2001 Best Practices Study

Analysis of Agencies with Revenues Between $1,250,000 and $2,500,000

H IRING , D EVELOPING , AND R EWARDING E MPLOYEES

“Everyone says the customer comes first – that’s debatable. If your employees aren’t first, there’s no way they’re going to provide the service your customers will require. Treat your employees as number one, and the service will follow.” “We’ve given up on trying to develop producers right out of college. At our size, I’m not sure it can be done. We have had better luck with experienced producers or people with sales experience but they are hard to find. You have to be looking at all times. ” “All our employees, from the receptionist on up, understand that we will allow everyone to go as far as their abilities will allow. No position is off limits if someone wants to work hard enough and has the aptitude. We’ll do everything we can in the form of formal and informal training to help them get there. We just promoted a woman who started with us as a assistant CSR to office manager.” “Our hiring process eliminates a lot of weak candidates – a personality profile, no fewer than three separate interviews and a candid discussion of our work environment and expectations. The process itself drives a lot of folks right back out the door.” “If you make a hiring mistake, the key is to pull the plug very quickly once you realize you’ve made a mistake. Not only is that the right thing to do for your business, it’s the right thing to do for the person you hired.”

In the area of hiring & development, Best Practices agencies continue to face the same challenges faced by U.S. businesses in general – a shortage of talented candidates for employment. The recent economic contraction and dot.com meltdown has eased the situation somewhat, but access to talent, particularly for insurance producers, remains a key concern for Best Practices agencies. In responding to these challenges, Best Practices agencies continue to work hard to ensure that valued current employees stay put and that incompatible employees are never hired in the first place. As one agent stated, “We would rather have an empty seat, with all the additional work for everyone that comes with it, than have the wrong employee here.” Competitive compensation packages, pre-employment personality testing, continuous professional development, and employee referral programs continue to play important roles in allowing Best Practices agencies to succeed in this area.

57