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... ) Please consider the following: 1. Would you recommend this company? 2. What about this company do you like/dislike? 3. Why did you choose this rating? Submit This Anonymously Submit Cancel Contact Us contact_phone Click to call Unfollow First name: Last name: Email: Are you sure you want to deactivate your CompleteMarkets Company Profile Deactivate Cancel Loading.. About Us Services Jobs PR Newsletters Employees Articles Blog Photos Group Connections Reviews IMMS Library Immerse yourself in our stacks. Take some time and browse through our library. We have thousands of articles, checklists, tip sheets, sales letters, and more! Communications Marketing Customer Service Planning Finance/Accounting Risk Management Human Resources Selling Legal and E&O Technology Life/Financial Services Glossaries Management Resources & Links Categories Popular Recent All research academy Articles tagged with research academy Back Are You In Business To Make A Sale Or Make A Profit? This content has not been rated yet. CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand 4/30/2013 12:00:00 AM ARE YOU IN BUSINESS TO MAKE A SALE OR MAKE A PROFIT? by Chris Burand The title of this article comes from a popular seminar Ive given throughout the nation. Ive asked this q.. All Articles by CompleteMarkets Editor Comments (0 ) Budgeting For New Producers This content has not been rated yet. CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand 4/30/2013 12:00:00 AM BUDGETING FOR NEW PRODUCERS by Chris Burand Few agencies consider the cost of new producers. Chris Burand explains why agencies wishing to grow or perpetuate need to focus on th.. ...

... the training experience. Offer incentives. Give your employees rewards or payoffs for their participation in training programs. These incentives can be either financial or non-monetary perks (dinners, entertainment tickets, and so forth) . Reinforce the learning experience so the employee wants to repeat it. Leverage training. Whenever an employee gains a valuable insight during a training session, encourage them to share this information with co-workers who might be affected by it. Multiply the impact of training by having workers use what they've learned to help your agency run more effectively. Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory ...

... x No Thanks Loading.. Maximize Profits With Contingency Contracts 4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand This content has not been rated yet. Make sure that you're getting all you can out of your contingencies. According to the Academy of Producer Insurance Studies, the average independent insurance agency with annual revenues of $250,000 or more spends between $1 and $1.08 in operating costs for every dollar of earned commission. So, how can agencies afford to stay in business? The answer: Contingency bonuses. Contingency revenue is pure profit. However, most agents don't use contingencies to their best advantage. By using contingency contracts strategically, agents can increase their bonuses by 10% to 500% . In essence, contingency bonuses are profit-sharing dollars that a contracted insurance company pays to an agency if the agency achieves predetermined premium volumes, loss ratios, and other objectives. Insurance companies offer contingency bonuses because they feel that agencies have a certain degree of control over loss ratios. The bonuses serve as an incentive for agencies to perform in-house underwriting functions before submitting applications to a company. Contingency contracts vary by company, and the best contract for one agency might not be the best for another. That's why it's important to analyze all contingency contracts and their possible outcomes thoroughly before selecting one. I started analyzing contingency contracts while working for an insurance company. A competing company offered one of my clients a commission percentage that my company couldn't match. However, I knew my company had a very good contingency program and that my client would probably qualify for a contingency bonus ...

... , right? Wrong. During a break, one agent told me about several $50,000-$100,000 farming accounts he wrote in the same counties in which the vocal agents lived. Those agents, he said, weren't his competition because they never tried to write these large accounts. I've found this to be the case many times when I've consulted for two agencies in the same small town. One agency will advise that large accounts don't exist in the town, while the other will be writing many large accounts. If an agency just won't write large accounts, is it still critical that producers produce $200,000 in commission? Consider how much it costs to support a producer and their book (industry averages are based on the Growth and Performance Standards, The Academy of Producer Insurance Studies, 2000): Industry Average Big City Agency Small Town Agency Producer's book (commissions) $170,000 $170,000 $170,000 Producer's cut: 40% $68,000 $68,000 $68,000 CSR $30,000 $32,000 $28,000 Benefits $9 ,800 $10,300 $9 ,300 Selling expense $27,200 $27,200 $27,200 Administrative expenses $61,200 $64,600 $56,100 Total expenses $196,200 $202,100 $188,600 Whether in a small town with lots of small accounts or a large city with large accounts, every year, a producer with an average book costs an agency $ ...

