EXPLAINS HARD MARKET Dear (Customer Name): You've probably noticed that your insurance rates have increased. It's nothing personal. The insurance industry is in what is ...

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT IN AN UNCERTAIN MARKETPLACE by Carol Hammes It takes a lot of planning to attain higher growth rates and lower expense levels. The first step in the process is to evalua...

FINANCIAL RATINGS DON'T TELL ALL by Chris Burand In the past year, it hasn't been unusual to see reports of companies that have had their debt ratings lowered, although their ...

FINDING AGENCY PERSONNEL by John Caswell 'Good help is hard to find.' That old adage has never seemed more true, given the increasing difficulty employers are experiencing when looking to fill an ...

To embrace — and benefit from — change, follow these guidelines.
Unrelenting and increasingly rapid change demands that the insurance industry rapidly uncover new ways to evaluate and respond to its marketplace.
I’ve worked with many highly successful insurance companies and agencies, helping them achieve higher levels of profitability through more sales, customer and employee loyalty, and retention. However, in many of these organizations, management remained blind to the dire need to change, despite its apparent desire to achieve higher profits. Managers can’t see the compelling need to change from the ways that allowed the organization to be successful in the first place.

GIRAFFES, EGGS, FROGS, AND OTHER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES by Emily Huling Bringing out the best in employees takes creativity. A successful boss treats customers and employees ...

GOOD TELEPHONE SKILLS MEAN SUCCESS by Jack Burke Nearly 20 years ago, as manager of a growing automotive leasing company, I was researching specialty bus manufacturers to represent. It ha...

GREAT BUSINESS REQUIRES GREAT PEOPLE by Emily Huling Regardless of a firms size or location, every organization can develop people who will take the business to higher levels of ...

GROW REVENUES OR SHRINK EXPENSES: HOW TO IMPROVE AGENCY PROFESSIONALISM by Elizabeth Miller Although weve seen many agencies enjoy tremendous profits over the years, Elizabeth Miller believ...

GROWTH VS. PROFITABLE GROWTH by Chris Burand Revenue growth for its own sake doesnt make sense. In an industry that prizes sales, its no wonder that so many sales p...