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Monday, April 7, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Turn your employees into headhunters
Last week I attended a four-day Society of Insurance Trainers & Educators conference. The class size was small, about eight, but what was exciting was the level of young talent in the training.
If we are reading the trade journals, we know that our industry talent is disappearing, in part due to the current and pending Baby Boomer retirements, and in part because of our seeming inability as an industry to attract new candidates. When was the last time you heard a young person, when asked his or her career plans, say, "I'm planning an exciting career in insurance!"
But the reality is, the insurance industry offers exciting career opportunities. Here are just a few of the advantages I've found during my two-decade plus career:
If we are reading the trade journals, we know that our industry talent is disappearing, in part due to the current and pending Baby Boomer retirements, and in part because of our seeming inability as an industry to attract new candidates. When was the last time you heard a young person, when asked his or her career plans, say, "I'm planning an exciting career in insurance!"
But the reality is, the insurance industry offers exciting career opportunities. Here are just a few of the advantages I've found during my two-decade plus career:
- Wonderful and supportive coworkers.
- Ample training opportunities, whether at the workplace or self-directed.
- Interesting dilemmas to solve, whether during my years in claims, my years working with agents and MGAs, or my years in risk management.
- A fairly lucrative wage.
But as an industry, we don't convey these benefits. As I watched the younger participants at this training workshop, I kept thinking, "Some headhunter is missing a great opportunity here." I would have hired any of the participants in a heartbeat.
If you are having trouble attracting great talent, why not turn your employees into headhunters? As they attend seminars and networking events, ask them to exchange business cards with people they think would be a fit for your company.
While these attendees may not be in the job market right now and you may not even have a current opening, a year down the road, with growth, mergers and acquisitions and downsizing, the story may be entirely different.
When I talk with other young people, particularly women, I encourage them to think about insurance as a career path. You may want to do the same.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Public sector risk managers do more with less
If you want to see risk managers who really know how to do more with less, spend a few days with public agency risk managers as I recently did in Anaheim, California. About a thousand risk managers and human resources officers, third-party administrators and those impacted by risk gathered at the Public Agency Risk Manager's Conference (PARMA) last week to discuss trends in public sector risk management.
I heard many great speakers, but the one who really stood out was Gordon Graham, a former police officer and safety consultant. He spoke about Admiral Rickover's 7 Rules of Safety Success, which I turned into a column in Risk Management for the 21st Century on http://www.allbusiness.com/. To read the column, click here.
Public sector risk managers are the unsung heroes of their agencies because they consistently figure out ways to manage the myriad problems public entities face as they try to provide services to an increasingly demanding public.
I heard many great speakers, but the one who really stood out was Gordon Graham, a former police officer and safety consultant. He spoke about Admiral Rickover's 7 Rules of Safety Success, which I turned into a column in Risk Management for the 21st Century on http://www.allbusiness.com/. To read the column, click here.
Public sector risk managers are the unsung heroes of their agencies because they consistently figure out ways to manage the myriad problems public entities face as they try to provide services to an increasingly demanding public.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Friday, February 1, 2008
Monday, January 14, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
New book on risk management a must read
Because I believe in insurance and risk management education, I'm posting a review from claims writer and pundit Kevin Quinley's website praising a new book by insurance professional Rick Vassar.
"Olly olly oxen free! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"
Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy
by Rick Vassar, iUniverse, 2006, 196 pp., $17.95
Somebody once said that a New York accent was the most effective form of birth control known to man. Others might nominate as an effective contraceptive any tendency to talk about insurance… or risk management, for that matter.
Author, risk manager and consultant Rick Vassar has penned an illuminating primer on insurance and risk management in his book, "Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy." The title is a take-off on the notion that, for most people, meeting with an insurance person or discussing coverage is as much fun as a root canal or proctological exam. The author – a CPCU and an ARM -- lives a dual existence. By day, he is a mild-mannered risk manager for a company in the Washington D.C. area. In his spare time, he writes and consults on risk management topics (check out vassargroup). Vassar tries (successfully) to cushion the blow and counter the stereotype by presenting insurance and risk management principles in a straightforward way that can profit any business professional.
