Ensuring new hire success is one of the most important tasks for an agency, but it may also be the most challenging. There are a few things you can do to guarantee that your agents are best prepared when it’s time to put their skills to use. Help ensure that your new agents achieve success with these five tips:
Ben Franklin once noted, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” This is great advice when it comes to new hires! Take the time to build a hiring program that will quickly turn your new employees into top-notch producers. According to shiftelearning.com, an early investment in onboarding can go a long way. The cost of losing an employee within their first year can be up to three times their actual salary, and employee retention is deeply influenced by training and development opportunities. Work to perfect an office training program until it becomes an autonomous routine.
You have the gift of hindsight—and what a gift that is! As a seasoned professional, reflect back on your first few weeks in the industry. The tasks ahead of you at that time likely seemed quite daunting. Determine what resources would have helped you become a better producer from the start and consider providing your new hire with these tools. Need some ideas? Check out these “top 25” insurance agent resources from agencynation.com.
Ask important questions that inspire their future visions. What are their goals? What best motivates them? Open those gates of communication, and keep them open. The more you learn about your new producers, the better you’ll be able to work with them. Did you know that 92% of people don’t achieve their goals? Effective goal-setting is critical, and here’s a great article from Inc. about how those other 8% get it right.
According to mentorleadershipteam.com, retention rates are higher for both mentees (72%) and mentors (69%) than they are for non-mentoring participants and the “average engagement capital” can increase by 66% when peer mentoring is done effectively. If you can’t fulfill the position of a mentor for your new hire, consider delegating the task to a current producer. The mentor selected should have plenty of experience and serve as the go-to for both questions and insight.
Do you have a performance review system in place for your employees? According to clearcompany.com, 53% of employers said they don’t actively track performance, yet feedback is one of the best ways to ensure employee success. When you set up your training program, be sure to include a portion devoted to formal feedback. This will help your new producer consistently learn and grow within their role.
Already using these new-hire best practices? Have additional tactics to add that work well for your agency? Feel free to share your approach and tips with us below, we’d love to hear from you! Enjoying our blog? Be sure to subscribe!