Capstone Connect

With roles such as CSR, account manager, and account executive constituting over 60% of agency hires, it’s imperative that customer service salaries are the centerpiece of compensation review.

The first recruiting priority for insurance agencies should be retention. A mindset focused on employee retention makes recruiting easier. Here are some common themes that should give you pause on where your recruiting and retention is vulnerable.

This year, my gut read is that insurance agency hiring will be less about niche roles and more focused on solving problems created by recent talent shortages.

As an employer trying to recruit top talent, your ability to speak to issues candidates care about is critical to successful recruiting. This is the essence of the candidate experience.

We have had job openings that we’ve been unable to fill for months, and we’re getting worried with the end of the year coming up. When is it time to reach out to a recruiting firm?

When it comes to recruiting, the tools that have the best chance of helping you source top talent are job ads. That’s why how they are written is so important to your recruiting success.

If a business has brand familiarity with your agency, then they are more likely to invite you into the RFP process. The same is true with prospective employees. People who have already applied, interviewed, or stayed in touch with HR or a hiring manager are the best recruits for new openings.

Do you think your hiring process takes too long? Have issues with timing cost you time, money, and the chance to hire top talent?

How much of an impact is artificial intelligence making already on insurance industry recruiting? To try and answer this question, I thought about the biggest pieces of the recruiting process where insurance companies and agencies spend the bulk of their time.

It seems like most internal recruiters don’t last longer than two years, and the majority leave for a job outside the insurance industry. What pushes people in HR and talent acquisition to early resignations?

You must strive to make every producer recruiting project unique. You need to isolate specific skills (aka, a great profile) and have a compelling story (aka, a unique pitch).

How do so many agencies end up with frustrated remote employees? Remote is only a temporary solution if you can’t retain hires at the same rate as in-office employees.

I know amazing women. Their answers to “What’s happening for women in the insurance industry?” revealed consistent themes on gender equality and everyone’s role in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives.

As a hiring manager, you know spring graduation is right around the corner. If you plan to recruit young or inexperienced talent, I hope you’ll think about my journey and incorporate my advice into your process.

These are the Capstone team’s top tips for your recruiting success this year.

To achieve meet your 2023 hiring goals, I recommend using what works in sales and service for recruiting.

To achieve meet your 2023 hiring goals, I recommend using what works in sales and service for recruiting.

Many insurance organizations are their own worst enemy when it comes to recruiting. Be honest. Ask yourself, “Are any of these things going on at our company?”

With the insurance industry’s labor market being as tight as it is, now is the time to assess your sourcing resources. There are ways to recruit account managers that are different and more effective than those used to recruit producers or managers.

What makes the difference between you winning or losing out on the hire? The answer for me is an exceptional interview process.

These are a few ways to start meaningful discussions about hiring and recruiting.

Job seekers need to know if you, the employer, can make a remote work arrangement successful.

What do candidates want and need to make a job change these days?

Any part of your process that creates delays chips away at your ability to compete for top talent. Reference checking is one area where a lot of insurance organizations need to improve.

Think about retained searches as an extension of your internal talent acquisition capabilities.

If you want to gain a competitive recruiting advantage, start by analyzing the end of your process. Offering candidates what they say makes a good offer sets you up for enormous success.

It’s a candidate-driven job market, and as a result, job seekers are changing the way the hiring process works.

It’s a candidate-driven job market, and as a result, job seekers are changing the way the hiring process works.

This list is a good starting point to help you start conversations, brainstorm ideas, and find ways to adapt your hiring and recruiting.

It’s a little bit of mass marketing and a little more like putting up a billboard on the interstate. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. It depends on who you’re trying to attract.

One thing 2021 has shown insurance agencies is that competing for top Account Executive & Account Manager talent boils down to money.

If your company is uncertain about where or how to begin an executive hire, here are ten questions that will help you formulate a recruiting plan.

An engaged process will help you find the right candidates as quickly as possible.

More insurance organizations than not have trouble applying DE&I strategies on a daily basis. Because my expertise is in recruiting, I see an opportunity for insurance organizations to do a better job practicing these principles in the hiring process.

