GOLD Best Agency to Work For – West: Eaton-Provident Group

Best Agency to Work For – West

Eaton-Provident Group, Scottsdale, Arizona

Family, Fun and Fantastic

Wanna have happy employees? Just let them have fun.

That seems to be the philosophy at Eaton-Provident Group, a small agency in Scottsdale, Ariz., where employees used F-words to describe their workplace: “fun,” “family friendly,” and “fantastic,” where scattered throughout employee comments on forms submitted for the Insurance Journal annual Best Agency contest.

The agency of 20-plus employees won Gold for Best Agency in the West.

The ranking was based on a number of factors, but among the assets that put the firm at the top were the enthusiasm of employee comments, as well as its high score on IJ’s grading scale.

Asked what it felt like to be honored by employees, Jeff Schmidt, a principal in the firm, replied: “It feels great. We really strive to achieve a fun and positive work environment, so receiving this kind of feedback from our employees means the world to us.”

Schmidt said he and fellow principals Tim Schmidt and Greg Budiac keep a focus on maintaining a work-life balance for employees.

“We work hard from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day, but we don’t expect our staff to put in overtime because we recognize the importance of being present and available for our families,” Schmidt said. “Having a 10-month-old at home keeps this principle at the forefront of my mind at all times.”

That balance also includes some fun during work hours, usually in the form of a quarterly event for staff.

“Our most recent event was our office Olympics that took place over the last two weeks that the Summer Olympic Games were on,” Schmidt said.

Hosted group lunches, an annual team bowling tournament, an agency-wide Fantasy Football league, March Madness bracket tournaments and weekly NFL Pick-em leagues are other activities that inject a bit of fun into the working world of Eaton-Provident Group employees.

“All these events help us to boost employee morale and allow everybody to interact with each other, especially across departments that may not otherwise have the opportunity to work together,” Schmidt said.

Employees echoed the results of this philosophy in their comments.

“I have to say that it could not get much better than it already is, fantastic work environment and even better employees,” wrote one employee. “I appreciate everything Greg, Jeff and Tim have done to provide a fun and enjoyable workplace. Anyone would be happy and lucky to be a part of our work family.”

Of course, money was another positive for which the firm was called out by employees.

“I’ve only been working with this agency for 16 months but I’ve already received two hourly raises and then when I was placed on salary I received a small bump as well,” wrote another employee. “I haven’t had to ask for a raise. I also received a very generous Christmas bonus and have nothing to complain about.”

Employees in the survey also pointed out the firm’s willingness to provide training and advancement opportunities.

“It’s a fantastic place to work, especially for learning about insurance,” wrote one employee. “We have many experienced producers and CSR’s that are very kind and will help or teach anything they can to help you thrive and move up in the company.”

Another employee jotted a list of words to explain why the agency was among the best to work for: “Kind, empathy, strong financially, great teamwork, knowledgeable and treats everyone with respect.”