... with them to map out their careers. Provide flexibility: Flexible hours, reduced hours, job sharing, telecommuting, etc. Let them provide input on who joins the team. Give them permission to be creative. In fact, require them to give monthly suggestions on how they can do their job better or differently. Reduce the drama. Otherwise, you end up with drama kings and queens. Hire and promote based on competencies and don't put up with irresponsibility. Use today's technologies to help employees increase their productivity — and pay. Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library for - Personal Lines Professionals Commercial Lines Professionals Life/Health & Benefits Professionals Online newsletters and content that you can use for your clients and ...

... , make it from 30 to 90 days in length, but check in with the employee at least every few weeks. If, after that time, they still can't or don't want to "get it" then it's time to liberate them! Performance management isn't rocket science. When people are doing things they can do well and enjoy doing well, they don't need to be motivated. They'll want to perform. It's management's job to place employees in a position where they are capable of achieving, and responsible for, their success. Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library for - Personal Lines Professionals Commercial Lines Professionals Life/Health & Benefits Professionals Online newsletters and content that you can use for your clients and ...

... The two points to remember from the Marin case are that: (1 ) Paying a bonus triggers additional overtime payments and (2 ) the method for calculating the amount of this bonus overtime depends on whether the bonus is characterized as a "non-discretionary" bonus or a "discretionary" bonus. Calculating bonus overtime is a complex process that can be a headache for employers. However, employers who ignore this calculation do so at their own peril because using mistaken formula creates fertile ground for a class action or other litigation. Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. You can reach Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library for - Personal Lines Professionals Commercial Lines Professionals Life/Health & Benefits Professionals Online newsletters and content that you can use for your clients and social media efforts ...

... employee agrees to go to outpatient treatment, you may discipline them for continued drinking or failure to participate in treatment. Provide the employee with an opportunity for inpatient treatment. Discharge the employee only after a second relapse. Grant at least one leave of absence to participate in a treatment program. Consider whether it's reasonable for the company to pick up the cost of treatment, the elimination of an essential job function, and any related absences. To learn more about accommodating alcoholism, go to http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/alcohol.html . Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of HR That Works, Inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. He serves as the Human Relations Key Consultant for IMMS.com. Phin, a past president of the American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304; e-mail [email protected] ; or visit www.hrthatworks.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library for - Personal Lines Professionals Commercial Lines Professionals Life/Health & Benefits Professionals Online newsletters and content that you can use for your clients and ...

... employer. (It would be my guess that in each of these cases, the disgruntled employee went to an attorney's office without knowing anything about environmental hostility under the ADA.) Unless you'd rather be like a mushroom and remain in the dark about your exposures, I recommend that you distribute a Compliance Survey to unearth these claims-before they reach an attorney. Note: In many of these cases, managers were chiding employees for arguably poor performance. This is yet one more reason why it's important to document poor performance immediately, and have the employee recognize the complaint. Attack the conduct, not the person. Don Phin, JD, CPCM is president of donphin.com, inc., a firm specializing in management, employment law, and risk management. Phin, a past president of The American Academy of Employment Law Attorneys, can be reached at (800) 234-3304, fax (619) 437-0143, e-mail [email protected] , or Web site www.donphin.com . Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole lot of time & money when you use our directory of carriers, wholesalers and service providers. Negotiate lucrative contracts with carriers and wholesalers. Net result. More revenue for your agency! Clients & Prospects will research you, your co-workers and your agency here. The most comprehensive online insurance industry reference library for - Personal Lines Professionals Commercial Lines Professionals Life/Health & Benefits Professionals Online newsletters and content that ...

... Before putting a value on your agency, read this article. INTRODUCTION Every agency owner must learn certain basics abou.. All Articles by CompleteMarkets Editor Comments (0 ) Better Contingencies Equal More Profits This content has not been rated yet. CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand 4/30/2013 12:00:00 AM BETTER CONTINGENCIES EQUAL MORE PROFITS by Chris Burand Many insurance companies try to boost profits by reducing contingency payments - not a smart move. A go.. All Articles by CompleteMarkets Editor Comments (0 ) Maximize Profits With Contingency Contracts This content has not been rated yet. CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand 4/30/2013 12:00:00 AM MAXIMIZE PROFITS WITH CONTINGENCY CONTRACTS by Chris Burand Make sure that youre getting all you can out of your contingencies. According to the Academy of Producer Insu.. All Articles by CompleteMarkets Editor Comments (0 ) The Impact Of Clusters On Agency Value This content has not been rated yet. CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand 4/30/2013 12:00:00 AM THE IMPACT OF CLUSTERS ON AGENCY VALUE by Chris Burand In this document, Chris Burand addresses the question of how an agencys value is affected when it doesnt own.. All Articles by CompleteMarkets Editor Comments (0 ) x No Thanks Loading.. Loading.. x No Thanks Loading.. ...