“ We need assistants for our account managers who can work their way up to agents when they have the knowledge and experience,” he explained.
“ The agency is looking for people who are well organized, have a good work ethic and are willing to learn,” he added.“ They can come in and become familiar with the system and how things are done at the agency.”
One assistant has been training for two and a half years and should become an account manager by the end of the year, Batchelor said.
Tim Pruitt, of Tim Pruitt State Farm Insurance, is looking for part-time customer service representatives who can work their way up to a full time position. Pruitt said he needs bilingual customer representatives to work with his growing number of Hispanic clients.
“ Good employees who are bilingual are hard to find and harder to keep,” he said. Pruitt explained his agency competes against major employers in the area for those workers.
“ My agency also needs representatives who can relate to millennials. That age group is a strong growth area for the agency,” he explained.
The agency’ s success with these clients caused a need for more space.“ We are looking to move to a new location that will have room for us to grow even more,” Pruitt said.
Insurance sales agents average about $ 58,800 per year in the area, according to NWA Workforce Connection, a website that tracks job growth, training and wages. Other jobs in an insurance agency include claims and policy processing clerks, who earn about $ 28,500 a year. Claims adjusters, examiners and investigators earn around $ 59,000 annually.
With a thriving business community, look for the number of office and administrative employees to climb. Receptionists and information clerks average $ 24,900 locally with secretaries earning an average of $ 32,900. Pay rates go up as responsibilities and knowledge increase, especially in the professional services area. 75