One of the most common questions we hear during consultation involves compensation for owner/producers, existing producers, and new producers. The principal question is how much and how to pay for production that compensates salespeople fairly and gives them incentives for continued growth.

The answer is complex because the same compensation models don't fit all producers.

It used to be the $1 million ceiling. That was the level of revenue at which an individual performing agent with a few helpers had to become a business with different people handling different clients and responsibilities. Everyone still worked for the agent, but the agent no longer made every decision.

However, running an agency as a business doesn't automatically result in growth and a high quality of professional service. By the time the agency reaches $2 million, it runs into another "invisible ceiling."

MOTIVATION: GETTING OFF THE TREADMILL by Al Diamond Three agencies we visited had problems so similar that we decided to see just how many agents have the same experience, and the sa...

Most insurance agencies would like to be driven by a regular flow of new business from their producer force. However, most agencies find that their producers (owners or not) spend most of their time caring for existing customers, with production relegated to a secondary position. They only have time to prospect and sell when they can break away from service tasks.

However, the producers feel that they should be making more money, whether for non-sales tasks they perform for the agency, for servicing existing customers, or from sales to new customers. Unfortunately, if an agency isn’t growing through the efforts of its producers, it has little additional income available to further compensate these key employees.

R.I.P: RETIRE IN PLACE by Al Diamond Dont let a Retire in Place owner or employee sabotage agency perpetuation. Much of our work at Agency Consulting Group, I...

There's no such thing as a risk-free acquisition. Deals fail for a myriad of reasons. One is that...