wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT DECEMBER 2019
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InsurCon2020 May 11th – 12th , 2020 Kalahari Resort and Convention Center *Coupon Applies to Full Registrations Only
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT CONTENTS 3............. Insurance Bartender InsurCon2020 4............. InsurCon2020 Schedule of Events and Details 9............. Agency Operations 3 Ways to Identify Quality Candidates 12........... Technology Ten Things Agents Should Know about SEO 14........... Employee Profile Introducing Jennifer Petersen, Member Engagement & Events Coordinator 15........... Risky Business Safe Celebrating This Holiday Season 16........... Commentary from Counsel More than just a minimum salary 18........... Virtual University 3 New Exciting Construction Risk Endorsement 22........... Technology The Insurer of the Future 25........... Government Affairs Exemption from Mandatory Auto Liability Law Spurs Debate 26........... Agency Operations How to Create a Long-Term Success Plan for Your New Hires 29........... Virtual University Ask An Expert 30........... Members in the News 34........... Food for Thought
ADVERTISERS & INFORMATION 36......... AAA Wisconsin 33......... Agency Solutions 14......... Badger Mutual 11......... Berkshire Hathaway/Guard 8........... EMC Insurance 19......... Erickson & Larsen 20......... IIAW Pre-licensing Classes 21......... IIAW CE 28......... Integrity Insurance 32......... Internet of Insurance 35......... Penn National Insurance 34......... Robertson Ryan & Associates 17......... The IMT Group 7........... West Bend 10......... Western National Wisconsin Independent Agent is the official magazine of the Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin (IIAW) and is published monthly by IIAW 725 John Nolen Drive, Madison WI 53713. Phone: 608.256-4429. IIAW does not necessarily endorse any of the companies advertising in publication or the views of the writers. IIAW reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject advertising that does not meet IIAW qualifications or which may detract from its business, professional or ethical standards. Š 2019 For information on advertising, contact Ashley Hale, 608.210.2977 or ashley@iiaw.com.
2 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin 725 John Nolen Drive Madison, Wisconsin 53713 Phone: (608) 256-4429 Fax: (608) 256-0170 www.iiaw.com
2019-2020 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President: Chris Costakis President-Elect: Darrel Zaleski Spectrum Insurance Group, Eau Claire Secretary-Treasurer: Marc Petersen A merican Advantage - Petersen & Assoc., Inc., New Berlin
Chairman of the Board: Jason Bott Robertson-Ryan & Associates, Milwaukee State National Director: Steve Leitch Leitch Insurance, River Falls
2019-2020 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Mike Ansay Ansay & Associates, Port Washington Nick Arnoldy Marshfield Insurance Agency, Inc., Marshfield Mike Harrison R&R Insurance Services, Inc., Waukesha Ryan Leitch Leitch Insurance, River Falls Aaron Marsh Marsh Insurance Services, Inc., Rice Lake Joanne Lukas Szymaszek Johnson Insurance Services, LLC, Racine Chad Tisonik HNI Risk Services, LLC, New Berlin Andrea Nelson Unisource Insurance Associates, LLC, Wauwatosa
IIAW STAFF Matt Banaszynski Chief Executive Officer 608.256.4429 | matt@iiaw.com Mallory Cornell Vice President and Director of Risk Management 608.210.2975 | mallory@iiaw.com Kim Kramp Association and Agency Accounting Manager 608.210.2976 | kim@iiaw.com Trisha Ours Director of Insurance Services 608.210.2973 | trisha@iiaw.com Ashley Hale Graphic Designer and Creative Marketing Manager 608.210.2977 | ashley@iiaw.com Evan Leitch Technology and Risk Advisor 608.210.2971 | evan@iiaw.com Jennifer Petersen Membership Engagement and Events Coordinator 608.210.2972 | jennifer@iiaw.com Diana Banaszynski Education Coordinator 608.256.4429 | diana@iiaw.com
On The Cover... The IIAW will hold our 121st Annual InsurCon Convention May 11-12th at the Kalahari Resort in the Wisconsin Dells. We welcome our Keynote speaker, Hall of Fame Quarterback Joe Theismann as well as the famous 80s, 90s and 2000s cover band Granny Shot. Come and enjoy company hospitality lounges, CE credits (including Ethics), networking and the chance to win thousands of dollars in cash and prizes during our Exhibitor Showcase. There are many new and exciting changes in store for attendees this year. Visit our new website at www.iiaw.com for up-to-date details and to book your hotel rooms. See you there!
INSURANCE BARTENDER
INSURCON2020 You spoke, we listened! InsurCon2020 will be the insurance event of the year that you won’t want to miss. After each convention we take a significant amount of time to comb through survey results and compile feedback on the convention and make changes to ensure we are offering one of the industry’s premier events. InsurCon2020 will feature a variety of changes. We believe these updates will create a better event experience for agents, carriers and vendors. Goal: Increased Agent Participation A common message we hear year after year from carriers and vendors is “more agents”! We want to see more agents too. While we boast over a 1:1 agent to carrier/ vendor ratio, we know we can do better. For this reason, we created additional agent-only giveaways available to agents participating in the new Blackout Bingo Game. Blackout Bingo will incentivize agents to visit exhibitor booths and engage with carriers and vendors. In addition, we will be giving out free registrations to select member and non-member agencies. Its all about the agents and getting the biggest turnout we have ever had. If you are an agent and have not been to the convention before and would like to attend, contact us today to learn more about receiving a free convention registration. Goal: Condensed Format We realize time is money in our industry. We understand and respect that its difficult to get away from the office for more than two days or one night. That’s why InsurCon2020 will begin at 11:15am and end the following day at 5pm. Goal: Increase Company Hospitality Opportunities We heard from both agents and carriers that time for company hospitality/entertainment was important, so
we made sure our schedule accommodated this important request. We also created an additional opportunity for companies to host agents in Hospitality Booths during our evening entertainment. Goal: Top Keynote Speakers Many past attendees voiced their support of continuing to have a celebrity keynote speaker and especially appreciated the motivation and inspiration of someone like Jim Abbott in 2019. Hall of Fame Quarterback Joe Theismann will be the feature speaker in a lineup of some of the best keynote speakers we could find. Goal: Industry Relevant CE Sessions Attendees place a high value on being able to obtain continuing education credits at InsurCon. This year we are bringing in new speakers with relevant topics that are important to the industry, including ethics. These are just a few of the positive changes we have made for InsurCon2020. We invite everyone to attend and experience the largest insurance conference in Wisconsin. The following three pages highlight the stellar lineup we have in store for next year. You can also find additional details on our new and improved IIAW website: www.iiaw.com/insurcon. Wishing you, your staff and family a Merry Christmas, happy holidays and a prosperous 2020.
> Matt Banaszynski CEO of IIAW
Matt’s Mixology Peppermint White Russian Ingredients
Steps to Make It
3 ounces Peppermint Vodka
1. Begin by preparing your glass. Dip the rim into the white chocolate syrup and then into the crushed peppermints. 2. Optional: Mix a little red food dye with the white chocolate syrup. With a spoon, drizzle the mixture on the interior of the glass. 3. In a cocktail shaker, combine the Peppermint Vodka, Peppermint Kaluha, and half and half. Stir to combine. 4. Add ice to the glass; then pour in your cocktail. 5. Garnish with a candy cane.
1.5 ounces Peppermint Kaluha 1.5 ounces half and half For Garnish: Crushed peppermints White chocolate syrup Red food dye Candy cane
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
3
MAY 11-12 KALAHARI RESORTS WISCONSIN DELLS, WI
M O N DAY, MAY 1 1 TH 11:15AM-12:45PM Africa East
1:00PM-2:50PM Africa 30/40
1:00PM-2:00PM Africa 10/20
2:10PM-5:00PM Africa 10/20
3:00PM-3:50PM Africa 30/40
4:00PM-5:00PM Africa 30/40
AWARDS LUNCHEON AND BUSINESS MEETING
Join us as we honor our 2020 Award Winners and conduct our annual business meeting. A plated lunch will be served.
“EXTRACTING DATA FROM YOUR AGENCY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM” (2 CE) Automation/Technology Committee
Join the IIAW Auto./Tech. Committee for a presentation on what data to collect from your AMS, how to extract it and how to use it.
“HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE, EPLI AND THE IMPACT OF THE #METOO ERA” (1 CE) Laura Lapidus, Management Liability Risk Control Director, CNA
This session will examine the #MeToo movement’s effect on the workplace, harassment claim trends, litigation trends, and antiharassment legislation.
“ETHICS AND TRUST” (3CE) Jeff Bykowski, SECURA Academy
Agents will be able to walk away from this class with a better understanding of how trust plays an integral role in ethics.
“EXPLORING PRIVATE AND PUBLIC FLOOD MARKETS” (1CE)
Two industry experts will discuss the private flood insurance market as well as the National Flood Insurance Program and other emerging flood issues and concerns.
“EVERYTHING SPEAKS: ALIGNING YOUR MARKETING EFFORTS TO UNEARTH YOUR TRUE VALUE”
You will learn how to effectively align your company image and brand both internally and externally via digital and social media.
Marc Treacy, Managing Director of Flood Insurance, ISO and James Sink, Regional Flood Insurance Liaison, DHS
Spencer Smith, Founder of AmpliPhi Social Media Strategies
6:00PM-9:00PM 9:00PM-12:00AM
COMPANY HOSPITALITY HOURS INSURCON2020 ENTERTAINMENT
Africa East
It’s time cut loose and enjoy some great entertainment and music from Granny Shot. This is a great time to network, enjoy company hospitality booths and just have fun!
TU E SDAY, MAY 1 2 TH 7:45AM-8:45AM
GRAB & GO BREAKFAST
Africa Ballroom Foyer
9:00AM-10:15AM Africa East
10:30AM-11:15AM Africa East
11:30AM-12:00PM Africa East
12:15PM-2:00PM Africa East
2:00PM-5:00PM
“THE EVOLVING CYBER RISK LANDSCAPE”
Hear an industry expert explain cyber risks that businesses need to be aware of and how businesses can protect against those risks.
“INSURTECH MEETS INNOVATION”
Learn about some new “insurtech” startups participating in gener8tor’s OnRamp Insurance Accelerator and recommendations for identifying/partnering with technology firms.
“FIRESIDE CHAT WITH MATT”
Join Matt as he shares industry knowledge and insight on emerging trends.
