter and father team - ERISA attorney Jennifer Spiegel Berman and systems engineer Jim Spiegel. Jen’s compliance expertise and Jim’s technical know-how provided the brains and brawn to form our unique company.
MZQ was originally formed as an Affordable Care Act reporting agency, but we quickly expanded to encompass a breadth of benefits compliance needs. Through our distinct industry expertise and proprietary software developed in-house, we've become leaders in the evolving compliance landscape. We call our distinctly client-first approach to our industry the MZQ Advantage.
Jen Berman is an employee benefits attorney and entrepreneur. She is a leader in analyzing health care reform developments and frequently serves as a speaker and commentator on a wide variety of health care reform and employee benefits issues. In addition to her work leading MZQ, she is a member of Holder Law Group LLC. Jen graduated cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was Editor-in-Chief of the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor and Employment Law. Jen also completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating magna cum laude. She is an avid lover of textile arts, frequently wearing stunning pieces she hand-crafted herself.
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Jim is both the CIIO and the data processing software developer of MZQ Consulting, and is entirely responsible for designing our custom programming efforts. Jim has over 30 years of experience programming computers, having enjoyed an extensive career as a systems engineer before founding MZQ. His early career was spent supporting NASA projects, including the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station. Jim earned both his undergraduate and advanced degrees from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering; graduating with an M.Sc.(Eng) in Systems Engineering and cum laude with a B.S. in Systems Science and Engineering. Jim’s hobbies include stunt-kite flying and candle making.
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Jennifer is a well-rounded HR/Payroll professional with over 15 years of experience. Before joining MZQ, Jennifer led a variety of teams, including payroll operations at ADP and HRIS/benefits at Maxim Healthcare Services. Jennifer earned her undergraduate degree from Towson University, graduating cum laude with a B.S. in Business Administration. Jennifer also has extensive certification in her field, having earned the title of Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) from the American Payroll Association (APA), Professional in Human Resources (PHR) from the HR Certification Institute (HRCI), and SHRM-CP certification from the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM).
Jessica Waltman leads our compliance consulting and services team, providing subject matter expertise and spearheading a variety of business initiatives. She has more than twenty years of experience in health insurance markets and is considered an industry-wide expert on all of the complex laws and regulations essential to maintaining a compliant employee benefits arrangement. In 2015, Jessica launched Forward Health Consulting where she’s advised dozens of brokers, employers, associations and benefit technology firms about health reform and business strategy issues. Prior to that, Jessica served the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) for sixteen years, including eight years as their Senior Vice President of Government Affairs. Jessica earned her degree in political science and non-fiction writing magna cum laude from Drew University. She serves her industry as a member of the Board of Trustees of the National Insurance Producers Registry.
Beverly joined MZQ in 2021 as the Director of Operations. Beverly is a well-rounded Human Resources professional with over 20 years of experience and is considered a subject-matter expert in Benefits and Leave of Absence compliance. Before joining MZQ, Beverly managed the Benefits and Leave of Absence teams for 15 years at Maxim Healthcare Services, a leader in the staffing and home healthcare industry. Prior to Maxim, she worked in Human Resources at a technology company that handled computer and network security for government contracts, a financial firm that handled underwriting mortgage loans, and a technology company that handled computer software development. Beverly studied Business Administration at Carroll College. When Beverly is not working, she spends her time with her son, family, and friends. Beverly’s true passion is being a mother, and she enjoys traveling.
Lee joined MZQ Consulting in 2017 and now serves as our Director of Compliance. Prior to joining MZQ, she spent over 25 years as a practicing paralegal. She is a member of the National Federation of Paralegal Associates (NFPA), a member of the Maryland Association of Paralegals (MAP), and a former chairman of the University of Maryland Paralegal Studies Advisory Board. Lee earned her bachelor’s degree and certificate in Paralegal Studies from the University of Maryland. She is an active volunteer with the National Kidney Foundation, focusing her efforts in the area of patient education.
Alan Klein is the Director of Technical Implementation and our resident data wizard. He joined MZQ in 2015 as a Data Processing Manager and was quickly promoted to his current position. Before working for MZQ, Alan spent 10 years as a Marketing Manager for several magazine publishers in New York, including Primedia and InterMedia Outdoors. Alan earned a B.S. in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, with concentrations in Operations & Information Management, as well as Marketing. He lives with his wife and children in New Jersey.
Josh Berman has over 20 years of experience in system development, internet technologies and customer support. Josh joined MZQ at our firm's very beginning to develop our Cloud environment, and has securely maintained our Cloud infrastructure ever since. Prior to MZQ, Josh worked at Roadnet Technologies (formerly UPS Logistics Technologies), where he led a team of support specialists and handled web service integrations. Josh earned his B.S. in Computer and Information Science from the University of Delaware with a concentration in Systems Administration. He lives with his wife and children in Baltimore, and is a huge Ravens fan.
Theodore has over twenty-five years of experience architecting, developing and implementing custom software solutions. Prior to joining MZQ, T.J. has worked for a diverse set of companies in public, private and government sectors over his career, and brings that wealth of experience to the team. T.J. earned his bachelor's degree in Applied Information Technology at the University of Baltimore. He lives with his wife and children in Baltimore, and when he's not behind his keyboard, he's most often found on the ice as a semi-competitive curler.
