What I Do For Fun

What do you do for fun? My dog and I chase bad guys in our spare time.

I spent an amazing weekend with my German shepherd, Asland, training with the famous Jiri Novotny, the principle trainer and breeder of the famed Czech Republic border patrol dogs. The seminar was hosted by my good friend, Hans, who owns Alpine K9. I have been raising and training German shepherds for many years and find these imports undoubtedly the finest. The top photo is of my dog, Asland, biting “the bad guy.” The bottom photo is of Jiri and yours truly.

I wonder what other insurance professionals do for fun? Let me know!

Stemming the Brain Drain in the Insurance Industry

Insurance trainers are the first to go when times get tough, but also the first to return when times get good.

 

By Michael K. McCracken, CPCU, ASLI

 

I began my insurance career in 1977. I was hired as a personal lines underwriter trainee at the Huntington, West Virginia branch office of Buckeye-Union Insurance Company (one of the Continental Companies). I was joined by four other underwriter trainees at that time – another in personal lines, one in bonds, and two in commercial lines. The HR Director told us that the insurer wanted to fill its personnel needs, and that it had decided to go after bright, talented young people, instead of passively waiting for job applicants. She told us that her superiors were concerned about the “brain drain” at Buckeye-Union (and in the insurance industry in general) and that the company wanted to be pro-active in addressing the problem.

As the old saying goes, “What goes around comes around.” It seems that every couple of years, I read another article or two about the “brain drain” in the insurance industry and what can be done about it. Unfortunately, it seems that all I ever read is moaning and groaning; all I ever see is a lot of hand-wringing and finger-pointing. Rarely do I see any concrete, positive suggestions.

It seems that the problems range from the retirement of “baby boomers” to the “burn out” (and subsequent retirement) of underwriters, adjusters, and agents. It also stems from an over emphasis on sales and the cancelling or reduction of company training programs.

I’d like to make a couple of suggestions of my own and then share something that I read. In facing the “retirement problem,” I’d like to suggest this: top management should identify those in this group (age 57 to 62), who are doing good work. The insurers should then give these folks incentives – and I mean big incentives – to stick around a while longer. Create positions like “Master Adjuster” or “Master Underwriter.” Give them authority and compensation and ask them to actively mentor younger employees in the company.

Another event that seems to track the cyclical insurance profitability cycle is the staffing-up and then cutting-back of insurance company training departments. Trainers are the first to go when times get tough, but also the first to return when times get good. I believe that companies that have terminated or curtailed their training programs should reinstate them – yesterday! If a company – any company, be it an insurer, or grocery store, or car dealership – hires good people and trains them well, the benefits will be enormous in the years to come. There’s an old saying that applies to insurance data: “garbage in, garbage out.” In the employment world, a similar maxim might apply. “Poorly trained people in, poor results out.”

In a past issue of the National Underwriter, CNA took out an ad entitled “Building the Next Generation of Insurance Talent.” It talked about the lack of talented individuals for the “next generation” in the insurance industry. In that ad, CNA encouraged the insurance industry to do the following five things.

1. Support internships

2. Develop trainee and mentoring programs

3. Bench strength development by providing ongoing training to current employees

4. Improved producer and adjuster training

5. Encourage designation program participation

What do you think? Do you think CNA was right? What else can be done to stem the exit of talent from the insurance industry?

New Strategic Alliance at Insurance Writer

Nancy Germond, owner of Insurance Writer, LLC, announces a new strategic alliance with Michael K. McCracken, CPCU.

New Strategic Alliance

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INSURANCE WRITER, LLC

 

Nancy Germond, MA, SPHR, ARM, AIC, ITP – Owner of Insurance Writer, LLC, announces a new strategic alliance with Michael K. McCracken, CPCU, ASLI.

Mike McCrackin has a  long history in the insurance industry as an underwriter for companies such as Cincinnati Insurance and Ohio Casualty. He also spent 14 years on the editorial staff of the FC&S Bulletins, analyzing insurance policies, writing books, and answering subscriber questions.

