williamjones

Angela Ripley, president of VW Brown Insurance in Columbia, Maryland, brings two decades of agency leadership, eight acquisitions and a passion for mentorship and inclusion to the role of Big “I” chair.

The leaders who excel in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) will be those who lean harder into the human touch when it matters most.

Gonyo worked every role in an independent agency—from the front desk to producing—before starting her own agency at 32 years old with “minimal money in a tiny little office,” she says. Today, Blue Line Insurance has four branches and 15 employees, 14 of whom are women.

In response to the hard market, the Big “I” national Young Agents Committee (YAC) and Trusted Choice® created the Young Agents Tactical Series. This podcast and short video series equipped emerging leaders with knowledge and resources to help better serve clients during a challenging time.

Agents who are considering taking the leap into agency ownership—or those who are already agency owners and are looking to up their game—should cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset.

Gonyo has worked every role in an independent agency—from working the front desk to producing—before starting her own agency at 32 years old with “minimal money in a tiny little office,” she says. Today, Blue Line Insurance has four branches and 15 employees, 14 of whom are women.

When Beth DeLaForest, president and owner of Aspire Insurance Group in Hudson, Wisconsin, launched the agency in 2014, she knew she had the chance to set an intentional culture—one that was different from those she’d previously experienced. DeLaForest’s insurance journey started when she moved out at 18 and needed to pay rent while in college…

Most leaders not only navigated market conditions they had never personally experienced, they also did so while leading a workforce that hadn’t either—a workforce that was busier, under more pressure and dealing with more stress than ever.

Carey Wallace, an entrepreneur at heart, is the founder of Agency Focus, an independent insurance agency consulting company.

David Garcia, president of Rancho Mesa Insurance Services Inc. in San Diego, California, transitioned from a career in professional baseball to becoming the founder of a Best Practices agency with a unique approach to specialization.