HIRING IN A SCRATCH AGENCY written by Colby Allen , AgencyFocus
As an owner , starting from scratch is one of the most rewarding but also challenging endeavors you can undertake . Many owners begin their journey inspired by prior experience as a successful producer or employee at another agency . In the beginning , the number one goal is to write business and build up your book . Producing on your terms is the dream , however , you quickly get to a point where the demands on your time are being pulled away from production to more service , endorsements , claim questions , bookkeeping , or anything else that may reduce the time you spend producing on your terms .
Being a great producer will quickly present you with the necessity to support your momentum . As an agency owner , you may ask yourself , “ When do I hire my first employee ?”
The difficult part of this stage is there is no one right answer or perfect roadmap that gives you a step-bystep guide on scaling your scratch agency . The best part is you can create your plan to grow your agency with the right people in the right positions at the right time .
As employee # 1 you are wearing every hat needed to keep the agency moving forward . Once at the point where your time is being divided and causing you to lose momentum , that may be an indication that support is needed . When you are having to dive deep into every role needed to maintain the business you could easily start chasing everything that demands your attention and lose traction .
Although being a jack or jill of all trades is the primary
22 KANSAS INSURANCE AGENT & BROKER