2001 Best Practices Study

124 / 148

ANALYSIS OF AGENCIES WITH REVENUES
GREATER THAN $10,000,000
BEST BUSINESS PRACTICES ANALYSIS
CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SATISFACTION
For the largest agencies, a commitment to customer service and
satisfaction typically begins with the recognition that their success
will be tied directly to the quality of their customer service and the
satisfaction level of their customers. The central theme of many of
these firms’ mission and vision statements emphasize their
commitment to serve the interest of the customer and how they will
do so.
“When we are interviewing employees,
we let them know up front that we will
do anything for the clients that is not
illegal.”
“Our focus is not to sell insurance, but
to build relationships and to solve
problems and meet needs.”
“Our ability to deliver outstanding
customer service begins with our ability
to hire outstanding employees having a
natural desire to serve.”
For a number of these firms, successful customer service begins
with employee hiring and seeking to find employees having a
natural desire to serve. A commitment to customer service is
constantly preached and incorporated into training programs where
many of these agencies encourage their employees not to think in
terms of an objective of selling insurance, but an objective of solving
problems for the customers. Internal processes and procedures are
frequently developed with the customer and their needs in mind.
Several firms noted that they attempt to create an environment
where the employees are empowered and given the latitude to
respond to customer’s needs and to meet those needs as quickly as
possible. Finally, many of these firms have identified customer
service metrics that are used to gauge the firm’s performance and
measure the individual performance of producers and service staff.
This includes account retention rates and customer satisfaction as
measured by surveys that are periodically performed.
HIRING, DEVELOPING, AND REWARDING
E MPLOYEES
“We set high standards. The last
positions we attempted to fill, we looked at
64 resumes, interviewed 20 people and
eventually hired only four of them.”
“We’re not perfect at hiring employees,
but once we figure out who’s good and
they’ve been with us more than a year, we
very seldom lose anyone. We work at
being a place where people want to work.”
These firms recognize that the most valuable assets that they have
are their employees. In recognition of this fact, these firms typically
devote a significant amount of energy to recruiting, particularly in
light of the shortage of available producers and technical and
support staff talent. These firms have established stringent hiring
practices that involve in-depth skills and aptitude testing, reviews of
past employment history and multiple interviews.
Many of these firms reported that a key business practice was to set
high standards and not to compromise when it came to hiring
employees. Once hired, many of these firms have established
orientation and training programs that address not only the technical
insurance knowledge that they will need, but also training on
124