My June column addressed many of the causes of poor agency valuations--and apparently struck a chord with readers. Most of the e-mails I received asked for more information regarding why working capital is so important to an agency's

When asked, "What do you like least about your job," many agency owners reply, "HR!" Most are born salespeople. They like selling, helping customers, building relationships and making people happy. It's what makes them tick. These same agency

When a P&C agency and a benefits agency--or even two such divisions of the same agency--think about exchanging referrals, several factors should be considered to increase the odds the arrangement will work. The success of such efforts is

INSURANCE companies have a terrific opportunity to increase profits and improve agency relationships by designing great contingency contracts. Such contracts are fair and create incentives for agencies to produce results beneficial to the carrier,

MANY agency owners wonder why growth should be a factor in an agency's valuation. Most understand why profit margin is a key component, but they sometimes question the importance of growth. The reason lies in what the buyer is actually

A long time ago, in a faraway land, I started my working life as a French fry chef in a fast-food restaurant. Frying fries was the only job I was qualified to do at the time and, oddly enough, it was considered an easier task than mopping floors. Yet

Many agencies view the opening or acquisition of branch offices as a way to grow and expand their market reach. Too often, though, I find that after agencies set up branch offices, they neglect to manage them. As a result, I inevitably find the

The thing I like least about my work is delivering unexpectedly low agency valuations to agency owners. Most handle the news well, but it still is difficult to tell them that they have not built valuable agencies. The upside for these owners is that