Selling a college graduate on an insurance career is a totally different pitch than recruiting an experienced industry professional

I think the convergence of two trends — the mass retirement exodus and COVID-19 pandemic layoffs — offer an opportunity to tap into a new type of talent pool.

Small markets pose a unique challenge for agencies looking to grow. You have more options than just the “born and bred” hometown producer, including newbies, out-of-industry converts, and returning home stories.

Job offers are the perfect time to set your organization apart. Client service, sales and executive insurance professionals all look for something a little different.

Just like selling a home, getting your agency’s house “market ready” is equally as necessary to ensure a successful hire.

These four positions gained momentum last year. If they didn’t hit your radar screen then, I can promise you’ll hear about them in 2021.

Prior to 2020, I sensed most agencies were simply trying to construct a plan. Now their goal is to design a meaningful plan that impacts their business on a daily basis.

If you utter any of these three phrases, the candidate interprets the exact opposite intent. Producers believe you’re not really looking to hire a salesperson, and they are immediately disinterested.

As we move into 2021, with issues old and new (thanks COVID), please keep these things in mind as you think about recruiting, hiring and integrating effective leaders.

These are easy things I hope you’re already doing, but if not, then let this list be a great conversation starter with your leadership team.

While many of the basic tenets of insurance have remained steady for the past several years, the face of the industry has definitely changed. The age-old question is worth asking again, “What should be our company’s strategy to recruit experienced insurance talent?”

The most important thing you can do is think outside of the box. You need to stand out in what is still a highly competitive market for good talent.

As you build your 2021 hiring plan, it’s important to measure success along the way. These three indicators are adopted throughout the business community and can be applied to agency hires.

We’re constantly asked what we’re seeing out there for insurance job trends. Well, a little bit of everything!

Get the most ‘Bang 4 Your Buck’ on job posting websites with our Top 10 list!

Now is when you make a big push to recruit experienced account managers. I urge you not to use the same old process. Try new things. Push different agendas. Tout benefits and perks that are important to your audience. 

I believe the hiring process has the greatest ability to affect an agency’s success or failure.

Producer profiles are as unique as the insurance agencies that recruit them. These tips will provide you a road map or affirm the things you are currently doing in yours.

You want your company to stand out. To be memorable. To differentiate yourself from competitors. Do this by giving the applicant an interview experience they don’t expect. 

The insurance industry has had its share of struggles developing diversity hiring plans. While that’s not new news, I anticipate this topic becoming a central theme for 2020 & 2021 hiring because of COVID-19.

A job description is the most important step to launch your recruiting project and I want you to be AWESOME at writing them!

Looking at contracts on a case-by-case basis ensures a good use of your money and time as well as increases your success partnering with a search firm.

Like any contract, you want to understand the intent and be mindful of the fine print before signing on the dotted line.

Even during the Coronavirus, your hiring can prosper. You cannot and should not abandon your 2020 recruiting plans. Simply readjust and refine them to fit short & long-term plans.

Even during the Coronavirus, your hiring can prosper. You cannot and should not abandon your 2020 recruiting plans. Simply readjust and refine them to fit short & long-term plans.

If you set the budget correctly at the beginning of your hiring plan, it will stretch for all shapes and sizes of hiring needs.

As you read this list, I want you to think: Are these lies present in my firm? Am I part of the problem? Can I be part of the solution?

There are so many answers to dissect recruiting problems that we often get lost in the abundance of information.  I can simplify the answer for you.

If you want to retain new insurance producers, you need to rethink strategies for the first 90 days of employment.

You’re using a recruiter to help fill jobs, but warning bells are going off.  If you have experienced any of the following signs, then you should find a new staffing partner. 

A recruiter value proposition means that they have a real understanding of you and your markets.

While all sorts of factors are important to job seekers, the truth is if you offered the exact opposite work environment but awesome money you can still hire experienced talent.

The key is designing proformas to accomplish hiring success.

You do not want to make bad sales hires in the future. You want as close to a 100% guarantee as possible.

Now is a great time to re-evaluate current job openings, as well as plan recruiting strategies going forward.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Q4!

Identify. Attract. Retain.

Offers are more than a letter. They are a process. Avoid a stumbling block with these tips!

Signing bonuses are a useful recruiting tool in so many business sectors. Why not try it in insurance?

