I recently listened to an interview with Vic Conant of Nightingale-Conant talking about the shift in their program sales. During the 80s and 90s, such corporate names Tom Peters and Warren Bennis dominated program sales. However, since the early 2000s, there’s been a significant shift to programs for those want to become in charge of their own destiny. This “Brand You” trend has been going on for more than a decade, posing a significant exposure to today’s companies. As the workforce ages and changes, we’re going to have less available talent than ever. Given future economic uncertainty, more and more of the available talent will opt out to work for themselves.

Mike called. As soon as I heard his voice, I knew that, like Austin Powers, he had his mojo back. Mike was on fire with enthusiasm,...

ANALYZING EMPLOYEE BENEFIT LEVELS by John Jaques Many agency managers spend a great deal of time reviewing and setting staff and producer compensation levels, but often underst...

ATTRACTING AND RETAINING EMPLOYEES IN A COMPETITIVE WORLD by Sharon Cunningham To hire, and keep, quality workers, follow these guidelines. A consistent trend nationwide is the ...

BOOST AGENCY VALUE BY WINNING THE WAR FOR TALENT by Bobby Reagan The future of your agency depends on attracting and retaining qualified and capable producers. There are plenty of &...

CREATE WEALTH BY SHARING IT by John Jaques Over the last several years, I've noticed that higher-value, faster-growing, and superior-profit agencies have a strong willingness to sh...

Roughly defined, disintermediation means removal of the middle man. Do a linear projection based on historical forces and you'll conclude that the disintermediation of the agent from the Personal lines process is inevitable. After all, when Warren Buffet, Conning & Company, banks, large insurance companies, and others agree on something, they must be correct, right?

LEVERAGE YOUR TIME! by Mitch Axelrod Time is the most important leverage point because, next to our health and loved ones, time is our most precious resource. Once we use it...

f you were managing a start-up band, would you depend solely on Lady Luck? Would you rely on Fortune dumping a great songwriter/arranger in your lap, great musicians who can actually get along, and a strong, powerful record company backing you? Would you just wait without searching for talent, obtaining signed contracts, securing studio time, or acquiring any backing? Of course not. Chris Burand wonders why so many agency principals take this approach to getting good producers.

O'NEAL, DELHOMME, TOMS, AND DELAHOUSSAYE A GOOD FIT ! by Mike Manes This is the second in a series of articles by Mike Manes on managing organizations and leading people. The fir...