LUNCH & KEYNOTE SPEAKER: JOE THEISMANN
Listen to former star quarterback and NFL analyst Joe Theismann discuss managing unforeseen change with adversity. His high energy presentation is one you won’t want to miss!
EXHIBITOR SHOWCASE
Don’t miss the opportunity to win cash or to meet your next great partner for success. InsurCon2020 will feature the first ever Blackout Bingo game for agency owners and employees.
PRIZES & GIVEAWAYS
All prizes will be awarded. Must be present to win.
Edward Chang, VP of Cyber Risk Management at Travelers Insurance
Troy Voseller, Co-Founder of gener8tor
Matt Banaszynski, IIAW CEO
Africa West
5:00PM
4 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
KEYNO T E S P E AKE R S JOE T H EIS MAN N Former NFL Quarterback & NFL Network Analyst
Joe Theismann is an entrepreneur and the former star quarterback for the Washington Redskins. Most recently, he spent the last 2 decades working for ESPN and the NFL Network as an NFL analyst. A 12-year NFL veteran, Joe played in 163 consecutive games from 1974-1985 for the Washington Redskins and holds Redskin records for passing yardage, completions and attempts. He was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and Pro Bowl MVP. Joe Theismann’s career ended abruptly in 1985 after sustaining a badly broken leg during a Monday Night Football game against the New York Giants on national television. In 2003, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. With every chapter of his life, Mr. Theismann evolved from athlete to the ultimate businessman. An Emmy award winning analyst, business man and athlete, he utilizes his gifts, talent and high energy to share his strategies for handling unforeseen change.
T R OY VO S S E L L E R Co-Founder of gener8tor
Troy is a Co-Founder of gener8tor. gener8tor is a turnkey platform for the creative economy that connects startups, entrepreneurs, investors, universities and corporations. The gener8tor platform includes pre-accelerators, accelerators, corporate programming, conferences and fellowships. gener8tor operates more than 25 accelerators annually across North America, working with more than 100 startups per year.
ED WAR D C H AN G VP of Cyber Risk Management at Travelers Insurance
Edward Chang leads the Travelers cyber risk control practice. In that capacity, he is involved in underwriting, risk control, and catastrophe analysis for the company’s cyber insurance products. Prior to Travelers, Eddie was a federal prosecutor where he focused on prosecuting Romanian phishers, Nigerian fraudsters and other cyber criminals. wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
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A D D IT ION A L IN FO Exhibitor Information
The annual Exhibitor Showcase will be held on Tuesday May 12th. Exhibitors are invited to review the new registration options and Blackout Bingo participation opportunity. Details and online registration can be found on our website, www.iiaw.com/insurcon. Questions?
Please call the IIAW at 608.256.4429 or email info@iiaw.com. Refer to www.iiaw.com/ insurcon for complete event details, sponsorship opportunities and exhibitor information.
Hotel Information
All convention events will take place at the Kalahari Resort & Convention Center. Rooms are available for Monday May 11th. Please indicate that you are attending the Independent Insurance Agents of WI InsurCon event to receive the group rate of $114/ night. The hotel reservation deadline is April 11, 2020. A link for online reservations is located on the convention registration page found on our website, www.iiaw.com/insurcon.
TH A NK YO U E XCL U S IVE C O M PA N Y S P ON S ORS
6 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
We know what it took to build this unique business.
And we know what it takes to protect it. Underwriters who know and understand what coverages are necessary for each unique business. Loss prevention professionals who use a hands-on approach to help develop programs tailored to each specialty business. Claim reps with the expertise and technology to process claims quickly and efficiently. As an Official Supplier of the Silver LiningÂŽ, you and West Bend will find a specialized insurance plan for your valued customers. To find out more, talk to your West Bend underwriter.
Celebrating 125 years of valued relationships with our agent partners.
C oun t on us to be there, there ...
A strength that sets EMC apart from other insurance companies is the local service we provide. We cover policyholders in more than 40 states and we have 20 offices strategically located around the country. So when you partner with us, you not only get the stability of one of the country’s top insurance organizations, but you also get a familiar face close to home.
We look forward to seeing you soon.
www.emcins.com ŠCopyright Employers Mutual Casualty Company 2019. All rights reserved.
E474-35621-Local-Print-Ad-TC-Big I WI_8.25x10.75_with .125 bleed.indd 1
9/26/19 9:48 AM
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AGENCY OPERATIONS
3 Ways to Identify Quality Candidates During Seasonal Hiring The summer and holiday months are a busy time of year for many employers. Many companies ramp up their hiring during this time to accommodate the influx of demand from consumers and travelers. As such, hiring managers receive a deluge of applications, and they need to have a strategy in place in order to get through the high volume of resumes in a timely and effective manner, while remaining thorough and without sacrificing standards. This year, for example, UPS estimates that they will bring on an additional 100,000 employees for the holiday season. The challenge becomes, how do you manage a high volume of candidates while maintaining the integrity of your hiring process? How do you think about and frame the conversation of professional development when it’s seasonal work? While we’re thinking about the holiday hiring rush, we’ve put together 3 pieces of advice for maintaining an efficient hiring process that looks to the future, even for your seasonal hires:
Define What Matters. Often seasonal hiring is about ensuring you have the help you need during peak business times. You don’t have time to hunt for the candidates with the perfect experience and refined skill sets. So, what are you looking for? What’s the most important aspect you want to bring in? Often, your key factors will be based on personality and potential over proven ability and expertise. Using personality assessments is a great way to determine which candidates demonstrate the potential for success in a given role. Seasonal hiring typically requires a quick hiring process and short training program, which means personality is likely to be more important than skill in a time such as this. In the e-commerce industry, for example, the Department of Labor predicts to see more than 50,000 jobs added over the next 6 years, and it’s an industry that is particularly affected by seasonal demands. Understanding the personality traits that align with the job is a critical step to hiring well and hiring effectively. Make it clear that personality matters and the right person can get the right training as they need it. But, finding someone who will excel and enjoy the work will make your holiday hiring effective, so study the role closely and determine what traits and competencies are necessary before you start asking for applications.
Streamline Through Efficiency. You know what you need, but you still need to assess an inordinate amount of candidates in a short amount of time. What does that process look like? It doesn’t require a re-working of your normal processes or rethinking your strategy. Often, it’s just a matter of streamlining what you already have to meet the requirements of your seasonal hiring. Revisit the tools you have and see where you can make a more efficient, expedient process to sort through
applicants more quickly and identify good candidates in a more pinpointed way. Caliper Quick View helps you screen large pools of applicants by targeting specific personality traits, removing the secondary characteristics that aren’t as critical for success. This type of expedited screening process is ideal for the types of roles companies are looking to fill during increased hiring times and seasonal hiring, while still maintaining informed decision making.
Consider the Future. By nature, seasonal hiring is often short term, but that doesn’t mean you should think in the short term, too. Seasonal hires are a tailored, hand-picked pool of candidates, which is an ideal source to find long term, permanent employees. These employees are already familiar with the company, accustomed to the work and environment, and have some degree of engagement or loyalty. So how do you think about professional development for your temporary hires? Think of all your employees as long-term investments. If treated like they’re temporary, employees will perform like they’re temporary. By limiting the time spent nurturing, you limit the potential of the employee. Identify those employees who exhibit the desire and ability to grow, and spend the same energy on those individuals as you would those on your permanent staff. Are they still in college? Encourage them to come back next summer or winter break. Are they an intern? Talk to them about what they plan to do after graduation. Or, perhaps they provide demonstrable value during the holiday season. Work with them and build a plan for increasing their role and responsibility to transition to full-time permanent status after your seasonal needs have been met. When you demonstrate an interest in your temporary employees, they will return the interest in you, too. To learn more about the ways Caliper can help you build your best seasonal workforce, reach out to our experts today. View original article at https://calipercorp.com/blog/3-waysto-identify-quality-candidates-during-seasonal-hiring/
> Aggie Alvarez Caliper
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
9
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TECHNOLOGY
Ten Things Agents Should Know about SEO Article Synopsis: Like an inviting, easy-to-spot storefront on Main Street, independent insurance agents and brokers must be visible online. Unlike popular belief, most agencies don’t need a big budget to optimize their sites for search engines. This ACT article explains search engine optimization (SEO) and provides a how-to overview. More and more, independent agents and brokers are encouraged to make better use of the Web to reach prospects and service customers—and that’s good advice. Three quarters of American adults use the Internet, and 81% of those use the Web to research their options before making a purchase— whether or not they plan to buy online. But first they have to be able to find you. And that means implementing a search-engine optimization (SEO) strategy that will make it easier for them to do so. Unless your URL is incredibly simple and well known—like nike.com or apple. com—even people who know you will use a search engine to find your site, if just to get your phone number. Think of it in a more traditional sense: You select a location for your office that isn’t hidden away, but rather easy to find. You put a sign on your office, make sure your firm is included in the office-park directory, and provide driving directions to visitors. SEO is the online equivalent of all those things, and it behooves agents and brokers to make themselves accessible to the ever-growing Web-focused community. Essentially, an SEO strategy should elevate your firm’s placement in organic—unpaid—searches for keywords related to your business. This is done by making your site easier to find and more appealing to the search engine “spiders” or “bots” that comb the Internet for pages relevant to the keywords entered in a search. While the major search engines (including Google, MSN, Yahoo and Ask) are secretive about their methodologies for determining those placements—and those algorithms are said to change frequently—these tips should enable any agent to increase their search engine rankings.
1. The Click Is the Thing. The most important driver in SEO is the frequency with which your site is clicked within the search results themselves. So, if in a search of car insurance and your zip code your site appears in the results and is clicked often, your ranking in that
12 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
search engine will elevate. Therefore offline and other online promotions are vitally important, as familiarity of your brand will increase the likelihood of a user clicking on your URL in a list of search results.
2. Links are Key Too. Another important driver of organic search results is the number and popularity of the other Web sites that drive traffic to your site. So, if www.XYZ.com receives visitors who link from other Web sites that are themselves popular, XYZ’s rank in an organic search will be higher. (The number of links from the XYZ site does not enter into the equation, except if those links represent reciprocal links.) Your agency probably already enjoys strong relationships with a number of different partners and organizations, so focus on securing prominent links from their respective Web sites, e-communications and member directories. (Checked your Chamber of Commerce listing lately?) Where possible, secure links from publications in which you advertise and charities to which you donate financial or human resources. At the very least, request reciprocal links for all organizations listed on your own site. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) should be providing a report that details exactly where visitors are linking from, which will help you refine that strategy.
