Want to make better hires? Define your insurance agency culture

A well-defined culture can strengthen bonds between employees and help prevent costly hiring mistakes.

Every entrepreneur is familiar with the phrase, “It’s very expensive to make a mistake.” This doesn’t only apply to computer software or office space — it also applies to employees.

If an employee doesn’t share your commitment to helping clients achieve their financial goals, or doesn’t adhere to your agency’s approach to insurance and risk management, the situation can be very costly for both your practice and clients.

Have a defined culture

Independent advisory practices can prevent such mistakes if they have a defined company culture in place, which they can use during the hiring process to ensure candidates are not only qualified, but also share the firm’s key values.

Ideally, a defined culture can reduce turnover as well as bring all employees closer together as a team, thereby strengthening company performance, improving results for clients, and laying the foundations for scalable growth.

Defining your company’s culture, and putting it all down on paper, may seem easy, but if you’ve never done so before, it can be difficult to know where to begin. Below are some guidelines for pinpointing the attributes of your practice’s culture:

Once you have an idea of what attributes you would prefer every member of your team to possess, you can begin to select the nonnegotiable qualities that every new hire must have in order to join your firm. When you know for sure what you are looking for in new hires, it’s easier to find the best potential additions to your team.

Of course, a firm’s culture applies to more than just hiring new employees. Following the mission and core values you outline can establish a more close-knit team among new and existing employees where everybody is on the same page regarding their mission and values, as well as how to interact with and service clients, how to generate referrals, how to engage with prospects, and how to engage with each other.

Tips to strengthen your agency’s culture

Below are some tips for how to strengthen your agency’s culture, and bring employees closer together as a team, throughout the year.

A defined and strong company culture is essential for finding the right people for an advisory practice — and helping them grow as the firm grows. When all employees are on the same page as far as their mission and core values, an advisory practice is best positioned to help clients achieve their financial goals.


Chris Radford (info@ae-wm.com) is president of AE Wealth Management.