Katelyn Aitken Meyer is the third generation to work in the family agency, Aitken & Ormond Insurance in Michigan. On this edition of Declaration of Independents, we dig into expanding her role from accounting to overall agency operations and IT. She shares tips for keeping family drama at bay and how agencies should consider building roles that will help the agency grow and attract new talent.

Aitken Meyer’s father had a policy for his two daughters to join the family agency: They needed five years of work experience before he would hire them. “I was like, ‘Well, I’m not going to work for you, so don’t worry about it!’” she says. “But then five years later, there I was.” 

“I wanted to do my own thing,” she says. After graduating from Michigan State University with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting, she worked for a consulting firm. Eventually, there was an accounting opportunity at the family agency, which grew into an operations role. “Structure and organization are really huge for me in my personal life, it appealed to me,” Aitken Meyer says. “I was just like, ‘Okay, add on another hat! I can do it.’” 

Aitken Meyer was also featured in the November issue of Independent Agent. Check out her interview here or read the full issue online.