3. Relevant Content Matters. So many agent sites are all about the agency, when they should be all about the customer. Consider what your customers think and worry about, and have your Web copy reflect those issues. Ask your ISP for top search terms, and make sure they are integrated into your Web copy and metatags. (See below for more on metatags).
4. Fresh Content is Vital. Many Web experts now say that fresh content is the most important element of ongoing SEO. Their contention is that the search engines, after determining which sites have relevant information, then determine which sites have the newest relevant information. Businesses use a number of methods to refresh content on their sites, including posting newsletters, articles, press releases and white papers, or maintaining a blog. For the average independent agency, it makes sense to include a news box or “tip of the week” on the home page.
5. You Can’t Cheat on Metatags.
6. Pictures and Graphics Matter.
Another method of enhancing search-engine results is through the use of metatags and keywords. Metatags are the HTML code that provide each page’s title, description and keywords—the words that are used in your site and which the spiders can reference to index it.
If you have any “real” pictures on your site—your staff head shots or office photo, rather than the stock photos of happy consumers—make sure to label them and give them an “alt tag.” Current bots aren’t capable of recognizing the subject of a photo or graphic itself, and they depend on the alt tag to tell them what they’re looking at.
Each page of your site should have its own metatags (don’t worry if there is some redundancy), and the keywords in your metatags should not be exactly the same as those in your Web copy, but generally mean the same thing. So, if you use the term Portland auto insurance in your Web site copy, then you might want to use car insurance 04101 in your keyword metatag. That way, whichever term a searcher uses, they should find you. To see the tags on your or any other Web site, simply rightclick on a Web page and click on “View Page Source.” A window will pop up with intimidating looking jargon and symbols. Look closely at the top and you’ll see <head><title> followed by a series of words that make up the assigned title for that particular page. You also should see other “meta” lines beneath it that identify “Description” and “Keywords.” The words that follow each of these are what search robots reportedly look at when indexing your site. This is a handy way of making sure your own site’s metatags are current and effective—and for finding out how your competitors are positioning themselves. Unfortunately, some unethical marketers have “stuffed” their keyword metatags with words that are irrelevant to their site but are “hot” search words. (For example, if the sample agency above placed Tiger Woods or Lindsay Lohan in its keyword list.) At first, the search engines merely punished those offenders by dropping their search ranking or not indexing them at all. But more recently there has been concern that Google, Yahoo, et al., might not even bother with the keyword metatags any longer and instead look only at the title and description metatags. But enough Web strategists believe that keywords remain highly relevant, and since there is little cost in listing them, we recommend agents use them. Here are some SEO guidelines to consider when considering metatags and keywords for your site pages: • Optimize those pages with significant customer content. Skip pages such as Privacy Policy and Search. • Each optimized page should have title, description and keyword metatags. • Title metatags generally should identify the specific page and contain no more than 65 characters. • Description metatags should not be much more than 200 characters long and should describe the specific page, not the entire site. • Keyword metatags should be no more than 250 characters long, have comma-delimited phrases, and relate to (but not repeat) the specific content on that page or within that area. • It is not necessary to repeat in your keywords metatag words that already appear in your title or description.
7. Be Patient. Unless you are hosting American Idol at your office and talking about it on your site, you probably aren’t going to generate enough buzz to push your site to the top of the search engines overnight. Think more like weeks, maybe a few months. A new Web site may even take a temporary hit in search results before it rises higher as a result of SEO. Once the bots catch up to your site, however, you should be able to monitor success monthly.
8. It’s Not ‘Once and Done.’ Remember that SEO is a shifting-sand effort. Your staff should regularly review your metatags and keywords in terms of the reports you receive from your ISP. It also helps to make changes to your products, services, marketplace and Web site content if there is new information.
9. SEO May Not be Enough. While Web users trust organic search results more than paid results, the paid listings enjoy a higher conversion rate. And with competition from such media giants as Geico, Progressive and State Farm, you might want to consider search-engine marketing (SEM), such as a pay-per-click campaign on Google or Yahoo. Both these search engines offer tools that will give you an estimate of how much your click will cost before you start your campaign. In order to stay manageable, you can set monthly, weekly or daily budgets.
10. It’s Worth Handling Professionally. Eyes glazing over already? Then don’t try to do this yourself. Hire a professional firm that will work with you on an integrated Web-positioning strategy that includes design, content, SEO and SEM. All SEO companies should show you a list of results for keywords they have achieved high rankings for. And if they “guarantee” you results, run—SEO is part art, part science and a bit of a dice roll. All you can do is try, measure and try again. Maureen Wall (mwall@Aartrijk.com) is vice president of Aartrijk, a branding firm specializing in the independent agent and broker channel. Peter van Aartrijk (peter@Aartrijk.com) chairs the Agency Web Site, Search & Customer Functionality Working Group of the Agents Council for Technology (ACT), part of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America. ACT’s Web site is www.independentagent.com/act. This article reflects the views of the author and should not be construed as an official statement by ACT.
> Maureen Wall & Peter van Aartrijk Jr. CIC
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
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The IIAW Welcomes Jennifer Petersen, Member Engagement & Events Coordinator I recently sat down to learn a little more about Jennifer. I think you will all agree that she is a great fit for the IIAW and for the Association as a whole.
Recently, Jennifer Petersen joined the IIAW team as our new Member Engagement & Events Coordinator. Having a CPCU designation and experience on both the carrier and agency side, Jennifer has already proven to be insightful to the needs of our members. Jennifer will be the first point of contact for membership questions, inquiries about upcoming events and will work on the insurance programs as needed. IIAW is excited to have her as a dedicated event planner to help enhance our current scheduled events and look for additional ways to grow and improve IIAW meetings and conventions.
What’s one of your favorite memories from the past year? Last summer, while vacationing on Amnicon Lake, we stayed up late one night playing Password – 5 adults and 3 teenagers. I cannot remember the last time I laughed so hard! What’s your guilty pleasure? Craft beer – especially IPAs. We love exploring local Madison breweries. When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? I went to Marquette University with the goal of becoming a dentist. What would we most likely find you doing on the weekend? Sunday is run day! I enjoy having a fun run on the calendar to keep me active.
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badgermutual.com 14 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
RISKY BUSINESS
SAFE CELEBRATING THIS HOLIDAY SEASON With the holiday season upon us, your friends at the IIAW want to take a moment and remind everyone of the liability a business may face while offering fun celebrations for employees. We know that the fine professionals of our industry are not shy when it comes to having a good time, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important to make sure everyone stays safe. First and foremost, employers may face liability when providing alcoholic beverages to employees (and other guests) during employersponsored events. Agency owners may want to consider hosting events outside of the office at restaurants who have professional bartenders who can help monitor the consumption of guests. Business owners also want to minimize the risk of an employee being injured at a company-sponsored holiday party. The first step is making sure that employees understand that the holiday party is completely voluntary, and they do not need to attend if for any reason they may not want to. In addition, employees should not be compensated for their time at the holiday party. While physical injury may seem more obvious, employers should also be mindful of contaminated food served at holiday parties. Utilize a third-party who is licensed to serve food and has their own insurance coverage for such exposures.
The final tip for enjoying a worry-free and safe holiday party is being mindful of workplace harassment. All businesses, no matter what size, should have a strict sexual harassment policy that is always available for employees to reference and review. During holiday parties, employees may feel it is a more relaxed environment. For this reason, it is important to remind employees that harassment is never tolerated and that includes at holiday parties. If any type of harassment should occur at a holiday party, it should be dealt with appropriately and timely. Always document any complaints you may receive and ensure there is a proper investigation of the complaint. As always, the holidays should be an important time to reflect on the success of the past year and enjoy time with one another. At the IIAW, we value each of our members and want to do our part to ensure everyone has a safe and enjoyable holiday season. Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year to everyone!
> Mallory Cornell, IIAW Vice President and Director of Risk Management
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
15
COMMENTARY FROM COUNSEL
More than Just a Minimum Salary: Classifying Employees as “Exempt” from Overtime Requires a Detailed Factual Analysis and Carries Risks. On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) released its much-anticipated final rule, which increases the salary level necessary to exempt certain classes of employees from the mandatory overtime and minimum wage requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (the “FLSA”). The rule is expected to impact approximately 1.3 Million employees nationwide. We explained the history, development, and context of the new rule in our April column, earlier this year. Effective January 1, 2020, the DOL’s final rule raises the minimum salary needed to meet the statutory overtime and minimum wage exemptions from $455 to $684 per week (equivalent to $35,568 per year for a full-year employee). If you’re reading this column and you currently have salaried employees earning less than $35,568 per year, you will need to either raise these employees’ salaries or reclassify them as nonexempt by the beginning of next year. Additional information and a complete copy of the DOL’s final rule is available at: https:// www.dol.gov/whd/overtime2019/. With all eyes turned toward the new salary threshold, it bears mention that meeting the salary test is only one element of a broader set of standards that must be satisfied to qualify employees for the FLSA’s statutory exemptions. In addition to meeting the minimum salary threshold, properly classifying employees as “exempt” or “non-exempt” also requires an individualized factual analysis of each employee’s specific job duties. While this process can be cumbersome, the risks and penalties associated with employee misclassification are severe. Accordingly, as you review your agency’s employee salaries for compliance with the DOL’s final rule, now is also a good time refresh your knowledge about the specific job duties that justify your current employee classifications.
“Exempt” vs. “Non-Exempt” The FLSA requires that all non-exempt employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay at not less than time and one-half the regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek. Because employees in the insurance industry are frequently classified as exempt from these requirements, it is easy to forget that not paying employee overtime is, in fact, an exception to the default rule. In order to meet the exception—or in this case, exemption—employees must: (1) be paid a salary at or above the minimum level set forth, above (the “Salary Test”), and (2) meet certain criteria based on their specific job duties (the “Duties Test”).
