Executive Hires: What to look for moving forward into 2020 and beyond

When we consider moving forward into the remainder of 2020 and beyond, we have to do a quick inventory of what has changed and what remains constant. We have to take this count, in regard to your business and mine, in order to determine a base set of skills and attributes that will allow executive hires to succeed in the diverse professional world of insurance. 

The insurance industry, along with nearly every other space, has been forced to reassess how it approaches a world and market that can be quick to change. It has recognized the value in diverse ways of thinking, soft skills and competencies in areas such as communication technologies that have become essential to a business’ agility in a world shown to be increasingly unpredictable. 

Finding high quality executive hires, leaders who can flourish in a professional landscape that is still adjusting to the world around it, will be the difference between those companies that survive this transition and those that excel. 

Look for someone who leads

Building a new program or taking on a new initiative is a big task, one that requires fundamental management skills and a commitment to consistency. In order for any beneficial change to become standard practice, a professional must be willing to lead and, any more, change is a page in everyone’s book.

Look for someone who developed a solution

Lots of folks can see a problem. Lots of folks can complain about and never find a way past it either. Problems and new versions of those problems require new models to address them. The mind that takes the time to develop a road past those obstacles is an asset applicable to every part of your business.

Look for someone who acted upon an opportunity

Today, we all value stability a bit more than we did at the beginning of the year, but we can’t let the unknown and unexpected prevent us from taking the chances that push us forward. Without intelligent and measured risk takers, innovation doesn’t exist and entire markets are often under utilized. You need those executive hires who will seize upon those opportunities which benefit your company as a whole.

Look for someone four steps ahead

Recognizing a trend is usually pretty easy when you’re in the midst of it. But finding those candidates who predicted trends and then capitalized on them, benefiting their team and company—that is a mind actively planning, actively thinking ahead for the betterment of every individual they are professionally connected to.

Look for someone who builds relationships first

The insurance industry is first and foremost about people, and good business involves taking care of every person your company and services touches. Building solid and prolonged relationships and preserving the loyalty that results from these connections is key to building a resilient professional community. 

I know this may seem like common sense, but I find it is the common sense that we sometimes forget the most. We are in the middle of a recovery that will bring us into a period of prosperity unlike anything we’ve seen in quite some time…but we have to get there first. The James Allen Companies will continue to provide our clients with assistance, insights and the executive hires they need to prosper now and long into the future.