My home office is in a front room on the first floor. From my desk, I can see the driveway. Most afternoons, that view becomes the stage for one of my favorite moments: my kids coming home. I watch as they barrel out of the car, backpacks half-zipped, shoes flying, water bottles clanging to the ground like they’ve just finished a race.

I meet them at the door every time. Not because I have to, but because it’s what you do for people you care about.

That rhythm of being present, of noticing, greeting, and making space, was a big part of my own childhood. My mom, Italian through and through, always had something simmering on the stove. The door was open. You were expected. And you were never alone.

That way of showing up stayed with me. It’s how I try to show up as a father, and it’s how we’ve built Vero Advising.

A friend of mine, a seasoned HR Director, recently shared her experience with large national brokerage firms, especially after consolidation. One firm had all the right logos and resources, but when she needed help, all she got was a 1-800 number. No context. No continuity. Just a queue.

That works for some. But for HR professionals juggling a hundred things, dealing with employee issues in real-time, and navigating messy situations with claims or care, it often falls short.

At Vero, we’ve grown. It’s no longer just me, and that’s a good thing. We have a team now, and they’re exceptional. And yes, we have tools in place to help us stay organized and responsive, including a shared support inbox. That doesn’t mean you’re just a ticket in a system. It means we’re committed to making sure no one falls through the cracks.

We may not always be able to know every detail of every employee’s story, but we try. We listen. We engage. We follow up. We bring heart to what we do, even when the systems around us ask for speed and scale.

The truth is, we may evolve our service model over time. We may add roles, structure, and support to meet the demands of growth. But what won’t change is the intent behind how we serve.

This isn’t about heroics. It’s about care. The kind that doesn’t wait for you to press 2. The kind that remembers there’s a person on the other end of the email. The kind that says, “We see you. We’re on it.”

So yes, the Olive Garden may have said it first. But when we say you’re like family, we mean it, and we do our best to act like it, even when business requires systems and structure.

Because what matters most isn’t whether you get a dedicated rep or a team inbox. It’s whether you feel like someone is in your corner, working in your best interest, every step of the way.

And that’s something no call center can replicate.