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Insurance agencies may rely on one of several Duties Tests to qualify an employee for a FLSA exemption. Specifically, Section 13(a)(1) of the FLSA exempts employees whose job duties qualify them as bona fide executive, administrative, professional, or outside sales employees. These exemptions are often referred to as the “white collar” exemptions because the qualifying job duties are limited to non-manual work. However, the absence of manual labor alone is insufficient to transform an otherwise non-exempt position into an exempt one. For example, under the Administrative Duties Test, an employee must be empowered to exercise “discretion and independent judgment” with respect to “matters of significance.” In most instances, your office receptionist, administrative assistant, and other lower level employees will fail to satisfy this criteria. For more information about the job duties required to meet the each of the applicable Duties Tests associated the white collar exemptions, you should refer directly to 29 C.F.R. Part 541 of the federal regulations. For an initial summary, you may also refer to DOL Wage and Hour Division Fact Sheet #17A, which is available for download at: https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/fs17a_overview.pdf. In a 2009 Opinion Letter, the DOL specifically analyzed whether two different types of Insurance Agent positions satisfied the Administrative Duties and/or the Outside Sales Duties Tests. A complete copy of the DOL’s guidance is available for download at: https://www.dol.gov/whd/opinion/ FLSA/2009/2009_01_16_28_FLSA.htm. In the first instance, the DOL concluded that an insurance agent whose primary duty was to make direct sales and obtain orders for insurance and other financial products and services through face-toface meetings at clients’ homes or business, satisfied the Outside Sales Duties Test. In the second instance, the DOL concluded that agents whose primary duty is to service the insurance company’s business and advise clients on various insurance and financial products, taking into account the agent’s knowledge of the needs, goals, and risk tolerance of each client, as well as the agent’s knowledge of and experience with the insurance industry and market, satisfied the Administrative Duties Test. In both cases, the DOL carefully examined all of the insurance agent’s specific job duties before applying the applicable Duties Test. When the DOL issues an Opinion Letter, its opinion is limited to analyzing the specific facts presented in the request. Accordingly, the closer your insurance agents’ job duties are to the duties performed by
the agents analyzed in the Opinion Letter, the more likely your agents would be similarly designated as exempt.
The Risks of Misclassification Because non-exempt employee status is the default statutory rule, the DOL takes seriously its responsibility to protect employees’ right to overtime and carefully scrutinizes employer attempts to misclassify non-exempt employees. The DOL routinely conducts targeted employer audits, but also investigates employer practices in response to individual employee complaints. A single phone call by a misclassified current or former employee could quickly turn into a DOL review of all your agency’s employee classification decisions, or even a more comprehensive DOL audit of all your payroll practices. Additionally, if the same misclassified employee walks into a plaintiff’s attorneys’ office, you may soon find yourself facing a federal wage and hour lawsuit. Depending on the specific facts and circumstances, your employee’s claim may also be filed as a class or collective action.
The risks of misclassification should not be taken lightly. Misclassified employees may recover up to three years of unpaid overtime wages, liquidated damages (an amount equal to the sum of unpaid wages owed), and attorney’s fees from their employers. Thus, if your salaried employees regularly work more than 40 hours, the damages at stake could be substantial. Additionally, employers who willfully and/or repeatedly misclassify employees as exempt are subject to up to $2,014 in civil penalties for each violation and may be criminally prosecuted as well, which would expose them to a fine of up to $10,000 and/or incarceration. With these risks in mind, we strongly encourage you to use the DOL’s recent revision to the salary test as an opportunity to review all aspects of your employee exemption determinations. As always, keep an eye on this column for future developments regarding changes to your employer overtime obligations.
> Josh Johanningmeier IIAW General Counsel
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AUTO | HOME | BUSINESS
VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY
3 NEW EXCITING CONSTRUCTION RISK ENDORSEMENTS Describing any new insurance endorsement as exciting may seem like hyperbole. But for agents working with construction clients, Insurance Services Office’s (ISO’s) introduction of its two new automatic additional insured completed operations endorsements and a new automatic waiver of subrogation endorsement is nothing short of exciting; maybe even life changing (OK, that’s hyperbole). With a 12/19 edition date, ISO filed: • CG 20 39 12 19 - Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees Or Contractors – Automatic Status When Required In Written Construction Agreement With You (Completed Operations); • CG 20 40 12 19 - Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees Or Contractors – Automatic Status For Other Parties When Required In Written Construction Agreement (Completed Operations); and • CG 24 53 12 19 - Waiver Of Transfer Of Rights Of Recovery Against Others To Us (Waiver Of Subrogation) – Automatic
The New CG 20 39 ISO’s newly introduced CG 20 39 - Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees Or Contractors – Automatic Status When Required In Written Construction Agreement With You (Completed Operations) automatically extends additional insured (AI) status to the party requiring AI status in a written construction agreement. The most exciting part of this new endorsement is that the CG 20 39 extends AI status for completed operations. When considering or using this endorsement, remember these keys: • The endorsement is triggered only when there is a written contract or agreement; • Additional insured status is limited to the party with “privity of contract.” This essentially means that only the party in the first paragraph is extended AI status. Assume the contract reads, “This contract contains the entire agreement between ABC, Inc. as general contractor and XYZ, Inc. as subcontractor….” The requirement of “privity of contract” limits AI status to ABC, Inc. even if the contract states on page thee that a whole list of entities must also be extended AI status; • Use this endorsement with the CG 20 33; these endorsements are designed to work together. If the CG 20 38 and CG 20 39 are combined, the breadth of entities extended protection as an AI is different and could result in an errors and omissions situation; and
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wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
• This should NEVER be referred to as a “Blanket” endorsement. Saying any AI form is “blanket” is tantamount to using an insurance cuss word.
Introducing the CG 20 40 ISO rounded out its automatic additional insured library for construction risks with the introduction of the CG 20 40 12 19 Additional Insured – Owners, Lessees Or Contractors – Automatic Status For Other Parties When Required In Written Construction Agreement (Completed Operations). Like the CG 20 39 introduced previously, the CG 20 40 automatically extends AI status for completed operations losses to entities as required by the written contract or agreement. However, the CG 20 40 does NOT have the “privity of contract” limitation of the CG 20 39. Removal of the “privity of contract” limitation allows AI status to extend to all parties requiring such protection as per the contract. Further, there is no limitation on the number of entities that can be extended AI protection. If the contract requires AI status, the entity named has protection as an AI; but only to the breadth provided by the endorsement. When considering or using this endorsement, remember: • The endorsement is triggered only when there is a written contract or agreement; • Use this endorsement with the CG 20 38. The CG 20 38 and CG 20 40 are designed to work together. If the CG 20 33 and CG 20 40 are combined, the breadth of entities extended protection as an AI is different and could result in an errors and omissions situation; and • This should NEVER be referred to as a “Blanket” endorsement. Saying any AI form is “blanket” is tantamount to using an insurance cuss word. I know this is a repeat, but I don’t want you to forget this.
An Automatic Waiver of Subrogation – The CG 24 53 “Why is it possible to automatically extend additional insured status when required by a contract but can’t automatically extend a waiver of subrogation? Nearly every contract requires a waiver.” ISO heard this question more than once. In fact, it is easy to imagine they heard it dozens and dozens of times. Credit ISO with listening to the industry. In response to this question, ISO introduced the CG 24 53 12 19 - Waiver Of
Transfer Of Rights Of Recovery Against Others To Us (Waiver Of Subrogation) – Automatic. As the title suggests, the endorsement makes the waiver of subrogation automatic when it is required by contract. The endorsement: • Requires a written contract or agreement; and • Requires the insured to waive its rights of recovery in the contract before a loss occurs. Anyone who knows me or has read my articles before knows I do not like the term “waiver of subrogation” as it relates to this endorsement and the CG 24 04 (the scheduled entity endorsement). Both are “waivers of rights of recovery against others” endorsements. However, I will not get on that soap box right now, just remember that “waiver of subrogation” is another on one of those insurance cuss words.
However, isn’t there always a “however” in insurance, just because these endorsements exist does not mean you can use them. First, the carriers must adopt them; then underwriting guidelines must be written; and lastly, the underwriter must be comfortable with allowing their use. Even with the “however,” these are exciting times for construction-focused agents. OK, back to hyperbole.
> Chris Boggs
Big “I” Virtual University Executive Director
Exciting Times for Construction Clients With the introduction of these three endorsements, ISO addressed two key issues agents have faced for years: 1) the inability to automatically extend AI status for completed operations; and 2) the ability to waive rights of recovery without the need to attach individual endorsements. Although there shall remain contractual insurance and COI requirements that cannot be met, these endorsements aid in the ongoing battle with upper tier contractors and their risk managers and/or lawyers. It’s rare I say thank you to ISO, but “Thank you, ISO.”
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www.EricksonLarsenInc.com We’re here to help with all your surplus lines needs! Casualty | Excess | Pollution | Professional | Property | Transportation and much more
2020 Prelicensing Class Schedule Conducted at State Association Headquarters, IIAW prelicensing classes fulfill the study requirements for life, health, property and casualty. Full course materials are included with registration. The classes are: • • • • •
Designed to help you pass your state licensing examination The quickest way to meet the WI education hours requirement Taught by experienced insurance professionals who know the business Conducted in a comfortable classroom with free parking Approved by the Office of the Commissioners of Insurance
REGISTER AT IIAW.COM To register, click the Education tab on IIAW.com. For WI exam info, visit Prometric.com. IIAW Member Pricing: $340 Pricing given for full class registration Non-Member Pricing $355 You may also take individual classes Contact Kim@iiaw.com for multi-registration discounts. For any other questions please contact Diana@iiaw.com. DAILY SCHEDULE
Day 1 (Monday)
8:30 am - 4 pm ($85) Section A: Principles of Insurance & General WI Ins. Law Ethics Day 2 (Tuesday) 8:30 am - 4 pm ($90) Section B: Life Policies, Terms & Concepts or Section B: Property Policies, Terms & Concepts Day 3 (Wednesday) 8:30 am - 11:30 ($45) Section B: Life Policies, cont. & WI Life Insurance Law or Section B: Property Policies, cont. & WI Property Insurance Law Noon - 4 PM ($45) Section B: Accident & Health Policies, Terms & Concepts or Section B: Casualty Policies, Terms & Concepts Day 4 (Thursday) 8:30 am - 4 pm ($90) Section B: Accident & Health, cont. & WI Health Insurance Law or Section B: Casualty Policies, cont. & WI Casualty Insurance Law
The course fee includes all class materials. Materials are distributed on the first day of class. You receive: • Life & Accident/Health or Property & Casualty Insurance Study Manual • The Intermediary’s Guide to Wisconsin Insurance Law • The State of Wisconsin Ins. Licensing Candidate Handbook (This provides all the information to obtain a license)
LIFE & ACCIDENT/HEALTH
PROPERTY & CASUALTY
January 6-9 February 10-13 March 9-12 April 6-9 May 4-7 June 8-11 July August September October November December
January 13-16 February 17-20 March 23-26 April 20-23 May 18-21 June 22-25 July August September October November December
CLASS SITE/DIRECTIONS
The IIAW is located at 725 John Nolen Dr. in Madison, WI. When traveling south on John Nolen, it’s the last driveway before Highway 12/18 (Beltline). Located near the Alliant Energy Center and Sheraton Hotel.