If you’re guilty of some or all of these points, you need more structure.

Wooing candidates may get them in the door for a conversation, but simple acts of kindness are what push them over the threshold.

I believe there’s a formula you can follow to vet relocation candidates. This, along with all your other interviewing resources, should give you confidence in the likelihood of a successful hire.

At the end of the day when you stop focusing just on, ‘I need to find a candidate,’ its easy to see how agencies achieve their goals or get off track.

A fully engaged workforce sees financial wellbeing as equally important as physical wellbeing.

Retained recruiting projects can provide significant benefits to the search process.

The first step is recognizing bad interview questions and the second step is fixing them.

Bad dad jokes will never truly get me in trouble, but your company faces significant risk based on questions being asked.

The revelation I’ve come to over the past month is that the financial examples have been in front of us the whole time. It’s all in the eye of the beholder; that person being your prospective candidate.

As you make hiring plans for 2020, ponder the comments I hear agencies make about producer recruiting.

Great advice for your company!

The impact of compensation on recruiting has been an evolving discussion.

Temporary staff and work from home positions are becoming increasingly more popular as companies and brokers navigate the unique circumstances of their market.

Your viewpoint has produced your history with recruiters. That future can change.

Delays affect thousands of professionals in different ways.

You can’t find the people you want. What’s missing?

Agencies carry a sizeable burden for developing the next generation of insurance professionals.

You expect candidates to do their homework before an interview……but what about yours?!  Ensuring a successful interview starts with four easy steps.

Staffing can be as maddening as wedding dress shopping. For insurance agencies the one role that seems to be an ongoing issue is commercial service.

An elevator speech sets the tone for your entire recruiting process.

Interviewing is like dating. Working together is like getting married. That time between engagement and the altar is a scary moment of self-reflection for candidates.

It is common within the insurance industry for people to relocate for their next career opportunity.

What are opportunities for women in the insurance industry?

We don’t recommend the ‘one size fits all’ practice.

According to LinkedIn and CareerBuilder, in an ultra-competitive job market, you have four seconds to get a candidate’s attention.

Meet experienced professionals where they are and expand.

There over 19,000 staffing and recruiting firms in the United States.

Interviews from several producers that Capstone assisted in 2018.

Hiring faster does not mean you make a rash decision. Desperation is the worst type of hire.

Recruiting to fill senior positions due to retirement is a bit like starting a family.

For many years insurance agencies have targeted producers that can build a vertical market within a particular niche.

I’m assisting an insurance company in the Northeast with a Division Director project.

The conversation about soft benefits isn’t “what” but “why and when.”

What is the best way your agency can interview account managers when 50% of the workforce is comprised of Millennials and 25% are Baby Boomers?

What are opportunities for women in the insurance industry?

As you set goals and agendas for hiring in the new year, we wanted to provide a cheat sheet as a guideline of what is trending in the coming year.

The best way to examine the root cause is through the lens of the candidate’s motivation.

We work with a broad spectrum of clients, from small agencies in rural areas to large national firms in the biggest cities.

Having a tough time finding candidates? Here’s what you should do.

I’m always really surprised that given the difficulty insurance agencies face hiring CSRs and Account Managers that more don’t utilize contract employees.

Q4: A Love/Hate Season for Insurance Agencies to Recruit

Engagement is key to successful talent acquisition.

Your biggest obstacles are the bad habits hiring managers have adopted over the years.

I may be dating myself here, but how many of you remember the infamous scene in Glengarry Glen Ross when Alec Baldwin talks about ABC standing for Always. Be. Closing.

Pay attention if you want to stay ahead of the curve.

More and more states are passing legislation making it unlawful for companies to request pay history from a candidate.

It always strikes me curious about how people react to their team’s draft choices in the NFL.

Any insurance agent can hang their own shingle, but the idea that we’re better together drives salespeople to work for larger insurance agencies.

Get Healthy/Get Fit is the top New Year’s Resolution for 2017.

I’ve fielded more questions about competitive benefits in the last eight months than over the past three years combined.

I had a conversation with an insurance agency today about their interviews for account management openings.

It may seem like a simple idea, but it is so often mishandled – how to greet a candidate coming into your office for a face-to-fact job interview.