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Agency Management Resources

The Big “I” Diversity “Resource Page” — Your prime source for a plethora of information and tools to aid you and your agency to enter untapped and emerging markets and take your agency to the next level. In this current economy agencies like yours face business challenges day-to-day and are looking for innovative ways to streamline their current operating procedures and enhance the value of their agencies. The Diversity resource page serves as that tool to help you navigate through many of those challenges to ensure your agency is operating in the most effective and efficient way possible.

Best Practices Tools and Resources to Increase Agency Value

To take your agency’s performance to another level – to go from good to great -- you will have to continue not only to grow but also continue to improve the job you do for your customers, improve the quality and capabilities of your employees, and provide to your employees the carrier relationships, the tools, the resources and the organization needed to serve your customers. The model is a wheel with strong leadership at the center. The wheel starts with good people having access to the proper suppliers, tools, resources, and organization, thereby attracting more customers, giving the agency better results, allowing the agency to attract better people and clients, producing even better results and so on.

The Best Practices program provides a comprehensive series of tools on an extensive range of topics. Learn what the best agencies are doing to improve agency performance and increase agency value.

Take a look at the Best Practices resources and see how your agency can get started.

Big 'I' Virtual University

The Big 'I' Virtual University (VU) is where you can build your knowledge base through online education. With live and on-demand webinars, a research library with more than 18,000 pages of content, and a members' only Ask an Expert service, the VU is the place to go to hone your technical insurance skills. This agent development resource includes:
Live and On-Demand Webinars VU webinars are taught by some of the industry's leading experts and coverage a wide range of topics including certificates of insurance, workers' comp, business income, business auto, and more. With our live webinars, continuing education credits are available in some states.	VU Research Library Offering an extensive catalog of articles, the library is organized into three main catagories - commercial lines, personal lines, and life/health. Many articles are based on member questions received by the association through our members' only Ask an Expert service, and when our volunteer faculty becomes aware of major coverage gaps and emerging technical issues, we're quick to present our analysis. A great way to stay up-to-date on the latest is to subscribe to Insurance Illustrated, the association's only technical/coverage publication.	Professional Development Professional development opportunities include programs like: EXCEED Basics & Beyond Basic You'll also find agency management materials, customer service content, checklists, charts, and white papers including Risk & Reality Reports can be found in the VU, and so much more.

Company Appointment Requests

Are you a diverse newly formed independent agency seeking a company appointment? Or are you a well-established diverse independent agency and are hoping to grow your business. Do you need assistance getting your foot in the door and know that your agency’s business plan will do the rest? Then the Big “I” Diversity Task Force carrier members would like to hear from you.

Complete and return the “Agent/Agency Appointment Request Form” below. Completion of this form does not guarantee an appointment with the below mentioned companies. This form will be directed to the Diversity Task Force Carrier Representative(s). If your agency meets the necessary qualifications you may be contacted by the carrier directly.

The Diversity Task Force consist of leading insurance company executives from Chubb, Encompass, Erie, Hartford, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Nationwide, MetLife Auto & Home, Safeco, Selective and Travelers.

Agency Appointment Request Form

Return via email to diversity@iiaba.net or fax to Whitnee Dillard at (703) 683-7556.

Diversity Toolkit

Building Membership From Untapped Markets: A Toolkit for Diversity in IIABA State Associations

The Diversity Task Force has just completed a toolkit for IIABA state association executives, volunteer leadership and staff. This step-by-step guide advises state associations on how to recruit and retain a diverse membership through their governance, products, service offerings and association activities. As a companion to the toolkit, the Task Force also created a PowerPoint containing summary information from the piece.

Download the toolkit

Get involved with InVEST

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In 2015, millennials will dominate the workforce. InVEST liaisons don’t wait until the office is empty to find new talent-- they train eligible recruits now.

InVEST connects teachers and insurance professionals in an effort to develop a unique insurance and business curriculum for students. The commitment level of a liaison is determined by the liaison and the teacher. A liaison may speak once a semester to students in the classroom, or be as involved as offering job shadow days and internships. InVEST liaisons not only help educate students about insurance, they have an opportunity to gain highly qualified employees in the process.

Get involved.

IIABA-AUS-2019-Diversity-Paper

Insurance Illustrated

The Big 'I' Virtual University weekly newsletter, Insurance Illustrated, is published every Friday and has more than 12,000 subscribers. Content is technical in nature and features articles on personal lines coverages, commercial lines coverages, agency management, and more. The publication is organized by category to allow you to focus on and bolster knowledge in areas specific to your needs and the needs of your clients.

Members and nonmembers alike can take advantage of the content in this newsletter although some features may be for members' only.

Click here to view archives of Insurance Illustrated.

Looking for a career in insurance?

Check out the Big “I” and InVEST’s insurance career center. Where job seekers can search of variety of careers within the insurance industry, post resumes and create a job agent to alert you when new posts appear fitting your criteria all for free!

Find Career Opportunities in Insurance

Looking for new talent?

Don’t wait until the office is empty to find new talent. Head to the Big “I” and InVEST Insurance Career Center. What makes the Insurance Career Center different?

Promotion where you want it: The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America and InVEST work to promote the Insurance Career Center in the industry with future insurance professionals at InVEST schools and colleges.
Budget friendly: Low cost job postings and free internship postings
Social media savvy: Postings automatically populate on the INVEST Facebook page
Search qualified applicants: Post a job and gain free access to the resume search feature
Feature your brand: Opportunities are available to purchase ad space linking to your job board

Click Here to post positions, search resumes and more!

Multicultural Organizations

IIABA and the Diversity Task Force do not endorse, implicitly or explicitly, these organizations. They are referenced to provide additional resource information, contacts or guidance in your diversity efforts.

Here is a list of organizations.

Start an independent agency

The “New Agency Toolkit” is designed to educate and assist in the process of starting an independent agency. The rewards are considerable, including the ability to call your own shots, a healthy return on investment in the form of owner’s equity and the satisfaction of being in a business that protect people and their valuables.

Step 1: The Groundwork
Step 2: The Business Plan
Step 3: E&O and Legal Criteria
Step 4: Access to Insurance Markets
Step 5: Agency Management System
Step 6: Workflow Procedures
Step 7: Additional Training
Step 8: Recruit

Get started now!

Developed by the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas.