We’re back with another Ask Rick episode! Today Rick is answering your burning industry questions about cybersecurity, investing in tech, and steps you can take to overcome the “Great Resignation” transforming the job market.

Be sure to check out this article Rick mentions in the episode, written by Vertafore Chief Revenue Officer Cassidy Smirnow, which discusses how the insurance community can find and keep great people in this industry.  

Remember, if you have a question you would like answered, you can submit your own questions to [email protected].

This week we welcome Vertafore’s VP of Platform and Experience Design Kelly Byrom to talk about the power of design to impact people, business, and everyday experiences.  

In this episode, Kelly shares why curiosity is essential for fostering more inclusive design, and why there is a big opportunity for the insurance industry to use this thinking to attract younger generations in the workforce.  

Hear real-life stories of the serious implications of design, including why poor design led to women being 47% more likely to be seriously injured in a car crash.

Ready to get curious? Push play and enjoy the episode! 

In this special episode of the VIP, Rick is joined by two Vertafore colleagues for our very first InsuRant Roundtable. You’ve probably heard of our guests before: Dylan Braun is a producer of the show, and Justin Lair recently joined Vertafore as director of networks and associations.

Justin, Dylan, and Rick share their individual perspectives on the industry and marketplace right now. Justin believes that NOW is the most exciting time to be in insurance, and it has something to do with the sheer number of choices agencies have at their fingertips. Stick around for some fun rapid-fire questions at the end (with a few surprising answers), and we hope you enjoy this week’s episode!

Charles Specht joins us this week to talk about the life-altering power of this simple act: changing your mindset. Charles is President and CEO of Permission Network Insurance Agency, Inc., and he has firsthand experience with how agents can transform both their professional and personal lives by developing a growth mindset.

Charles believes that mindset is 90% of the sales game, and the most successful professionals will fully embrace this technique to close more deals. He lays out the best ways to get started to grow a healthy mindset, and why time-blocking is one of the most valuable tools for building confidence.

In this week’s episode, Rick is digging into a recent survey sharing how carriers are currently using data at their companies and how that impacts agencies. He uncovers opportunities for carriers to lean on data to make better business decisions, as well as areas where carriers are already heavily investing in data to unlock value for their clients. 

Find out how carriers are using data to differentiate their business and guide decisions on client satisfaction, actuarial pricing, cybersecurity, vendor management, and more.     

Insurance is an industry run by data, so tune in to learn more about how carriers (and agencies, too!) are optimizing it to make their businesses run better. 

Shawn Michael Walker joins us this week to talk about “sharpening your saw.” Shawn is SVP at Premier Group Insurance, and he talks with Rick about how agencies can get ahead of the curve as the industry goes through rapid changes.  

Shawn believes that the most successful agencies in five years will be the ones who are educating themselves now. He lays out his favorite ways to get educated and how to best prepare for the future, plus his go-to websites and other resources to get ahead of the game.  

In this week’s episode, Rick talks about how agencies and carriers can strengthen their relationships. Rick dives into data from a recent survey from Celent, a leading research and advisory firm that polled hundreds of agencies to find out what they need for an optimized experience with carriers and InsurTech.  

Find out what agencies are saying about why they choose one carrier over another (hint: it’s not always price), how agencies feel about portals, what different generations of agency employees think about technology, and more.  

Tune in to hear Rick’s three main takeaways that apply to both agencies and carriers in a time of increasing channel complexity. 

You can download a copy of Celent’s report, “Optimizing the Independent Agency Experience,” from our website.  

We’re back from summer break with a new guest episode, new music, and a new look. This week we welcome guest Jason Walker, a heavy hitter in the insurance world who helps agencies modernize and, in his words, “Do less and make more money.”  

Jason is Founder and CEO of Agency InsurTech, where he eliminates “business as usual” and delivers simple growth strategies and solutions.  

In this episode, Jason details his unique four-step approach to helping agencies implement tech. No two agencies are alike, and Jason’s approach is unique because from step one it’s all about creating a snowball effect of positivity throughout the process.  

This is the perfect episode to kick off the rest of 2021, and we hope you enjoy the episode as much as we do. 

Today on the show we have Tim Wilson-Humphries, an independent agent who specializes in health, life, and Medicare.  

Our guest for this episode is Torey Maerz, Founder and CEO of Rocket Referrals. Torey is here to remind us that we can do hard things, and 2021 is going to be a year of adjustment for insurance. In this episode, listeners get a dose of tough love from a guy who knows what it takes to build strong and lasting relationships with clients to build success in times of change.