By Mark Shlien, president, iPeopleLLC

When it comes to insurance employment, it's a good news/bad newsscenario. The good news: the insurance industry is hiring. The badnews? Despite high unemployment in the past few years, it is stilldifficult to find skilled workers.

The Insurance InformationInstitute reports the downward trend in carrier employmentgrowth that began in 2008 is reversing itself. Job growth waspositive each month in 2012. In the agent and broker sector,growth has been constant and has continued: 9,100 jobs were addedas of May. The Bureau of LaborStatistics projects that the number of health and long-termcare insurance agents will grow 22 percent by 2020, faster thanaverage for all occupations, spurred by an aging population andchanges to healthcare.

Read related: “5Reasons Why Veterans Make Great AgencyEmployees.”

In a 2012 national survey by SHRM (the Society of HumanResource Management), HR professionals ranked their toppriority as retaining and rewarding the best employees (59percent). Sixty percent also predicted that there will be more jobswith specific technical requirements and more jobs requiring ahigher level of education.

The agency system is one segment of the economy which has ashortage of people qualified to fill openings. Not only is itdifficult to recruit experienced insurance people, but it is alsodifficult to retain them.

Click through the following pages to help evaluate yourapproach to recruitment and retention.

1. Make your agency attractive to candidates.Today's employees are looking for more than compensation andbenefits. They want to have a positive work environment whereemployees are rewarded for good performance and where everyoneshares in being part of a successful firm. Ask yourself ifyour agency has a positive image in the community. Do you havea modern management approach with good communication and support ofemployees' needs? Is your office comfortable and attractivewith good automation support and equipment? Do you communicate yourgoals and reward your employees for achievingthem?

Read related: “InsurersWilling to Train Young Workers, but Wonder About EmployeeCommitment.”

2. Use effective recruiting methods. Inthe past, agencies relied on referrals or used newspaper ads torecruit. Today, Internet sites can be a source of resumes, butit is time consuming to review and screen them. Employeereferrals can also be a source of candidates, but also require timeand attention to keep employees focused on referring friends andassociates.

Read related: “Employees:Your Greatest Asset and Your GreatestChallenge.”

Because time is limited, most agencies prefer to use recruitersor search firms to fill positions. Search firms use theirdatabases and contacts to find quality people, rather than merelyproviding resumes. They start with a job description and aprofile of skills and qualities before making calls and screeningthe job candidates. They will also arrange interviews,facilitate communication throughout the process and assist withdeveloping a compensation package. They will even follow upafter the candidate is hired to determine how they aredoing.

3. Examine how you select employees. Oncea candidate is hired, he or she will need to be trained andcoached. An employee who should not have been hired will costthe agency, not just in salary and benefits, but the time of otheremployees.

Two tools which can help managers make better hiring decisionsare behavioral interviewing and pre-employment assessmenttools. Behavioral interviewing presentsquestions about the candidate's actual job experience. Forexample, to assess service skills, the interviewer might ask howthe CSR handled a difficult account or how they manage theirtime. Creating a standard list of questions which is usedby all the agency interviewers assures good interviewing andenables the interviewing team to comparenotes. Pre-employment assessment tools canalso avoid costly hiring mistakes. Insurance tests canidentify the level of knowledge an individual has, andpsychological testing can help assess sales capability and predictthe individual's ability to succeed with the agency's salesapproach.

4. Update your compensationplans. Compensation plans should be both competitiveand rewarding. Periodically, the agency should review salaryand benefits information to make sure salaries arecompetitive. It is also important to offer apay-for-performance compensation system, which rewards employeesfor achieving results related to the agency's businessgoals. But employees also value rewards that are notmonetary. Surveys conducted by The Society of Human ResourcesManagement indicate employees ranked interesting work, employerflexibility, feeling valued, having training and advancementopportunities as top factors influencing their decision to changejobs.

Offering perks can also be a cost-effective way to attract andretain employees. Casual dress, flexible starting times, earningtime off (comp days, floating holidays or summer hours), jobsharing or using part-time positions provide the agency with apowerful advantage in the job market.

5. Ensure that your communication iseffective. A good method for communicating individualexpectations is through the performance review process. Throughperiodic feedback, employees understand how they are doing and whattraining opportunities they should pursue to develop their skillsand knowledge. Communication in general is important to modernemployees. They want to know how their work fits into the bigpicture of the agency's vision and mission. They appreciatemonthly meetings that provide updates on plans and new developmentsand address their questions and concerns. hey are alsomotivated by public and personal recognition. Finally, they respectorganizations that ask for feedback on management and on the agencyoverall.

Attracting and retaining employees begins with a well-managedagency. Developing and promoting a positive organization andrewarding employees for their efforts are essential to performanceand to a good reputation. Recruiters can help identifycandidates, but agency should also have a good selection process toassure the right candidate is hired. And finally, solidcompensation plans are important for attracting and retainingtalent.