In the world of producers, one person in particular is revered and held in a certain amount of awe, especially by newer producers. This person is the grizzled veteran who has a war story about every situation, has encountered every kind of buyer and has made every kind of imposs-ible sale. This person has a significant book of business and has been with the agency through soft markets and hard markets, through management changes and sometimes even through ownership changes. This person has seen both rookies and experienced producers come on board and fail. At the coffee machine or water cooler, you will find the veteran dispensing his or her brand of wisdom to whomever will listen. He is often the self-anointed top producer; other times he is anointed by management as "the best." And almost all these accolades are because of the size of his book of business and longevity with the company.

But let me offer a different perspective. A person's book of business does not determine whether he or she is the agency's top producer. A person's book of business tells everyone how good the producer used to be. Or it tells everyone he has been around long enough to get a book of business handed to him as other people left. Under no circumstances does a book of business indicate how good a producer is now. There is only one indicator of how good a producer is–his new-business sales.

If a person has the highest number of appointments, he or she should definitely hold the title of "best cold caller" or "best networker." If a person has the best retention, he should be recognized as the best account executive or best customer service representative. The person who makes the most presentations should be recognized as the best quoter. But only the person with the most new-business sales should be recognized as the best producer.