OMNIA VINCIT LABOR (WORK WINS)

Rough Notes, Mar 2007 by Pillsbury, Dennis H

Open books

He continues, "We want our employees to understand the impact of their efforts, and we do this by sharing our financials with everyone. Once a month, we go over the financial statement with all of the employees. We show our profit and how important retention and stability are to maintaining our profitability. We're also not shy about showing our successes and failures. If we lost an account, we'll show them what it means and also show what the gains mean to our bottom line. This approach also seems to help us maintain high morale within the agency as employees see that their efforts really do pay off in terms of better compensation when they meet their prescribed goals and also see how their efforts have helped the agency grow. It also helps to explain why we have almost no turnover."

This openness also extends to problems between individuals or between departments. "We have a centralized marketing department and the marketing manager shepherds the business through the pipeline. He talks to producers and holds weekly sales meetings to see that the pipeline is full and that producers are following up. It's part of my job to make certain that there is a balance between marketing and production and that they are on the same page," Trey says.

"You can't let either department take control of the agency. If there are any problems, they are discussed and solved at that meeting," he continues. "Whenever someone comes to me with a problem involving an inability to meet certain goals or achieve certain results, they invariably try to blame somebody. That's human nature. But I don't allow them to just vent. I tell them they need to bring it up in the meeting and reach a solution. And then it's over. We work hard to maximize the discussion on solutions and minimize any hurt feelings."

Trey continues, "There are always going to be differences, but everyone here understands that we are a team that is heading in the same direction. We have occasional differences on how to get where we're going, but those are matters for discussion, not animosity."

The Starke Agency has been recognized as one of the top 10 performers by Marsh Berry since it began working with that organization two years ago. It is also listed as one of the 30 leading independent insurance agencies in the country in the Best Practices Study of the IIABA and Reagan & Associates.

Rough Notes is proud to recognize The Starke Agency as our Marketing Agency of the Month.