Conference Changed My Life

By: Ryan Deeds, Lanier Upshaw Inc., Lakeland, FL
 

Conference impacted my life professionally and personally more than I ever could have known or hoped for. As a fresh faced newbie I was a little nervous going to conference for the first time in 2005. I was the only attendee from our agency, and was tasked with finding some tangible solutions to some technical problems we were facing. The first time you go it’s a head trip. There are so many people and so many things going on, and that is a little overwhelming. There are these amazingly brilliant people that really stand out. Folks that I wanted to be like and that inspired me and showed me what a true professional was.
 

The first superhero I ever met at conference was Johnmichael P. Monteith. He is this whirlwind of intelligence, innovation and ingenuity with a healthy dose of approachability and business acumen mixed in. When I first heard him speak at a session I thought, “Oh my goodness, I am in so over my head.” These technical gurus had already found and dealt with problems that I was just beginning to understand.
 

I didn’t know how I was supposed to get up-to-speed with these great minds and contribute or even really how to speak without sounding ignorant. I was in awe.
 

Ultimately I mustered up the courage to say a little something to JP and we had a conversation. I explained my problems and what my technical concerns were. Patiently he helped me find the right folks to ask if he didn’t know the answers, and answered the ones he did thoroughly and completely. It rocked. And it set my perception for the rest of conference.
 

That was my first day at my first conference. I knew I had come to the right place. These were folks that are in the trenches, that deal with the day-to-day tactical issues that can slowly erode any efficiencies that technology is supposed to bring. And they were approachable, helpful, friendly, and fun.
 

That first conference was so important because that’s where I met the people that I am closest to in my life outside my family. That first conference I made relationships that have turned out to be life long friendships. Over the next 5 years we forged a bond that superseded the insurance industry or any occupation. These are folks that I have on speed dial—that I talk to weekly if not daily to ask for advice in all aspects of life.
 

They are my sounding board and I am theirs. When we first hit a problem, it’s those folks I contact to see if they have seen it, heard of it or know of a way to deal with it. They are the ones I call to see how they liked this system or that product. And those relationships all started at conference.
 

Each year we push each other to take broad steps in application of new technologies. We as a group virtualized, went to terminal servers/citrix, thin clients, sans, upgraded exchange and dealt with eForms and slew a multitude of other technically complex dragons. It’s a wonderful feeling to be in the middle of an install and something go sideways, and you can call and chat with a trusted pal that has been through the same thing already.  And conference was the genesis of all this goodness.
 

I can’t quantify the costs I have saved because of conference. I can’t tell what the exact ROI is. What I can say is the relationships I have made at conference have bettered my ability to deal with all manor of problems my agency faces. Conference has given me agility that I wouldn’t have had other wise. I can absolutely state that we would not be where we are today if it were not for the NetVU Conferences. I would not be near as good a tech if I didn’t know these people that are now so dear to me.
 

I know times are tight and things are tough all over, but if there is any way possible, you need to come to conference. I don’t say that as a spokesperson for NetVU or as anyone with anything to gain. I say it because I know this is true. We are stronger together than we are apart. And the NetVU Conference brings us together. They allow us to meet each other, laugh together and bond in a way that can not be replicated by any other means. The people there deal with the stuff that drives you crazy every day, they can commiserate and offer advice. You will be a better stronger tech by going. And hopefully you will have success in making enduring relationships that will change and improve your life.  Come to conference, it will be worth it.
 

I really hope to see you there.

 

  

Reprinted with permission from Ryan Deeds blog. 

  

 

Listening: A Vital Tool for a Successful Workplace

With over 25 years experience in management and insurance, Lisa Harrington, CPCU, CAE, AAM, AAI, of NetVU, has been in the insurance industry since 1983, working as an underwriter, field rep, P&C agent, agency operations manager, association VP and finally on to entrepreneurship. 

 

After over a decade managing a department of 12 at FAIA, her credentials include hundreds of speaking and training engagements, management consulting (including culture shift assistance), and personal experience serving on various boards for 501 (c) 3 and 501 (c) 6 organizations.  Her current assignment at NetVU includes work similar to that of a COO in operations, strategic planning, education, and more.
 

Learn how and why listening affects the flow of a successful workplace when Lisa teaches two new classes at the NetVU Conference:

 

3160 - Executive Briefing - Listen for the Best Employees 

Listening. It’s the key skill you need in selecting new employees and evaluating existing staff. Learn from an experienced hiring manager and NetVU staff leader about how to locate, interview, select, train, engage and nurture agency employees. Hear about screening resumes, and using interview techniques to select the right people for your agency.

 

5000 - AMS360 - Listening for Sales Opportunity
Successful selling always involves successful communications. This new session is designed for CSRs to learn how to hear sales opportunities in their day-to-day work with clients. This class will cover why we should listen for the sales opportunity; the relationship mindset; using directed questions; and how people hear us.
 

