The 3,200 employees of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maryland represent experience, competence and a long tradition of sincere interest in the customers they serve. They contribute generously to the United Way, participate enthusiastically in the companyıs annual Day of Caring and show their sense of community through involvement in school, neighborhood and charitable organizations.

        Evaluation of employee performance by the independent National Management Information System (NMIS) is one indicator of quality customer service. In 1996, for the fourth consecutive year, our employees achieved NMIS scores that surpassed the prior yearıs rating and established new highs for the company in employee performance. This was achieved despite greater complexity in the claims processing workload and a reduction in administrative costs as a percentage of total revenues.

        Such performance is only possible when people understand the objectives of the organization, trust in its leadership and work hard to meet high professional standards.