INCLEMENT WEATHER
If weather conditions are questionable, use your own judgment regarding your personal safety. If Madison public schools are closed, the IIAW is closed and pre-licensing is canceled for the day. Canceled classes are made up on Friday.
HOTEL INFORMATION
Student requiring lodging will receive a special rate at the Home2 by Hilton and Clarion Suites. Home2 by Hilton, 2153 Rimrock Rd. in Madison. Please call the hotel directly at 608.949.9650, and ask for the “Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin” discount. Clarion Suites, 2110 Rimrock Rd. in Madison. Please call the hotel directly at 608.284.1234, and ask for the “Independent Insurance Agents of Wisconsin” discount.
CONTINUING
EDUCATION IIAW ONLINE EDUCATION & CE CLASSES DATE
COURSE
TIME
04 05
It’s Not My Fault, or Is It? - Liability Issues in Personal Lines Policies Fiduciary Liability, ERISA Bonding, and Employee Benefits Liability The Affordable Care Act contains significant responsibilities for benefit plan decision makers Business Income - Coverage Analysis through Claims Insuring Hobby and Small Farms Contractors Property Exposures Income After Retirement - Where Does the Money Come From? Personal Lines Checkup - What’s New and What’s Changed ... What It All Means E&O: Roadmap to Policy Analysis - Part One E&O: Roadmap to Policy Analysis - Part Two 4 Key Personal and Commercial Lines Exposures Every Agent Must Understand Commercial General Liability Coverages 4 Key Personal and Commercial Lines Exposures Every Agent Must Understand Cyber Liability Ethics and the Law Who Is An Insured
12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM
Personal Auto Hot Topics... What You Need to Know When the Child Becomes the Parent - Aging Parents and Insurance Decisions NEW! E&O: Commercial Liability Coverage Gaps and How to Fill Them NEW! E&O: Roadmap to Homeowners Insurance Lying, Stealing, New Types of Fraud: The Importance of Crime Insurance Ethics - Walking a Straight Line 10 Things Every Commercial Lines Agent Ought to Know Protecting Your Most Valuable Asset Insuring Trusts - Protecting Your Client’s Wishes Dispelling the Myths of Workers’ Compensation Top 10 Countdown of Personal Lines Coverages & Current Issues Insuring Technology Exposures - Products, Property and Professional Liability
8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM
Personal Auto Policy Additional Insureds and Certificates of Insurance Insuring Toys and Collectibles Contractual Liability... Separating Fact from Fiction NEW! E&O: Roadmap to Personal Auto and Umbrella Insurance NEW! E&O: Commercial Property Coverage Gaps and How to Fill Them Workers’ Compensation NEW! Take Charge of Emerging Homeowners’ Insurance Trends ... Tiny Houses, Home Sharing, E-Scooters, Events, and Kids Business Auto Coverages Life Insurance... Benefits for the Living Personal Lines Checkup - What’s New and What’s Changed... What It All Means Ethical Dilemmas... Making the Right Choices
12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM
DECEMBER 09 10 10 11 11 12 12 16 16 16 17 17 18
JANUARY 08 09 14 14 15 16 21 21 22 23 27 29
FEBRUARY 04 05 06 10 11 11 12 13 17 20 24 25
12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 9 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 2 PM 8 AM - 11 AM 12 PM - 3 PM 8 AM - 11 AM
12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM 12 PM - 3 PM
TO REGISTER, PLEASE GO TO IIAW.COM
TECHNOLOGY
The Insurer of the Future Introduction The Digital Transformation of the Insurance industry is underway. Technologies such as the Internet of Things, Big Data Analytics, Robotics and Artificial Intelligence are already making an impact. But where will this end? What will the Insurer of the Future look like? What will be the impact of driverless cars? Of manufacturers providing customers with ‘vehicles as a service’? How will Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) engines impact Underwriting and Pricing? How about Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Marketing? What will become possible in Claims? And in Products and Product Development? The insurance industry is, of course, broader than just the insurers themselves. What will be the impact on insurance intermediaries? And, finally, what does all of this mean for insurance industry employees? Answers below! Auto / Motor Insurance The Insurer of the Future will do very little business in the auto/ motor market. Insurers that remain focused on this segment (whether personal or commercial lines) will either shrink dramatically or fail. Once fully driverless cars become the norm, then: 1. Accident rates will be diminished dramatically; and 2. There will no longer be drivers to insure. But it’s actually even worse than that: 1. Thefts will be minimized too, as vehicles can be disabled remotely; 2. Fire and malicious damage cover will no longer be needed, as personal and business vehicle ownership is increasingly replaced by manufacturers supplying ‘vehicles as a service’; 3. With the majority of vehicles still being owned by manufacturers, those manufacturers will increasingly selfinsure - at best taking some reinsurance cover from the industry for catastrophic software failures. All of the above won’t happened overnight - but the trends are already there. Underwriting and Pricing If I was a young Actuary or Underwriter I’d be worried - because the Insurer of the Future won’t have much need for my skills. What do these professionals do for a living? They rely on their personal experience plus various data sources to understand and price a risk more accurately. Sometimes they carry out complex statistical calculations in support. But the Insurer of the Future will have its experience data captured on its internal systems. It will also tap into vast amounts of additional data available from external sources - some structured, some unstructured. And it will channel all of this data, far more
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than a human Actuary or Underwriter could ever handle, to its Artificial Intelligence (AI) engines. These AI engines will examine the data for patterns, apply multiple statistical models, and add their own experience from previous analyses to come up with a much more accurate price, massively quicker than a human ever could. And in the Insurer of the Future the AI engines will be wired directly into the sales and underwriting processes, which will operate ‘straight through’ with no involvement from humans. Behind the scenes, the Actuary’s workload will be reduced through much greater use of automation and AI in capital modeling, prudential regulation compliance, reserving, and financial accounting. There will be room for some human oversight roles, to ensure that the AI engines don’t ‘go rogue’ and generate crazy results - but the vast majority of Actuaries and Underwriters will no longer be required. Claims Handling William Gibson, the author, once said, “The future is already here; it’s just not very evenly distributed.” So what is ‘already here’ in relation to Claims handling? Two data points: • Lemonade, the new US insurer, says it uses AI to complete the entire claims process in under 3 seconds • Fukoku Life, in Japan, expects 30% efficiency gains from replacing employees with an artificial intelligence system that can calculate payouts to policyholders. The Insurer of the Future will handle almost all of its Claims automatically, without human intervention. It will: • Detect Claims, using sensors on the Internet of Things (IoT) and data feeds from, for example, death registries • Analyze those Claims, drawing on multiple internal and external data sources, and applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) to establish what needs to be done • Assess appropriate reserve values, and input them to the insurer’s financial systems • Trigger external supply chains, such as clean-up and restoration services, bodyshops, and online retailers, to return the policyholder to their pre-loss state • Instruct loss adjusters where necessary, ingest their subsequent reports, and act on their findings • Make payments directly into policyholders’ bank accounts where appropriate • Trigger, and follow up, recoveries and reinsurance claims as needed In the early days, this will happen for simpler Claims only. But in due course, as the abilities of Cognitive / AI systems surpass those of humans, Claims personnel will be required by the Insurer of the Future for only the most complex of Claims. And even for these, workloads will be reduced through the use of new capabilities such as multi-party collaborative environments to speed access to data and decision-making.
Blockchain If the Insurer of the Future is a new entrant, blockchain will be at the core of both its business model and its operating model. It will use blockchain to: • Underpin a series of smart-contract enabled parametric insurance products (if event X happens, and ‘oracle’ Y confirms that, then pre-agreed sum of money Z is paid out automatically); and • Maintain secure policy records significantly more cheaply than its legacy competitors. If the Insurer of the Future was a traditional player, it’s more likely to be using blockchain as a ‘bolt on’, supporting new products that wouldn’t otherwise be cost effective. It might, for example, use blockchain ledgers to support microinsurance policies. An example product could be insuring jewelry just for the time its owner plans to wear it this evening. Or providing top-up insurance to participants in the gig economy, lasting just for the length of each gig. But whether the Insurer of the Future is a new entrant or an existing insurer, blockchain will be just one of a number of new tools at its disposal.
If she buys a new TV, her Insurer will know that, and add it to her policy. They will also ask what’s happening to the old one, and remove it from the policy if no longer relevant. If the customer goes hiking in the wilderness, the Insurer of the Future will pick that up and increase her life cover. If her hiking is abroad, travel covers will kick in automatically. And once the customer is back home safely, her cover, and her premium, goes down again. Once the Insurer of the Future has earned its customer’s trust, she might choose to open up her current and future Search history and Social Media accounts to its systems. That way the Insurer of the Future can monitor what she’s thinking about doing (bungee jumping, getting married, having a baby?) and step in with timely advice and support. Some of the Insurer of the Future’s older employees remember when ‘customer lifetime events’ were the elusive holy grail. Not any more. Now the Insurer knows about all of these events, often before they even happen.
This is one area in which new technology will be incremental to the industry rather than truly disruptive.
Product Development At the Insurer of the Future, we said that Products will be very different from nowadays. But how will they be developed? Certainly not the same way as now.
Indeed, it may well be that the biggest impact will be at the panindustry level, taking advantage of a blockchain ledger’s ability to serve as a system of record for multiple participants. We can already see experimentation along those lines - two examples being the Marine market pilot in the UK and the formation of the RiskBlock consortium in the USA.
To begin with, all products will be created as a series of modules. Modular design enables myriad new products to be developed quickly and easily. Even with just three modules, A, B, and C, the Insurer of the Future can generate seven different products (A, B, C, A+B, A+C, B+C, A+B+C) and the options grow exponentially as more modules are added.
CRM and Marketing CRM was always a challenge in the past because, unlike banks and retailers, Insurers had only small numbers of interactions with their end customers. That made it hard to gather data on their customers’ needs and wants, and limited their ability to build relationships.
How does the Insurer of the Future know when a new module is required? Because its real time analytics tell it what customers want, or might want, and an artificial intelligence system can figure out whether that can be met from the existing modules, or whether another one is required.