Join us for the NetVU Conference - April 28-30 in Orlando, FL – Register NOW! 

 

  

 

Finalists for Automation Excellence Award Announced

Automation is such a significant element of a successful agency today that NetVU’s Automation Excellence Award recognizes the best of the best. The three finalists and subsequent winner exemplify excellence in agency automation implementation. This award celebrates innovative ideas that enhance efficiency, profitability and streamlined operations.

 

This year’s finalists certainly have excelled on all counts. They are:

• Bank of America – BAISI 
• Market Financial
• Peel & Holland Financial Services

Bank of America (BAISI) has completely automated the sales process wherever possible. According to the nomination, BAISI’s “use of web services ensures that within 15 minutes of a policy being sold it’s is added to the system.” It receives automated IVANS policy download from 22 carriers and, where supported, receives AL3 commission statements as well. A Sagitta agency, with a staff of about 150 and a volume at approximately 40,000 transactions per month, BAISI’s automated processing represents more than 90% of the transactions entered.

 

As a personal lines-only agency, BAISI “generates far more transactions than a commercial lines agency, therefore automation was critical,” the application explained. Prior to their automation enhancements, “each carrier was rated manually on the carrier’s website.” Now, their average call handling time for a customer quote has been reduced by about 60% to 70%.

 

Market Financial Group’s recent history, according to its submission, is that of a “small (less than 20 users) agency focused on keeping what accounts they could and struggling to navigate the current insurance field.” Three years later MFG has “experienced triple digit growth and massive automation.” They credit a commitment by the agency owners to a fully automated strategy as the engine that has fueled this growth.

 

With a dedicated sales staff across four branch offices, a completely paperless environment and a committed marketing department for both commercial and personal lines, MFG has implemented training in “every aspect of their computers, management systems, the Internet and workflows.” Such a strategy along with leveraging numerous NetVU-endorsed products has resulted in a 24-hour turnaround time frame for personal lines business, as well as “maintaining an average of 1,200 accounts per rep.”

 

Peel & Holland Financial Group, a long-time user of Sagitta and an early adopter of BenefitPoint, “most recently implemented WorkSmart to replace its previous document management system, and to introduce a workflow automation system.” As a result of these steps and others, Peel & Holland has been able to create a “more balanced workload for the entire team.” They have moved toward a service team structure which has freed up producer time allowing them to spend more time in sales and leaving the account managers to cultivate better client relationships.

 

“Now that WorkSmart has been implemented in the agency, productivity levels have soared as team member capacities have risen. At any time, any member of the service team can check a client’s file in WorkSmart, and know exactly what tasks are being worked, who is working them and at what point in the workflow the task is—details that were previously next to impossible to find easily.”

 

A Commitment to Leading Automation 

All three of our finalists have one thing in common—a commitment throughout the agency from top to bottom to lead in the use of automation, and leverage the most out of the technology tools they have. This is a proven winning strategy for success. If you want to hear more about how each accomplished such levels of improvement or learn from the myriad of successful NetVU member agents in attendance, you must be in Orlando, April 28-30. If you haven’t registered for the 2011 NetVU Conference yet, it’s not too late.
 

  

Quantum Award Finalists Announced

NetVU has long recognized the commitment by the carrier community to offer member agencies superior workflow productivity and profitability. The Quantum Award, established in 2002, is a well-respected representation of that recognition. There are three primary objectives:

• To encourage insurance carriers to successfully deploy single-entry interface technology which utilizes best-of-breed technology, ACORD standards, and real-time processing.
• To recognize and reward those carriers who have successfully deployed such technology in live, working agency environments, and have helped their agencies grow and profit beyond normal means.
• To enhance the value of the important partnerships between NetVU members and the insurance carriers.

This year, more nominations were received for this award than any other award category. The Information Exchange Committee selected the finalists and the NetVU board of directors selected the award recipients.

 

From among the national carrier nominations, the three finalists selected are Allied Insurance, The Hartford, and Travelers. For the regional category, the committee selected The Cincinnati Insurance Companies, Selective Insurance, and the Union Standard Insurance Group.

 

National Finalists: 

 

Allied Insurance stated in its nomination that during 2010, its main focus “was to reduce and/or eliminate major workflow barriers that had been identified by both agents and industry partners.” They identified four specific technologies that have helped agencies realize substantial gains in efficiency:

• Allied ONCE – A password management tool “which eliminates the need for agents to synchronize their real time password with the carrier password.” 
• Agency Portal Deep Launch – Allows agents to “seamlessly access the Allied portal from within real time quoting and inquiry transactions.”
• Commercial Umbrella Download – Allows agents to have a complete view of their customers commercial policies.
• AMS Book Roll – Working with Vertafore, Allied implemented the AMS Book Roll to automate the inefficient and manual transfer process.

