Texas Governor to address agents at management seminar

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Texas Gov. Rick Perry will deliver a special luncheon address at the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas’ 43rd Annual Joe Vincent Management Seminar. Nearly 400 of the state’s most progressive and influential independent insurance agency principals and managers are expected to attend the Jan. 29-31 event at the Renaissance Austin Hotel.

The management conference is said to be one of the largest in the country for independent agents and is named in honor of longtime IIAT member and past president Joe E. Vincent. The seminar opens Jan. 29 with an annual industry update, “Preview 2006,” at which IIAT technical experts will discuss market conditions, fallout from the 2005 storms, critical policy form and endorsement changes, and more. An opening reception follows.

On Monday, Jan. 30, Charles Green, a nationally recognized expert in the field of relationship management, will keynote the opening general session, presenting “Sales Effectiveness: Leveraging Trust in a Soft Market.” Green is a former lecturer at the Kellogg School and Columbia University and is co-author of the book, The Trusted Advisor.

In addition, on Monday morning Janet Parish, PhD, of the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University, will review the results of the IIAT/Texas A&M Joint Study focusing on what it takes to succeed in service.

Monday’s luncheon will feature Gov. Perry as the keynote speaker.

Workshops
The event’s scheduled workshops are structured to accommodate the needs of agencies based on size, with a large agency track, a small agency track and a combined track. Details about the workshops can be found on the IIAT Web site at iiat.org.

The Monday, Jan. 30 workshops and panel discussions include:

A presentation by Barry Rosen of the Pursuit Group, who will discuss how small agencies can compete for large accounts.

A panel featuring surplus lines leaders will discuss maximizing surplus lines resources in a soft market.

A concurrent panel examining disaster planning with guidance from Andrew Boyd of IIAT partner Agility Recovery Solutions.

Technology applications consultant Steve Anderson will discuss doing business through the power of remote technology.

Barry Rosen will share ideas on how to win customers without sacrificing margins with large agencies and Paul Vredenburg, Marsh, Berry & Co., will discuss the market and share tips for helping smaller agencies compete against larger players in the mergers and acquisitions arena.

Greg Downing, William Gammon Insurance, Austin, will discuss how to determine whether agents are ready for Professional Employer Organi-zation services, either as a service to be offered or as a strategy to implement in the agency.

Dan King, management consultant with Travelers, will explore how personal lines strategies are being used across the country by large agencies.

Paul Martin, IIAT director of Education, will discuss with small agencies how best to use IIAT’s New Employee Training Program designed to get fresh employees up-to-speed quickly.

The Tuesday, Jan. 31 workshops begin at 8:30 a.m. They include:

E&O expert Eric Moberg of the Moberg Group reveals what he has learned through years of agency audits. He will provide insights to exposures and recommendations for effective loss control.

Barry Rosen will demonstrate technologies such as sales force automation, customer relationship management, prospect intelligence gathering, and more in a workshop designed for large agencies.

In a special two-hour session Rick Bondurant, IIAT director of Agency Management Resources, will discuss ways to diagnose risk factors that can threaten the small agency and offer prescriptions for relief.

Amy Hendricks, IIABA assistant general counsel, will discuss compliance with the many federal privacy regulations including the CAN-SPAM Act, FACT Act, and the do-not-call and do-not-fax lists.

IIAT Continuing Education Manager Jim Gavin will moderate a panel that will explore how agencies are beating the soft market by expanding product and service offerings via employee benefits producers.

Registration and complete details are available by phone at (800) 880-7428 or online at iiat.org under IIAT Member Community.

Topics Texas Agencies Market Training Development

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