When everyone runs to one side of the boat, it starts to lean in that direction and could possibly tip over. The same applies when an insurance agency puts too much emphasis on processes and not enough on people or vice versa.
Striking a balance by investing in both processes and people is critical in helping to grow your business. Erik Garcia, owner of Garcia Insurance Services in New Orleans, and Marit Peters, president and executive director of the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT), share their insights and experiences on getting both sides right.
Standardized Processes Help Deliver a Consistent Client Experience
Garcia's agency caters to the coastal community, which is vulnerable to catastrophic losses and consequently faces a challenging insurance market. Working primarily with excess and surplus (E&S) markets and many regional carriers with limited technology solutions, Garcia sought an optimal way to build manual automation to help manage the flow of data to create effective processes.
Why? He understood that poor processes — or no consistent processes at all — cost time, require rework and often result in employee and client turnover. Each of these consequences has a monetary value attached to it. The less visible costs include stress and low morale, and may damage a company's reputation and open the door for competitors to steal market share.
Garcia looked at how each carrier delivers data to his agency, which varies from one carrier to the next. Some carriers deliver data downloads; others use email, which necessitates manual input into his agency management system.
Garcia decided initially to develop processes around carriers that use the same platforms to establish and maintain a similar experience for both his staff and clients. This change included creating standardized pre-built workflows for the staff to use. Garcia explains that, for the processes to work, it was critical not only for the staff to understand the process, but also to get their buy-in.
Focus and Discipline Are Key to Growth
Having the right staff is equally important in growing an agency and obtaining the clients and growth you want. Peters explains that, much like a sports team that runs plays and practices every day, a sales organization must be tenacious about building its sales pipeline, making the calls, asking for referrals and never giving up. For the numbers to show results, reps must have a driven, disciplined mindset to get up to bat over and over again and to make cold calls.
Successful agencies, Peters says, see growth as critical to their relevancy, which in turn generates a non-complacent mindset. This success begins with hiring people whose vision and values align with yours, who are willing to put in the time necessary to achieve the agency's goals and establish a winning culture.
In addition, it's important to give the staff the authority to make decisions, to work on the business and not just in the business. Understand individual talents and give each person the freedom to use those talents. Also, spend time with employees, reminding them how important their work is and that they can be proud of what they do for the community.
Finding the Right Talent
In today's environment, finding talent is challenging. Peters explains that some agencies are looking outside the industry in the niche markets they serve. For example, an agency specializes in providing insurance to the agri-farm industry can consider hiring someone who sells farm equipment. The individual already understands the business and can be trained on the insurance side. Prospects and the community know and trust the individual, bringing a level of credibility to the industry.
A process/people balance is vital, especially today as the insurance industry evolves with new technology. The right talent, working together with agency owners, can skyrocket a firm to the next level of growth.