Part of his theme is that most companies have risks that are overseen by someone whose title is not "Risk Manager." Most companies do not have risk managers; you need to have a pretty big insurance budget to justify that as a full-time position. No company vies to be paying so much in insurance premium that they spotlight the problem by having a full-time individual to tend to it. Nevertheless, all companies have risks and need to manage it. For these risk managers without title or formal portfolio, Vassar's book – perhaps the best risk management book of the year even without that phrase in the title -- is an indispensable primer and guide. Reading and heeding his advice will save businesses much money, frustration and Excedrin-consumption.
Vassar divides his book into three main sections. Part I discusses business strategies to even the playing field between policyholders and insurance companies. Part II walks through the major basic forms of insurance coverage for most any business. Part III rounds out with a useful; glossary and index.
Vassar's target audience is likely not the Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000 risk pro who attends the annual RIMS Conference. There is no highfalutin discussion of enterprise risk management or views from 50,000 feet above ground level. If you are seeking information on Sarbanes-Oxley compliance or the risk management implications of global warming, look elsewhere. The storefront risk manager, though, will find a wellspring of effective tips and tricks between these covers.
Vassar's focus is practical and hands-on, leavened with a self-deprecating sense of humor. Did I say "humor"? Yes, though few comedy clubs are likely to feature an Open Mike night for insurance reps, Vassar takes the human antipathy toward insurance and turns it into a source of mirth and amusement. (Some end-of-chapter checklists would have been a nice addition to the text, but this is a minor quibble.)
So run -- but don't hide - and get your copy of "Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy." Get out from under the desk. Leave the closet and face your fears. Insurance and risk management may not be fun (though they are occasionally funny), but Rick Vassar has come as close to anyone in blending sharp wit with moneysaving risk management insights.
"Olly olly oxen free! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"
Reviewed by Kevin Quinley
Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy
by Rick Vassar, iUniverse, 2006, 196 pp., $17.95
Somebody once said that a New York accent was the most effective form of birth control known to man. Others might nominate as an effective contraceptive any tendency to talk about insurance… or risk management, for that matter.
Author, risk manager and consultant Rick Vassar has penned an illuminating primer on insurance and risk management in his book, "Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy." The title is a take-off on the notion that, for most people, meeting with an insurance person or discussing coverage is as much fun as a root canal or proctological exam. The author – a CPCU and an ARM -- lives a dual existence. By day, he is a mild-mannered risk manager for a company in the Washington D.C. area. In his spare time, he writes and consults on risk management topics (check out vassargroup). Vassar tries (successfully) to cushion the blow and counter the stereotype by presenting insurance and risk management principles in a straightforward way that can profit any business professional.
Part of his theme is that most companies have risks that are overseen by someone whose title is not "Risk Manager." Most companies do not have risk managers; you need to have a pretty big insurance budget to justify that as a full-time position. No company vies to be paying so much in insurance premium that they spotlight the problem by having a full-time individual to tend to it. Nevertheless, all companies have risks and need to manage it. For these risk managers without title or formal portfolio, Vassar's book – perhaps the best risk management book of the year even without that phrase in the title -- is an indispensable primer and guide. Reading and heeding his advice will save businesses much money, frustration and Excedrin-consumption.
Vassar divides his book into three main sections. Part I discusses business strategies to even the playing field between policyholders and insurance companies. Part II walks through the major basic forms of insurance coverage for most any business. Part III rounds out with a useful; glossary and index.
Vassar's target audience is likely not the Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000 risk pro who attends the annual RIMS Conference. There is no highfalutin discussion of enterprise risk management or views from 50,000 feet above ground level. If you are seeking information on Sarbanes-Oxley compliance or the risk management implications of global warming, look elsewhere. The storefront risk manager, though, will find a wellspring of effective tips and tricks between these covers.
