I have had several recent conversations with business owners and CEOs, and I’ve asked them all the same question: “What will be your top five risk issues in the next 12 to 18 months?” Here’s how they answered:
1. We need to grow, either organically or through merger and acquisition.
2. We have to maximize employee productivity.
3. We’re struggling to attract and retain high quality employees.
4. Our equipment is outdated; we need to invest in something new.
5. We don’t have an effective system for training employees.
It’s interesting to note that these answers include both business risk issues and strategic risk issues.
Traditional insurance agents just want to quote your insurance; they still think it’s all about the premiums. Traditional agents might say that they understand your business, but what they really mean is that they understand how insurance coverages translate into your business.
Based on their answers, business owners and CEOs are looking for solutions that focus on issues relating to both business risk and strategic risk. These are issues that, if they aren’t costing the businesses money already, will be costing them money in the very near future.
We recommend that business owners and CEOs work with an agent or broker who can help them identify and prioritize all of their risk issues. There are agents and brokers in the industry who can help businesses address both business risk and strategic risk issues. The first step in this process is an assessment to identify the top five business risks the business owner or CEO will likely face in the next 18 to 24 months. Then the agent or broker can create a comprehensive plan to systematically address these issues. There is absolutely no doubt that this type of approach will increase profits for a business.
Which approach do you think makes the most sense: getting a quote from a traditional agent with the focus on quoting insurance premiums, or working with someone who can help you identify, prioritize, and address your business and strategic risk issues?
Blog Authored by: Garry Watts, CPCU