WHEN it comes to developing new producers, our industry has adismal record. Thankfully, several new producer training schoolsare now available to help correct this weakness. A huge problemstill plagues the process, though. Very little guidance or trainingis available for those who manage producers. As a result, evenpromising producers often fail to thrive. Agency owners andmanagers can help increase the odds their producers will succeed bytaking the following actions:

?Dedicate enough resources to help producers develop. Forexample, budget sufficient funds to send producers to salesschools, provide adequate leads and provide adequate internalassistance. Also, help them develop relationships with field repsand underwriters.

?Ask yourself if you feel threatened by your producers' success.How do you react to producers who might produce more than you? Doesyour reaction hamper your agency? Some producer-managers cannothandle competition from good producers, so they hire less-capablepeople. By doing so they can always claim the “top producer”position. This is usually a subconscious act, and I have found itto be more common than one might think. Before dismissing thispossibility, give it some thought.

?Consider how you deal with strong personalities. Many agencieshire producers with subservient personalities. Or they hire nicepeople whom everyone likes, rather than producers with strongpersonalities. Managers may take this route because they do notlike conflict and avoid it by hiring passive producers. Producerswith aggressive personalities, however, often are good closers anddo not mind making cold calls. Many agencies that shun strongpersonalities miss out on top producers.

?Dedicate yourself to the producers' success, or appoint thetask to someone else. Someone within the agency must work closelywith new producers so they can learn quickly how to workproductively and sell effectively. This person must go on salescalls with them or arrange to have an experienced produceraccompany them. This person also must role-play with them, discussaccounts and coverages with them (on a daily basis at first), andvisit companies with them.

Dedicating yourself to your producers' success also meansmonitoring their progress, a task not limited to tracking theirsales. In fact, tracking their sales at first is pointless.Monitoring their sales-related activities (making calls, meetingcenters of influence, developing leads, etc.) is far more importantwhen working with new producers. Producers must first build apipeline before sales will begin pouring into the agency. Theirprogress toward constructing that pipeline must be constantlymonitored.

?Do not expect your producers to be self-starters. Life would begrand if we hired no one but self-starters, but that's anunrealistic expectation. Self-starters often do not need to workfor someone else. When they do accept a position, they do notalways stay long and can be difficult employees. Most producers,then, need guidance. Provide yours with the framework they need tosucceed. Work with them to define their goals. Clearly communicateyour expectations, their responsibilities and the procedures theyare to follow.

The benefits of successfully developing a producer are more thanfinancial. Many agency owners find it to be one of their mostrewarding personal experiences. Some owners, however, come to therealization that they really do not like dealing with the detailsof developing a producer-usually after failing several times at theattempt. They finally succeed after assigning most of the detailsto others in the agency or to outside parties. The up-front cost isgreater, but the results are well worth it.

The next time you prepare to hire a producer, think about yourgoals, your personality and your plans for ensuring the producer'ssuccess. You won't succeed unless you are committed to dedicatingthe necessary time and resources.