But the Insurer of the Future has access to enormous quantities of data about its customers, available from a wide range of external sources. So it ports this data into its own systems, fueling more powerful and accurate analytics. It uses the insights gleaned to reach out proactively to customers; not just to sell them products, but to provide genuine value adds.
If a new module is needed, those same artificially intelligent systems can carry out the coding required to build the new module, configure the new combination, and publish the new product as an option available to be bought. It will then monitor take-up of the new product, and iterate it as needed until sales are optimized.
Providing value adds to customers, free of charge, enhances its customer relationships. So when the Insurer of the Future makes an occasional offer to a customer, it’s the right offer, at the right time, through the channel and device of the customer’s choice. As a result of the Insurer of the Future’s expertise, the customer is significantly more likely to buy.
Of course, in this world, products are no longer siloed. Elements of what used to be called P&C, life, health, investment, and decumulation products, together with covers yet to be dreamt up, are all now modules that can be combined to meet the precise needs of any individual, employee, or business customer of the Insurer of the Future.
Compared to its predecessors, the Insurer of the Future has a loyal customer base - driving lower lapse/churn rates, a greater share of wallet, and higher Net Promoter Scores.
Employee Benefits Given that the ‘customer of the future’ wants solutions rather than products, the employee benefits provider of the future will offer a wider range of products, all designed to work together.
Products The Insurer of the Future’s customer won’t have to buy individual products. Instead, she’ll buy a total risk management solution which flexes to her needs month by month, day by day, and hour by hour. And she’ll be billed according to her actual usage, so she’ll never be under, or over, insured. When the Insurer of the Future’s customer leaves her house, the accidental damage element of her home cover will decrease because she’s no longer there to damage anything. But her flood and fire cover will go up, as she’s less likely to spot such events early.
And, knowing that careers are becoming increasingly more fragmented (shorter tenure, parallel income streams, the gig economy) the employee benefits provider will also reduce its dependence on employers. The employee benefits provider of the future will offer a broad ‘platform’ offering multiple products (not least life, retirement, health, auto, and home) open to employees of multiple wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
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companies. That doesn’t mean every employer’s scheme will be the same, as there will still be specifics tuned to the desires of individual companies. But all of the core covers will be the same, allowing the benefits provider to leverage massive buying power, securing excellent deals for employers and employees alike.
But I never met Michelle. I never even spoke to her. Everything we did, we did by email.
Because the core benefits are the same across companies, they’re also portable - very helpful in a world where employees hop regularly from job to job. When an employee leaves company A, they can port their entire benefits package to company B. If there’s any premium shortfall, they can pay that personally. And the employee benefits provider retains the end customer for longer.
For the Insurer of the Future, I think she will be. In the future, there’s nothing Michelle did for me that couldn’t be done by a properly trained, and properly connected, machine. In the Insurer of the Future’s world, human brokers won’t be needed any more.
But the new proposition goes even further - because the model recognizes the gig economy and is therefore open to one-person businesses such as Uber drivers, as well as employees of larger companies. This, of course, broadens the customer base served by the provider yet further.
Which got me thinking - how do I know Michelle isn’t an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system?
I can guess what many of you are thinking: “Hah! Let’s see how much he likes a remote machine when his basement floods.” And you’re probably right. In those circumstances, I might indeed want someone to come and (metaphorically) hold my hand. But if my basement floods, and a real person does turn up, and she tells me her name’s Michelle - won’t that give me what I need?
In time, workers’ loyalty will perhaps become more focused on their employee benefits provider than on their individual employers - re-positioning this segment of the industry and opening up further opportunities for innovation.
I think so. If I need a real person, then I’ll be happy that a real person turns up. They don’t even need to be an agent or broker the Insurer of the Future’s on-site claims handler will be fine, thank you very much.
Smart Automation So far, I’ve talked about the specifics of Claims, Underwriting and Pricing, and Product Development - but I haven’t really talked about the back office administration functions.
Some tell me I might be right for personal lines, but that commercial lines is more complicated. Well yes - a lot more data will typically need to be located, analyzed, and acted upon. But locating, analyzing and acting on data is exactly what machines can usually do better than humans. Which means it’s even more likely that commercial lines brokers will disappear.
If you’ve been with me so far, you won’t be surprised to hear that I think AI, robotics, and other automated systems will transform those functions as well, and empty them of people. The Insurer of the Future will reorganize its back office using automation - but it will do so “smartly.” By smartly, I mean that it will figure out how and where to automate to gain the greatest commercial benefit. Some processes will need to be transformed by using stronger, more automated, core systems. Some processes, or sub-processes, will gain most from the use of AI/Cognitive capabilities: chatbots, vocalbots, machine learning, recommendation engines, etc. And any gaps might best be filled using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) or even non-technology tools such as Lean. There will be instances where it makes sense to use more than one of these techniques - perhaps capturing short-term efficiency gains through interim RPA of a sub-process, while a more comprehensive longer-term solution is being developed. The source of success for the Insurer of the Future, however, will be figuring out (smartly) exactly what to apply where, and in what order, to create the highest return on investment. Agents and Brokers A few years ago, I moved from the UK to the US. I tried to arrange insurance directly with the brand names I knew best - but it quickly got difficult. I didn’t have a US credit history, I didn’t have a US insurance history, and I’d only just got a US job. So I realized I needed a broker. That broker was Michelle, and she worked wonders for me. She got me the covers I needed, at a good price, at the right insurer for my circumstances. She was thoughtful, courteous, and speedy, and I’ve been delighted by her service. As far as I’m concerned, Michelle earned every cent of her commission. 24 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
Human Capital As we’ve seen in previous parts, the Insurer of the Future will have far fewer employees in Pricing and Underwriting, and Claims, in Product Development, and throughout the Back Office. Overall, therefore, the Insurer of the Future will have far fewer employees per million of premium than its predecessors. Many tasks previously performed by humans will now be delivered by software. But that means that the remaining humans, fulfilling key strategic and risk management roles, are far more important than they were. They will have to be the very best professionals available. Their recruitment, training, development, and motivation will have to be top notch. They’ll need the very best of support to help them be successful. They’ll have self help tools at their fingertips, together with expert systems support, world class knowledge management capabilities, and collaboration tools, all designed to ensure they can deliver to their full potential. They’ll be part of a culture that is dynamic and exciting, in an environment of constant change - and they will relish every minute of it. Chances are that, on average, they’ll also be significantly better paid. Author: Alan Walker is an international Insurance Digital Transformation thought leader, strategist and implementer, currently based in the USA. He has helped some of the world’s largest Insurers to figure out how to respond to new technologies, the rise of InsurTechs, and changing customer demands - to the benefit of both their customers and themselves. www.alanwalker.com
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
Exemption from Mandatory Auto Liability Law Spurs Debate For years, the Wisconsin insurance industry opposed efforts to pass compulsory auto insurance out of philosophical and practical reasons. The industry never likes government forcing mandates onto our business and national statistics showed that compulsory auto laws generally are not effective, especially without simultaneous tough enforcement and steep financial penalties. Industry argued that the best way to maintain a low uninsured driving population is to have affordable, competitive coverage. Wisconsin had been one of only two states in the nation without mandatory auto insurance, until 2009 when the state Legislature passed a requirement that all drivers carry liability insurance. For nearly ten years now it’s been the law in Wisconsin, but this legislative session the Mennonite and Amish community are asking the Legislature for an exemption from state law based on their religious beliefs and desire to self-insure. Senate Bill 131 (SB-131) and Assembly Bill 140 (AB-140) authored by Senator Kathleen Bernier and Representative Bob Kulp, specifically would allow the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to issue a certificate of self-insurance to a religious sect that meets certain requirements. The proposal is not limited to the Mennonite and Amish communities and has certainly spurred an interesting policy debate among lawmakers at the State Capitol. Under current law, subject to certain exceptions, a person may not operate a motor vehicle in Wisconsin unless the owner or operator of the vehicle has in effect a motor vehicle liability insurance policy for the vehicle providing coverage in specified minimum liability limits ($25,000/$50,000/$10,000). However, there is an exception for a motor vehicle owned by a self-insurer possessing a certificate of selfinsurance issued by WisDOT. Typically, this exception is intended for corporations and businesses to self-insure their vehicles. Also under current law, if a motor vehicle accident results in injury, death, or property damage of $1,000 or more, WisDOT is required to notify the operator and the owner of the vehicle that the person must deposit with WisDOT security for the accident in an amount sufficient to satisfy any resulting judgment for damages. If WisDOT receives a copy of a judgment for damages of $500 or more arising out of a motor vehicle accident, the person against whom the judgment was rendered is required to provide proof of financial responsibility. In both situations, proof of financial responsibility includes coverage under a motor vehicle liability insurance policy with specified minimum liability limits. In lieu of a motor vehicle liability insurance policy, a person may show that the person is a selfinsurer possessing a certificate of self-insurance issued by WisDOT. Under SB-131 and AB-140, WisDOT may issue a certificate of selfinsurance to a religious sect, the members of which have a history of mutual financial assistance and have collectively registered more than 25 vehicles with the state. If WisDOT issues a certificate of self-insurance to a religious sect, the certificate of self-insurance may be used in lieu of motor vehicle liability insurance by members of the religious sect to satisfy proof of financial responsibility and mandatory motor vehicle liability insurance requirements.
The WisDOT will need to be “satisfied that the religious sect is possessed, and will continue to be possessed of ability to pay judgments obtained against a religious sect.” While these measures have been introduced by well-intended legislators seeking to help a specific segment of their constituency, one can also look to other states who have similar laws on the books. States such as Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina and Pennsylvania have passed similar laws. According to the Council of State Governments (CSG), some states offer forms of religious exemption to auto insurance. In Illinois, a religious organization and its members are exempt if they can provide “a bona fide conviction that the acquisition of insurance is contrary to their religious beliefs.” They must then 1) provide evidence of paying damages for which they were liable, and 2) file an irrevocable letter of credit with the state. The state of Georgia provides a certificate of self-insurance to religious groups which prove they can “provide coverages, benefits, and claims-handling procedures substantially equivalent to those afforded by a policy of vehicle insurance.” Religious groups must file a “minimum security” with the state to get this certificate; the exact amount depends on the number of vehicles being insured. Other states allow individuals to post collateral in lieu of purchasing insurance. In Ohio, residents can deposit $30,000 in cash or government bonds with the state treasurer to bypass the insurance mandate. SB-131 passed out of the Senate Insurance Committee and State Senate on unanimous, bi-partisan votes in October. Also last month, the Assembly Insurance Committee held a public hearing on AB-140, the Assembly version of the bill. During the hearing, committee members asked tough questions of the proponents of the bill and it was learned during testimony on the bill that many in the Mennonite and Amish community currently purchase commercial insurance for their businesses. Some of the committee members questioned why it was okay for commercial insurance, but not personal auto insurance when it came to their religious beliefs. This recent revelation created a contradiction in the rationale for seeking an exemption from the law and immediately was a cause for concern with several members of the 16-member committee. At this time, there does not appear to be sufficient committee support to pass the bill out of committee. The debate continues on and the Legislature wraps up it’s session in April of 2020.
