Michael Koscielny, MBA, CPCU, CIC, ARe, AIC, API, AIS, AINS, is chief executive officer and founder of Born2Lead, LLC. He has over 40 years of experience creating effective teams and innovative processes for underwriting and pricing for various insurance companies. He currently serves as Director of Marketing for Graduate Programs at The University of Olivet. He is an instructor for The National Alliance CISR and CIC designations and a Facilitated CPCU Study Group Leader for The Institutes. Koscielny has held many roles for The Institutes CPCU Society, including 2017 global president of the CPCU Society Leadership Council, 2017‒2018 President of the Underwriting Executives Council, and 2023 President of the Society of Insurance Trainers and Educators. He has written numerous articles and given many presentations. He published his first book Born2Lead: Lessons in Leadership, in 2023. In today's episode of the In The Know podcast, Chris Hampshire and Michael discuss his new book, the importance of training the next generation of leaders in the insurance industry, and the many mentorship and training experiences that led to success throughout his career.

These onsite episodes of the In The Know podcast are brought to you by Gallagher Bassett.

Key Takeaways

• Michael shares his unexpected journey into the insurance industry.

• Insurance became his calling when Michael realized that insurance serves as the next responder in natural disasters.

• An overview of the unique demands of the Florida insurance market.

• The "why" behind Michael's short-lived retirement from the insurance industry.

• Writing a book successfully starts with not telling anyone that you're writing a book.

• Michael shares additional steps to effectively writing and publishing a book.

• Born2Lead highlights 13 attributes that address the reality that behaviors are not natural, they are learned.

• Michael shares his experience with trust, one of the essential attributes that is outlined in his book.

• Strategies for effectively training people and developing leaders.

• Instilling leadership qualities in others starts with giving them opportunities they wouldn't have otherwise.

• Benefits of membership and active participation in the CPCU Society.

• For Michael, initial leadership opportunities were met with hesitation but additional training and mentorship led to success.

• Michael reflects on what he wishes he would have known at the onset of his career.

Quotes

• "When there is a natural disaster, the first people there are the first responders. And when they leave, who's next?"

• "Most of the people I know in this business really care about the people they serve."

• "There is a real need in our marketplace today for teaching leadership skills to emerging leaders."

• "Acknowledge people, and not just the negative things they do."

• "When someone does a great job, I want everyone in the organization to know."

• "We're all born to lead, it's just a choice we have to make."

• "As I made those steps in my career, more opportunities came to me in my work life."