I’ve Seen the Future and It Looks Great!
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The Young Agents’ Conference is designed by and scheduled by young agents for young agents. They pick the instructors and topics, they schedule the program, and they make sure that there are networking opportunities. To be brutally honest, they sometimes talk a language that I do not understand and that’s especially when it comes to the discussions on social media.
I know that sometimes agency principals are reluctant to send their young agents to conferences such as this. We’ve all heard the fear … a young professional attends a conference and finds other opportunities that peak their interest. I’ve also heard that some professionals today will have worked at over nine companies in their lifetime. I have a friend in Washington, D.C., who starts looking for a new job almost immediately after he lands a new job. Personally that’s not what I look for when we’re trying to fill a vacancy in the IIAV office. If someone jumps ship too much, I’m reluctant to hire them in the first place.
Having said that, I can’t escape some realities of today:
• First, Virginia is experiencing a 3 percent unemployment rate. That’s technically full employment and thus an employee market … not an employer’s market. Stay tuned for this to begin to have an impact on agencies.
• Many professionals and especially the financial services are looking at an ageing population with a significant percentage retiring in the next decade. Agencies have a choice – look internally for the future or look elsewhere to carry on the legacy of your agency.
• Do you really want to have someone working for you who is not at the very peak of their profession? The IIAV staff for instance is a significant benefit and value of membership. The institutional knowledge of the IIAV staff is significant and I/we try to hire the very best and through our education investment, help them excel. How can this NOT benefit our members? If you invest in your employees how can that NOT benefit your customers?
• If someone doesn’t feel that they are appreciated, how can you expect them to stick around?
I’d go out on a limb and say that it’s easy to see the successful agencies and those are the ones who invest in their most important resource: their employees. If you’re an agency principal, the best investment you can make in your young agency professional force is to encourage and almost demand that they become active in IIAV’s young agent program – through the networking socials, specially designed programs and annual conference. These opportunities will pay dividends beyond your wildest dreams.
On another note, hard to believe it’s November already and 2018 is just around the corner. Please know that, on behalf of the entire IIAV staff, we are thankful for the faith, support and trust you have given to us through your membership in IIAV. We hope that you will always be thankful that your agency is a member of the "Big I”! Have a great Thanksgiving
Robert N. Bradshaw, Jr., MAM
IIAV President & CEO