> Misha Lee IIAW Lobbyist
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
25
AGENCY OPERATIONS
How to Create a Long-Term Success plan For Your New Hires
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Succeeding in business, in sports, in your life, is a matter of pulling together people you can trust, who are honest, who have their priorities in line, who have the talent, ambition, and desire to reach beyond themselves and make something really big happen – particularly when the pressure’s on. - Roger Staubach Former NFL Al-Pro Quarterback And Executive Chairman At Jones Lang LaSalle
A new season of hiring means welcoming lots of new members to the team. Change can be challenging, so it’s important to focus on creating a long-term plan for your new hire’s success within your organization. This helps build an employee development framework for both you and the individual so they can make a smooth transition and feel empowered to take on their new role, while working toward their career goals and meeting organizational needs. We’ve put together the four necessary points you need to focus on when planning and building out your long-term success plan for your employees.
Onboarding & Training Your plan for the long-term success and growth of your new employees starts with onboarding and training. Ensuring they have the necessary materials and tools to help them jump in and stay in is essential for overall employee success – and it all starts with onboarding and continues with training. So how can you plan for the best onboarding and training for new hires without falling into common traps? Below are a few common mistakes and how to avoid them so you can maximize your onboarding and training initiatives: Plan for the long-term success of your employees using these 4 essential points the experts at @CaliperCorp put together:
26 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
Common Mistakes In Your Onboarding Process – • Fast-tracking executives. Onboarding isn’t just for entry-level employees. Many organizations pass right by the onboarding process for their executive-level hires, but don’t assume that they don’t require proper onboarding. While they have more experience, every company is different and has unique needs that their employees have been hired to fill. By onboarding every level of new hire, you will be able to ensure success and continuous growth within your company. • Relying on charts and bullet points for communication expectations. Take the time to actually show new employees where to go and who to talk to, and introduce them to members of their new team. Many companies fall into the trap of leaving new employees to fill in the gaps themselves. By creating this bridge of communication, you’ll have lines of communication open from the start. As a result, you’ll be able to help make your employees feel more comfortable reaching out to others, collaborate more effectively, and boost productivity. How to Maximize Training and Onboarding: Multi-Device Learning: Maximize your new hire’s performance and potential with multi-device learning from the start. You’ll find your workers will be far more engaged with your training when they’re able to self-direct their education and are not forced to spend hours away from their desks to do it. You’ll also have a far more productive workforce, as they can use your learning platform at their times of need and immediately put their learning into practice.
Plan For The First 3-6 Months: Frequently, companies end their onboarding after a month, sometimes even less, which can make your new hires feel disconnected and lost. Learning expectations and being entirely comfortable in a new role can take six months or more, and according to SHRM, only 15% of companies continue onboarding after six months. Take into consideration that nearly 90% of employees decide whether to stay or go within that first six months — those first few months make a significant impact on that decision.
Goals & Benchmarking Do you and your new hire have the same understanding of the role and the expectations thereof? It’s crucial to start on the right foot. Start by collaborating with their team and supervisor to make sure goals and training align with team needs and how the new employee fits in. Building this into your success plan will help create a smooth transition into the employee’s new role. Helping your new hire set goals with their supervisor and strategize a game plan to execute those goals will not only give insight and motivation for your new hire but will also provide the organization a better look at how each employee is impacting the business. This isn’t something you necessarily implement within the first few days, but planning for the next six months, or even further, can help them understand their overall path with the company. Setting your new team members up with a tool like the Individual Developmental Guide will help direct them to take ownership of their own growth to reach their goals and keep them on track. Utilizing such a tool will help you and your new hire develop a strategic long-term training plan to maximize their performance and boost their engagement.
Tip for Success: Have a mentor program – connecting your new hires with an experienced team member to bounce ideas off of, hold each other accountable, and give them a sense of support to push out those goals will build a strong foundation for your new hire.
Professional Development & Continued Learning Learning doesn’t stop after onboarding. Help each employee reach their maximum potential by going beyond traditional training by training self-awareness. The best way for employees to grow their own strengths is by understanding what they are. With the Individual Developmental Guide, your employees and managers can stay connected, and it allows management to take part in each employee’s continuous training. Setting, executing, and completing goals is just one small part of the guide. Your managers and employees can also practice and improve different skills and evaluate their own success.
Building a foundation for long-term success starts with these 4 crucial steps. Start planning with @CaliperCorp’s latest post: Professional development is one of the key benefits candidates often search for in a company. They want to know that they will be challenged and have the opportunity to grow, improve, and climb in their profession. Planning out and building this into your long-term success plan — and continuously building on it throughout an individual’s time with the company — keeps them on track and shows them that you want them to succeed. The Individual Developmental Guide is designed to help employee’s understand their own personal traits, motivators, stressors, and behaviors, so they can work with their managers to build their success plan and utilize actionable recommendations for growth and development.
Promotion & Leadership You’re spending a considerable amount of time — and possibly money — to help your employees improve their skills. To get a return on investment, your employees need to be able to put those new skills to work in your company – and possibly in a new role – as they flourish. Did you know 30% of employees feel undervalued in their current position? That’s a large portion of the workforce that doesn’t feel as though they’re being heard. Evaluating performance and identifying career advancement opportunities for your employees is crucial to keeping them and creating long-term success. Discover the collaborative nature of the Individual Developmental Guide, which keeps the lines of communication open and engaging, so you’ll be able to identify those employees who are ready for advancement and set them up for leadership. Given its unique perspective, the guide is often used in both the onboarding process of new employees, as well as later discussions about career aspirations, making it a valuable tool for employee performance management and development. Then aligning the Individual Developmental Guide with competency-based training modules from the Caliper Precision Series, you will be able to successfully close the loop for success when moving from onboarding to ongoing training and development. For more information on the ways Caliper can help you create and manage long term success plans, reach out to our experts today to start building out a strategic employee development plan. “View Original Article” https://calipercorp.com/blog/how-tocreate-a-long-term-success-plan-for-your-new-hires/
> Aggie Alvarez Caliper
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
27
We jump through hoops for you. Because you jump through hoops for them. For more about how Integrity can help you help your customers contact: Cathy Colรณn at 920-968-8326 or ccolon@imico.com integrityinsurance.com
VIRTUAL UNIVERSITY
ASK AN EXPERT BRIEFS – VALUABLE MEMBER BENEFIT The Virtual University’s Ask An Expert (AAE) service may be our best known member benefit. Daily we receive questions from members wanting help with denied claims, coverage and procedural issues, and agency management concerns. Our faculty includes some of the nation’s foremost experts in the insurance industry. These volunteer faculty members generally charge for the time they give to our members. Think about that, the insight you get through our AAE service costs nonmembers THOUSANDS! And remember, beyond having access to all of our valuable Ask An Expert content, only members are allowed to ask the questions. How to Use the Ask An Expert Service Our agency has used the Ask An Expert service on many occasions with varying degrees of success.” Generally, the answers we receive are very beneficial; however, there are times when we receive a very general, nonspecific answer or are told that the Virtual University can’t or won’t answer the question. Are there any guidelines or rules” to the Ask An Expert service? Answer: Ask An Expert (AAE) was launched as a key member benefit, created to give every Big I” member the ability to request answers to tough technical questions, rebuttals for denied claims, and information regarding agency management. More than 50 industry experts unselfishly donate their time to you as part of the AAE service. To make this the best technical resource it can be and promise you the best result, every member needs to be aware of a few operational protocols related to your responsibilities, the information needed for the best outcome, and the rules” of engagement. Let’s take a look at each protocol. Member Responsibilities Even though Ask An Expert is a member service, each member has some personal responsibilities regarding its use. To assure the best results, before submitting a question make sure to: • Do your own research first. Before submitting a question, each member should first undertake his or her own research. Although the faculty loves answering coverage questions, the best results come when you do the preliminary research then ask the experts to confirm or deny your findings. The AAE is not intended replace your own efforts. Layout the situation/question, convey your opinion, and ask the group’s opinion of your findings. Trust me, they are more than willing to help and guide you down the right path and the answers provided will be more beneficial to you. • Make reasonable requests. AAE was created to answer specific questions, not to compare, contrast, or explain one or multiple coverage forms. We often receive questions asking our experts to compare two (or more) coverage forms. Such a request falls outside the AAE’s scope of services. • Ask specific questions. Overly broad questions don’t lead to useable responses. A one-line question about the differences between an occurrence and claims-made form won’t garner you much useable information. Be specific and focused with your question. • Avoid state-specific questions. State-specific questions should be directed to the state association or the state’s department of insurance. We probably don’t know Hawaii’s laws governing the amount of fees an agent can charge or Montana’s requirement for giving gifts. You’ll need to check with the state for this type of information. • Limit questions about laws to insurance laws. The VU cannot opine regarding laws specific to other industries. We can’t address banking laws, real estate laws, or any other industry laws. • Don’t place time limits on the answer. We ask for three to five business days to provide a response, our experts cannot be called upon to provide a response before 5:00 today.”
