Finding a good, qualified producer has always been difficult. When one finds a good producer, that person might be restrained by a contract from another agency or specialize in a line the agency does not sell,or the person could be …
One needs to understand and exploit current and future trends in order to be proactive. It is easy to predicate trends by understanding recurring cycles and applying that knowledge to the current insurance marketplace. So what will 2013 be like …
Creating a business plan does not have to be a daunting task. Yet, only about 15 percent of agencies have a written plan or track to follow, according to a recent agency survey. Now is a good time to plan …
Owners are the firm’s leaders and need to set the right example and tone for the rest of the people in the firm. If they do not set their compensation based on what they are each doing, resentment can occur …
How to Get Employees to Do What You Want We just finished the book “Influencer: The Power to Change Anything” by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, et. al. The authors lay out a simple formula to create useful shifts in people’s …
After reading Walter Isaacson’s great book about Steve Jobs, I began to imagine: What would Steve Jobs do if he were running an insurance agency? The first obstacle I thought about was that Steve Jobs could not do it because …
Personnel expenses remain the largest expense for any independent insurance agency today. Typically, personnel expenses account for about 50 percent to 70 percent of revenue. Therefore, smart agency owners should think through the agency’s compensation issues ahead of time. It …
Soft Market Here to Stay, Merger Activity, Financial Pressures and More In order to be proactive, one needs to understand and exploit current and future trends. So what will 2012 be like for insurance agents and brokers? The following is …
What is a mastermind group? A mastermind group is simply an alliance of two or more individuals dedicating themselves to a specific goal. It is a way to get all the knowledge, expertise, and connections one needs to achieve their …
The merger and acquisition trend of agencies continues, despite the turndown in the economy. One reason for this trend is that publicly traded firms and those run by investment companies need to show growth despite today’s flat or soft market. …
