In this article, agency consultant Chris Burand explores the myth of “bigger is better.” While, in general, growth is essential for agencies to retain markets and profitability, Chris demonstrates why unrestrained growth via acquisition can be perilous. Getting big through internal growth, while slower and less glamorous, does work and has continually proven to be…
Do you believe there has been an industry shift towards short-term profits at the expense of long-term stability and service? I am writing a book on the subject, and want to hear from agents willing to share their perspectives and ideas. In what ways do you see our industry letting consumers down, and losing their…
An aggregator, according to our definition, is an entity that “clusters” distribution entities together to achieve economies of scale, without assuming the autonomy or ownership from the individual owners. Consolidators and acquirers take over ownership. Aggregators may take a share, but leave the predominant ownership with the individual agencies.
One or a few employees seem to be congenitally late. One or more of them are even valuable or essential employees but other tardy employees are just marginal. You want everyone to be at work on time but you also want to be flexible, especially to your valued employees who seem to put in more…
The key to the successful agencies, even in this market, is a positive mental attitude that begins with the owners and is reinforced with a vengeance on every employee of the agency upon threat of job loss. Just as one rotten apple will spoil an entire barrel, it only takes one poor attitude to infect…
Motherhood, apple pie & partnering with carriers. We all agree that these things are inherently GOOD, but what does an agency partnering with its companies imply? What are the commitments that an agency should make and what are the appropriate expectations in return? And what should we do and expect if those commitments turn out…
The components of Planning remain the same, but the importance is now on the long term goals of the company more than on the tactical (annual) operational plan. If you continue to concentrate only on the annual planning process, you may succeed on a regular basis only to find yourself obsolete within a short time.…
Motivated people can be hired and the motivation can be squeezed right out of them depending on their treatment by the business managers and owners. Conversely, some unmotivated people with the right PMA characteristics can become motivated by the treatment they receive from their managers.
There are many agents who choose to worry about backlogs, but not attend to them until they become crises. These are the “firefighters” among us who are too busy to teach fire safety because they are constantly fighting fires. What they don’t realize is that taking care of the fire safety issues is what avoids…
Understanding the five basic insurance agency personality types can help an agency principal or manager hire the right person and properly motivate existing personnel, thus achieving optimum performance. The five basic personality types are the CSR, the inside salesperson, the commercial salesperson, the health/life salesperson and the underwriter. This article covers the last three.