Mike is an experienced seminar presenter and has addressed various insurance groups, including agents and adjusters. Mike is also a registered CE provider and instructor in Florida. Welook forward to this new alliance, which brings new and exciting offerings to Nancy’s readers and clients.

For more information, please contact Nancy through her Web site at https://insurancewriter.com or call Nancy at (602) 870-3230, or  Mike at (513) 317-2972. We look forward to serving your insurance needs and continuing to present information and entertaining training and solid writing services.

Risk Management Challenges in 2011

What will keep risk managers on the edge of their seats in 2011? As the year begins, here are some top worries of risk managers in the United States.

What will keep risk managers on the edge of their seats in 2011? As the year begins, here are some top worries of risk managers in the United States. Read my latest column in Allbusiness here.

Happy New Year

Community service should be as much as part of life as is getting up and going to work.

2010 has been an interesting year. I’ve been blessed with a variety of projects including one that I think most agents will find very interesting. I know from talking to agents throughout the country how hard they struggle to stay in contact with their clients. Now, there is a solution, and I am happy to be a part of it. It is called Easy Insurance Newsletters and it allows agents to stay in touch with their clients in just a few minutes per month without “spamming” them. Visit the Easy Insurance Newsletter website or more information, or call me or email me for more details. I was pleased to be selected as the principal copywriter and would love feedback from agents who join up about articles they need for future issues.

Additionally this year, I developed a customer service training for CSRs in agencies, which has been well received. Contact me for more details if you are interested. I grew up in this industry and understand how difficult it is to provide the level of service we need to provide as we continue to lose business to the geckos of the world. I believe that the only way to compete in this era of instant communication is to outcommunicate. That means we treat our customers so well with exemplary customer service that they will not consider going elsewhere. However, we also have to have the markets available to price shop and move clients where needed. How often are we reviewing our clients business and trying to 1) place them more competitively with comparable or better coverage and 2) mining their needs to ensure they have all the coverage they need, whether they know they need the coverage or not?

In 2011, I will emphasize increased training offerings. While I know that many agencies and carriers now utilize mainly online training (and I am an Insurance Journal Academy trainer), I believe there is nothing like a trainer completing an on-site needs assessment and delivering training tailored to the problems your organization faces.

Finally, this year I continue to be active in my community. At least one night a month, I go into our County jail system and spend time with women who are struggling with many challenging life issues, to put it mildly. Several days a month I focus on providing public relations support to a non-profit and work individually with several women facing challenges. This is what really keeps me in touch with how much I have to be grateful for. My parents, two fine agents, and my brother, also an agent, set the example for me that community service should be as much as part of life as is getting up and going to work. There are always needs to fill in a world that is increasingly disenfranchised from friends, relatives and the larger community.

2010 has been a great year. I know that 2011 will be that much better. I hope to get to know you in the near future.

I Am Grateful For …

I recently realized just how passionate I am about this industry.

Recently I presented a customer service training for CSRs at a large agency. What I realized as I began the presentation is just how passionate about this industry I am. It has provided me with a decent living, an ability to buy a home, time and the resources to travel to several countries, a career that constantly challenges me, and an ability to obtain an education without significant debt. Mainly, though, the insurance industry has provided me with a host of colleagues and friends I can turn to for support both professionally and personally.

I get up each day eager to begin work. In fact, often at midnight I find myself lying in bed with my phone checking tweets and email. Am I a workaholic? No, I’m simply someone who has found her niche and incorporated that niche into her life. This doesn’t mean that all I do is work, because I have balance in my life. I have friends I spent time with, animals I cherish, family members who mean much to me, and a family legacy with wonderful (now deceased) parents who brought me, albeit reluctantly on my part, into this industry.

Today is Thanksgiving in the United States. My turkey is roasting in its bag and my dog is lying near me. In an hour, I will gather with some of my closest friends (family this year is somewhat occupied) and celebrate the most important part of life to me: gratitude.

I hope your day is blessed and if you have found your career niche and have gratitude for an industry that has provided for you and your family, you are truly blessed.