When we think back on how things have changed since the beginning of our careers –even if those beginnings only date back a couple of years–most of us would probably agree that the biggest changes have come in the technology we use in our day-to-day operations.

You don't have to be one of our original subscribers to feel dizzy at the pace of change. The social media boom, marked by the proliferation of LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook to interact with clients, is only a few years old, and is evolving into new technologies even as I write this. A recent AA&B survey conducted at our website indicates that our readers can't live without Internet access, e-mail capability, smart phones and other high-tech tools–and who knows what new gizmos in the future.

This month we take a look at the continuing evolution of agency technology–from the booming world of Marketing 2.0, to the strides being made in interactivity through the real time initiative. We also have included the results of our recent agency automation survey of more than 500 AA&B readers. The results indicate that 88 percent of the respondents have an agency management system (wow, what are the rest of you using?), and that you're using it for policy views, endorsements, billing, claims status and more.