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If you take on these responsibilities, the answers you get promise to be more on point and far more useful to you. Ignore these responsibilities and the responses will be vague, inconsistent or even nonexistent. Hints for an Awesome Outcome In addition to your member responsibilities, you can do certain things to almost guarantee an awesome outcome. These include: • Always attach the coverage form. If the question involves an interpretation of coverage, ALWAYS include the coverage form/ endorsement, or reference the ISO form (including the edition date). With the form or endorsement information, our faculty can answer your question applying specific policy language rather than guessing (which none of them will do). • Attach supporting documentation. If you are asking about a denied claim, send the denial letter and any other key documentation. Feel free to redact any private/personal information, but the key points addressed by the adjuster allows the faculty to address each point. Rules of Engagement Essentially these rules of engagement” relate to the types of questions to which we cannot respond. Even though these rules” are posted on the website, they are reiterated here. There are seven types of questions to which we cannot respond: • Legal advice. We cannot provide legal advice, so please do not submit questions as to whether someone is or is not liable. • Litigation. We cannot respond to any questions involving situations that are currently being litigated or likely to be litigated. We can only respond to hypothetical coverage questions or claims that are unlikely to lead to litigation. • Complex situations. We cannot respond to overly complex coverage or claim scenarios, particularly those that are largely fact dependent or involve lengthy proprietary coverage forms or extensive documentation. A number of the participants in this service are available for consulting and expert witness work as outlined on their Bios pages. • Markets. We cannot help you find a market for an account. It’s simply impossible for us to monitor insurer underwriting appetites. We suggest you try your carriers, our own Big “I” Markets, and then try www.insurancemarketplace.com and www.mynewmarkets.com. • Classification and coding. We cannot opine on the proper classification of a risk. This almost always involves subjectivity based on a greater knowledge of the risk (and possibly even a physical inspection) than this forum allows. • Coverage options. We cannot tell you how to write an account regarding what forms or endorsements a particular prospect or insured might need (ISO has thousands of endorsements and we can’t suggest which ones a risk might need nor can we opine on the possible exposures. • Agency Management Manuals and Templates. The VU does not have or maintain agency management manuals or templates such as an agency management manual, procedure manual, producer or other employee agreements, non-competes or other such templates. Any agency in need of such information should contact an agency management consultant. Several highly-qualified agency management consultants are members of the VU faculty and can help. Click here to link to these consultants Applying these protocols to your questions guarantee the best possible result from the AAE service. Our faculty enjoy being a part of this service and want to make this a valuable service for our member. Many members already take advantage of this great service; but if you haven’t used Ask An Expert recently or ever, be sure to take advantage of this valuable member benefit. Visit https://www.independentagent.com/vu/ askanexpert/default.aspx to submit your question.
DECEMBER 2019
29
News Members in the
ACUITY TO HIRE 100 IN 2020
Acuity announced that as a result of strong business growth, it plans to hire 100 employees in the next year. The insurer has increased its staff by nearly 50 percent over the past seven years. “Because of Acuity’s continued success and expansion, we have been able to provide rewarding jobs for more and more people,” said Joan Ravanelli Miller, General Counsel/Vice President - Human Resources. “From high school or college graduates seeking entry-level opportunity to experienced professionals looking to take on new challenges, Acuity is an employer of choice in the insurance industry.” “We are increasing our staff not just to respond to our strong growth, but as an investment in our future,” said Ben Salzmann, Acuity President and CEO. “We need to have all the resources in place to serve a growing customer base and to fulfill our mission of rebuilding shattered lives, propelled by innovation, grounded in relationships.” Acuity has grown throughout its operating territory at a rate that eclipses the rest of the insurance industry, doubling its top-line revenue in the past eight years. Recently, the company completed a $250 million expansion of its Sheboygan headquarters, increasing total building space to over 1.2 million square feet in anticipation of continued staff growth. A 250,000-square-foot, 700-plus stall parking structure, and 41,000-square-foot recreation center featuring three multipurpose courts and an indoor running track are also under construction with completion scheduled for early 2021. Acuity has earned recognition as a great place to work, including being named to Forbes’ lists of America’s Best Mid-Size Employers, Best Employers for Women, and Best Employers for Diversity. The insurer was also named to Forbes’ list of America’s Best-in-State Employers 2019, ranked at #2 in the state of Wisconsin. In addition to providing employees competitive salaries and professional development opportunity, Acuity offers many work-life balance benefits, including flex scheduling, workfrom-home, generous health insurance benefits, an aggressive company 401(k) contribution, and more. The insurer will hire staff across all areas of its operations, including processors, underwriters, programmers, technical support staff, analysts, claims professionals, loss control representatives, field staff, maintenance staff, and others. For more information, visit www.acuity.com/careers.
30 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DELFINO NAMED VICE PRESIDENT OF CLAIMS Brian Delfino has been promoted to vice president of Grinnell Mutual’s Claims division. Brian joined Grinnell Mutual in March 2017 as director of Personal Lines Claims and was promoted to assistant vice president of that department in 2018. “I am excited about the opportunity to continue to grow with this amazing company,” Delfino said. “The employees, agents, and mutuals that we have the privilege to work with every day are some of the best in the industry.” Delfino has an extensive claims leadership background and held several executive positions with the Kemper Insurance Group, eventually overseeing more than 1,000 employees there as senior vice president of Claims. “Brian brings such a wealth of claims and leadership experiences to Grinnell Mutual and our senior leadership team,” said President and CEO Jeff Menary. “He is a servant leader who takes pride in his personal growth and development, reflected by his current pursuit of an advanced degree in Business Analytics from the University of Iowa.” Delfino has a Business Management degree from Rhode Island College, and attended the Executive Development Institute at the University of North Carolina. He also holds the Associate in Claims (AIC) designation.
PATTY ANDREE AWARDED THE CHAPTER VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR Patty Andree, Vice President, of Johnson Insurance (Johnson Financial Group) was recognized at Applied Net Conference held October 14-17 in Las Vegas Nevada as the Bill McNulty Chapter Volunteer of the Year. Patty serves not only one but two chapters in a leadership role - Wisconsin and Large Agent Alliance chapter. Her philosophy, “give back,” shows through her dedication to helping take these chapters to the next level through her devotion to the user group. Patty has gone above and beyond in her membership recruitment efforts for both chapters, including developing a process for welcoming new members, facilitating networking activities and making it a point to communicate with her chapter members yearround. There are 50 chapters with hundreds of volunteers. Only one award is presented annually.
SECURA INSURANCE MOVES INTO NEW OFFICE SECURA Insurance moved to its new home office located at 1500 Mutual Way in the Village of Fox Crossing. The 300,000-square foot building gives the company room to grow with space for more than 1,000 associates. The building is situated on 200 acres of land in the Village of Fox Crossing and was planned with future growth in mind. SECURA purchased the land in 2006 and broke ground for the new building in June 2017. C.D. Smith was the construction manager and builder for the project. Eppstein Uhen Architects designed the building with a focus on sustainability while incorporating employee amenities: • Café • Onsite wellness center for associates and their families • Fitness areas • 44 conference rooms to promote collaboration and train associates for the future • Multipurpose room for all-associate gatherings and fitness • Reflection room • Outdoor seating, walking paths, and water features • Solar panel field with room to expand, which generates 15% of the facility’s energy needs
Unique design elements, such as reclaimed barn wood from local Wisconsin barns and large windows bring in natural light and help tie the building into the surrounding landscape. “I’m excited to bring our Fox Valley associates under one roof in our new home office,” said Dave Gross, President & CEO. “Our new building is more than just a building. It is a place that will help support our company’s culture, position us for future growth, and keep us connected to the greater Fox Cities area forever!” SECURA sold its previous building located at 2401 South Memorial Drive in Appleton, Wisconsin to Fleet Farm earlier this year. Nearly 750 associates moved into the new home office. SECURA’s new address is 1500 Mutual Way, Neenah, WI 54956, which is located off of County Road CB in the Village of Fox Crossing.
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
DECEMBER 2019
31
INTERNET OF INSURANCETM
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AGENCY AGENCY SOLUTIONS SOLUTIONS AGENCY SOLUTIONS AGENCY SOLUTIONS TRUSTED TRUSTEDCONSULTING CONSULTINGFOR FORTHE THEINDEPENDENT INDEPENDENTAGENT AGENT
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Mallory MalloryCornell, Cornell,IIAW IIAWVice VicePresident President MalloryCornell, Cornell, IIAWVice VicePresident President Mallory IIAW mallory@iiaw.com mallory@iiaw.com mallory@iiaw.com mallory@iiaw.com www.iiaw.com www.iiaw.com www.iiaw.com www.iiaw.com
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
JOIN US, a WI Based Top 100 Agency
Are you or your agency ready for a positive change? Robertson Ryan has been offering innovation through our unique Agent Owner structure since inception in 1960. Time and time again after an agent or agency joins us they say, “We wish we did this years ago.” Our team recognizes the strength and power behind the agent and insured relationships so we’ve built, and continue to fine-tune, a support network rewarding those affiliated with RRA. Find more at, www.RobertsonRyan.com/AgentOwner ...and let’s connect. Call or email me 414.221.0363 or cillman@robertsonryan.com. I look forward to answering your questions!
Chris Illman, CEO
www.RobertsonRyan.com 34 DECEMBER 2019
wisconsin INDEPENDENT AGENT
We help people feel secure and make life better when bad things happen
Partners Mutual Insurance is now
Penn National Insurance In 1919, A group of Pennsylvania farmers founded Penn National Insurance to provide affordable workers’ compensation insurance. Today, Penn National Insurance sells property-casualty insurance in 11 states by partnering with more than 1,200 independent agency operations. As one company, we bring the personal attention and local focus of a regional carrier, along with the quality of products and services of national carriers. Interested in partnering with a thriving insurance carrier with superior customer experience? We are looking for select commercial lines-oriented agencies in Wisconsin. Contact: Vicki Lentz 262.432-3420 vlentz@pnat.com
Clayton Zogata 262.432.3422 czagota@pnat.com
• Strong financial performance and A.M. Best Financial Strength Rating of A• Expanded Commercial Lines product and services with competitive pricing and comprehensive coverages to help our agents grow profitably. • Comprehensive Personal Lines product offerings, including Homeowners Equipment Breakdown and additional protection plans. • State-of-the-art quoting, processing and self-service tools, making is easier and faster to meet your customers’ needs. • Local experienced underwriting, claims and management staff
An Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer ©2019 Penn National Insurance
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MADISON WI PERMIT NO. 549
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS. Join AAA’s Network of Independent Insurance Agents and Enjoy Tremendous Advantages. ▪ AAA brand strength ▪ Competitive commission program ▪ Outstanding contingency program ▪ Innovative co-op advertising resources For even more great reasons to add our powerful brand to your insurance carrier line-up, contact:
Leo Plese at 630-328-7076 or lmplese@aaachicago.com today! Independent Insurance Agents are not employees of the Auto Club Insurance Association nor The Auto Club Group; but rather are independent contractors. Insurance underwritten by Auto Club Insurance Association or Auto Club Group Insurance Company. 19-IN-0112 19-IN-0112_WI A Recruitment Ads 7.5x5_v1.indd 1
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