The Hartford identified two different accomplishments as being worthy of consideration for the Quantum Award. The first is a “Daily Commission Transaction Download,” which provides agents “small AL3 records” from its billing system and includes the commission amount due to the agents on valid transactions. The other accomplishment is The Hartford’s commitment to move forward with the development of federation using Vertafore’s new Identify Management Solution – VIM. After a successful proof of concept federating a BB&T employee, The Hartford committed to adopting this password management process making it easier for NetVU members to do business.

 

Travelers submission is based upon its “steadily increasing online interface in quoting, issuing, billing inquiry and claims information.” The nomination states that Travelers is currently offering this efficiency to “all those [agents] on 360 + TransactNOW.” One of their agencies said that the accuracy of information and where it is stored is consistent. “We are able to really service the customer in lieu of being processors of data.”

 

Regional Finalists: 

 

Cincinnati Insurance Companies’ implementation of Real Time Rating based on ACORD standards has shown significant reduction in processing time of more than 90%, according to its award nomination. With one agent example included in the submission, CIC RTR not only saves their account representatives “more than 4.5 hours per day and over 100 hours per month” but policy issuance is accomplished within about 1.5 minutes.

 

Selective Insurance’s adoption of Real Time inquiry and download for all commercial and personal lines business regardless of class of business or size “ranks as one of the highest in the industry.” But Selective has also “successfully created a culture with our field underwriting, inside underwriting and marketing employees that Real Time and download are essential to an ‘ease of doing business’ approach.” This commitment throughout the company, they believe “has had significant impact on our success in getting our independent agents to adopt these tools into their everyday workflow.”

 

Union Standard Insurance Group stands out, according to its nomination, because of the number of Real Time inquiry workflows they have made available in the last two years—policy, billing and claims. In addition, they added First Notice of Loss offering policy and commission statement download, as well as releasing its commercial lines quote upload for six lines of business. They noted that at the time the nomination was submitted, 225 NetVU members had adopted these workflows.

 

The Magic is in the Message 

As you can see, there is a lot happening and if you want to, not only find out who the winners are but be able to network with them and learn how your agency can benefit from such successful carriers, you’ve got to be in Orlando, April 28-30 for the 2011 NetVU Conference. There is definitely magic afoot.

 

 

 

Download Free Ice Storm Case Study & Winter Preparedness Checklist

Preparation is crucial to not only surviving winter storms, but remaining open following the event. This document will illustrate how Agility helped most of Kentucky and businesses in the Midwest weather of the historic 2009 winter storm. In total, Agility responded to 25 disaster declarations and 35 alerts as a result of the disaster.
 

The checklist will also help you identify the areas of your own business that are most susceptible to winter hazards and suggest ways to minimize damage. In it, you will find critical information and preparedness tools to assist in protecting your business and one of your most critical assets—your people.  

 

Download the case study and checklist here.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Working Group Needs Your Input 

The Professional Liability Specialty Lines working group is looking for NetVU member input and participation from agents with experiencein selling and underwriting these lines of business  The current topic is Cyber Liability.  They have one-hour conference calls twice a month and have been very successful thanks to the wonderful committed volunteers who want standard forms for these unique lines of business.

Many “Executive Lines” like Professional Liability and E&O have common information being collected by agents, brokers and intermediaries, and ultimately presented to underwriters. There is much cost and pain to applicants and agents involved in preparing multiple applications with the same information to quote and write these lines of business.

ACORD staff will organize the common elements, while respecting the individuality of company unique requests and warranty statements. Use of the ACORD XML standards and forms to do this will realize a cost savings for every participant in the industry since an industry adopted standard will be used.

 

To date, the working group has successfully developed the following forms and accompanying data messages:

• ACORD 825 - Professional/Specialty Insurance Application
• ACORD 807 - D&O Application
• ACORD 827 - Employment Practices Liability Insurance Section
• ACORD 828 - Fiduciary Liability Application
• ACORD 831 - Professional Specialty Insurance Notice of Incident/Claim Form
• ACORD 832 - Miscellaneous Errors & Omissions (E&O)
• ACORD 833 - Lawyer's Professional Liability Section/Application

Next is ACORD 834 – Cyber Liability Section.  We hope you can help! 

 

To join the group contact Melissa Bond at Melissa@netvu.org.

  

 

 

 

Social Media Time-Savers

By: Matt Marko, Progressive Insurance, Marketing Process Manager

This article outlines three levels of involvement for agencies with social media, depending upon the agency’s objectives and the amount of time it wants to dedicate. With each level of involvement, the author recommends specific time-savers that will help agency employees get the greatest impact from the time they spend working on the social web.

 

The complete PDF version of this article is at www.iiaba.net/act in the "Latest ACT Articles" column.