Hiring a producer is one thing; successfully hiring one is quite another. In small and midsize agencies in particular, hiring just one producer can make a big difference, for better or worse. Producers with similar experience and production potential can have completely different personalities and different approaches to makings sales. A producer whose style does not match the agency's can cost it more than the revenue he or she is likely to generate.

Successfully hiring a producer has two parts. First, the producer has to complement the agency's personality. Second, the producer's skills have to match the agency's needs. An agency seeking growth usually needs a producer with great sales skills (a "producing" producer), while another agency may need someone to take over and retain a book of business, not necessarily grow it. I call the latter producer–one who is good at keeping existing accounts but weak at obtaining new ones–a "servicing" producer.

Interestingly, many agencies get half the equation correct. For example, an agency looking for a producing producer often hires someone whose personality fits its culture, but who cannot sell. At first, the match might seem like a good one because the producer, like everyone else in the office, is nice and concerned about customers' well-being. These two traits, however, may actually prevent agency personnel from making sales. They may spend so much time caring for their customers that they do not have the time and energy to actually sell. They care so much that they want prospective customers to come to their own conclusion that ABC Agency is the right agency for them, so the producers and staff can rest assured that they did not unduly sway the prospect. Unfortunately, when an agency needs to grow, such an attitude makes it virtually impossible for a producer to build a book of business.