with art (choice for Don--either adapt a mug of Gray McCaskill from 10/18/04 edition--cover or page 5), or just pick up logo from 10/11/04, page 14, or pick up (and blow up) billboard from 10/11/04, page 15)
Senn Dunn Keeps Growing, But Carefully
2004 'NU Agency Of The Year' builds book organically rather than via mergers
One year after being named the "National Underwriter Commercial Insurance Agency Of The Year" for 2004, T. Gray McCaskill, president of Senn Dunn, said the philosophy on which his firm built its success and earned its award--providing service above and beyond the customer's expectation--remains central to the agency's culture.
"We still feel that the independent agency system is a fabulous system," said Mr. McCaskill. "There will always be competition, but you have got to keep looking and trying to make sure you are listening, and doing, and asking your clients what their expectations are, and hopefully, you are exceeding those expectations."
Mr. McCaskill said his Greensboro, N.C.-based agency has "continued to grow" over the past year, in terms of volume, the number of employees, number of offices and physical office space in Senn Dunn's home base.
"We've had tremendous growth as far as new people coming here," he said. "To a small degree, it continues to be our field of dreams. We continue to have all these great systems in place, and more and more people want to have the opportunity to participate."
The agency has added a total of 15 people, including four producers, a full-time claims professional and support personnel, bringing the agency's total number of employees--producers and support staff--to 100.
Senn Dunn's growth prompted expansion of its physical plant this past year. To expand its office facilities, the agency took over available space in the downstairs portion of its headquarters building, ultimately boosting its total work space from 20,000 square feet to approximately 27,000 square feet.
The agency added two new partners in the past year and has enjoyed watching its young producers "come into their own," according to Mr. McCaskill. The books of business of the younger producers have grown--and so, in turn, has the need for support personnel.
Senn Dunn also added a third office--in Cary, N.C., known as the Triangle part of the state (the cities comprised of Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill), outside of its predominate geographic region in the Piedmont Triad area (a 12-county section comprised of the three major cities of Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem).
But while Senn Dunn is eager to keep its momentum going, the firm isn't about to rush into mergers with other agencies just to add volume arbitrarily, despite overtures from many, noted Mr. McCaskill.
The cultural fit still needs to be right, he emphasized, noting that one of the big reasons Senn Dunn was chosen by NU last year was that employees cited the agency as an outstanding place to work.
"We're always concerned about the culture," he explained. "We want to make sure we keep this culture synergistic. We want to keep working together. It may sound hokey, but it works."
The softening market has had an effect on business as price competition has entered the picture in a bigger way.
Some accounts inevitably moved their business over price, according to Mr. McCaskill--only to come back after realizing that the value-added services the agency provides were worth more than the dollars they saved on their premium.
For example, he cited a major account that was lost on price that came back to the firm within six months. The client discovered that the agency they moved to was not willing to provide the value-added support Senn Dunn had routinely offered them for years.
"That's one of those good stories, where if you are doing the right thing, you normally get rewarded for it," he observed. "Folks are looking for value other than price. We have to be competitive, but we also have to make sure we are telling the story that, 'Hey, we are more than competitive and we are bringing something additional to the table.'"
One major step taken by Senn Dunn was to become a member of Assurex Global Partners, the Columbus, Ohio-based agency affiliation group with international brokerage ties.
The exclusive Assurex connection in their area gives Senn Dunn the ability to compare notes with "the best of the best" agencies from around the country and abroad--to "share and learn" more about what makes an agency successful, which will "help us grow" for the future, said Mr. McCaskill.
With international connections, Senn Dunn can now reach out to new accounts with global exposures and offer more advice and services, while capturing additional business referred through their new-found agency partners, Mr. McCaskill noted.
Quotebox: (if we use is a McCaskill mug):
"We're always concerned about the culture. We want to make sure we keep this culture synergistic. We want to keep working together. It may sound hokey, but it works."
T. Gray McCaskill, President
Senn Dunn
Caption if we use the Senn Dunn logo or billboard shot:
Senn Dunn remains committed to its motto--"We'll Handle It"--emphasizing value-added services over price competition.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.