Vassar's focus is practical and hands-on, leavened with a self-deprecating sense of humor. Did I say "humor"? Yes, though few comedy clubs are likely to feature an Open Mike night for insurance reps, Vassar takes the human antipathy toward insurance and turns it into a source of mirth and amusement. (Some end-of-chapter checklists would have been a nice addition to the text, but this is a minor quibble.)
So run -- but don't hide - and get your copy of "Hide! Here Comes the Insurance Guy." Get out from under the desk. Leave the closet and face your fears. Insurance and risk management may not be fun (though they are occasionally funny), but Rick Vassar has come as close to anyone in blending sharp wit with moneysaving risk management insights.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Insurance Writer relocates to Phoenix
December 26, 2007
Release Date: Immediate Contact: Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC
Insurance consulting firm relocates to Phoenix
Insurance Writer, owned by Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC, a national risk management and insurance training firm, recently relocated to Phoenix, Arizona.
Insurance Writer was founded in 1997 by Nancy Germond. She has authored scores of articles on risk management, safety, personnel matters and claims management. She authors two columns, one for www.allbusiness.com and for Workers’ Comp Bottom Line, a Thomson West publication. In conjunction with Stillman Thomas, she designs advertising for some of the top MGAs and service providers in the nation. Her website is www.insurancewriter.com. Her blog’s URL is www.insurancecopywriter.blogspot.com.
Germond is a skilled and experienced consultant and presenter. Her relaxed and entertaining talks and columns focus on societal risks impacting today's risk management professional as well as tips for tightening day-to-day business operations.
If you'd like more information, please call Nancy at (602) 870.3230.
XXX
Thursday, December 13, 2007
E-mail communications may shoot us in the foot
For an excellent overview of the continuing problems with e-mail discovery, click here. I couldn't have said it better myself.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Insurance Writer announces new column
December 6, 2007
Release Date: Immediate
Contact: Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC
573 638-3738
Insurance consulting firm launches new risk management column
Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC, President of Insurance Writer, a national risk management and insurance training firm, will debut a new column in January 2008 at allbusiness.com, which is owned by Dun & Bradstreet. Ms. Germond’s column, “Risk Management for the 21st Century,” will assist small-to-medium sized businesses in better managing their risk.
Insurance Writer was founded in 1997 by Nancy Germond. Click here to view here to view her blog or website.
She has authored scores of articles on risk management, safety, personnel matters and claims management. For almost a decade, she has contributed to Workers' Comp Bottom Line, a Quinlan publication. Germond is a skilled and experienced presenter, and her relaxed and entertaining talks and columns focus on societal risks impacting today's risk management professional as well as tips for tightening day-to-day claims operations.
If you'd like more information regarding this or other information, please contact Nancy.
Release Date: Immediate
Contact: Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC
573 638-3738
Insurance consulting firm launches new risk management column
Nancy Germond, ARM, AIC, President of Insurance Writer, a national risk management and insurance training firm, will debut a new column in January 2008 at allbusiness.com, which is owned by Dun & Bradstreet. Ms. Germond’s column, “Risk Management for the 21st Century,” will assist small-to-medium sized businesses in better managing their risk.
As any manager knows, risk is inherent in almost every interaction in today’s increasingly complicated workplace. Many organizations rely exclusively on their insurance agent or broker to handle risk. However, business managers should have a high level of knowledge about managing risk. This column will provide business leaders with practical, common-sense tips to improve safety, better manage risk and the purchase of insurance, and more thoroughly understand the insurance marketplace.
Insurance Writer was founded in 1997 by Nancy Germond. Click here to view here to view her blog or website.
She has authored scores of articles on risk management, safety, personnel matters and claims management. For almost a decade, she has contributed to Workers' Comp Bottom Line, a Quinlan publication. Germond is a skilled and experienced presenter, and her relaxed and entertaining talks and columns focus on societal risks impacting today's risk management professional as well as tips for tightening day-to-day claims operations.
If you'd like more information regarding this or other information, please contact Nancy.
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