Being an independent broker doesn’t have to mean going it alone. Andrew Janzen tells IBC about the challenges and rewards that come with seeing your own name above the door
IBC: Since your business took on the Janzen Insurance name in 2017, what have been some of the benefits of owning an independent brokerage?
Andrew Janzen: When I got into the business, I didn’t want to be an insurance salesman – I don’t think any broker does. I wanted to be seen as a professional, and working as an independent gives me the opportunity to be that professional and trusted advisor [for clients], but also have the joys and frustrations of running a small business.
Most of my customers are also business owners. Fifty-five per cent of our revenue comes from insuring small businesses, so when I’m sitting down with a business owner, I can commiserate with them over the challenges, whether it’s dealing with landlords or suppliers, or finding, attracting and retaining staff.
IBC: What challenges in the broader insurance landscape are having an impact on your work as an independent broker?
AJ: The number-one challenge in our industry is access to markets. As an independent broker, [you need to] have to access to the insurance companies, [and while] MGAs are getting stronger and stronger, it’s still not the same thing as having a direct relationship with an underwriter where you can place business. That was my biggest concern going into it, but what surprised me was how receptive my underwriters have been to allow us to carry on with the contracts we had. The support I’ve received from the insurance industry has blown me away. With all the consolidation going on, we’re a little broker – we have six staff, and we do about $10 million a year in premium – so how many markets can you really represent? As much as I’ve been worried about it, they’ve been great.
I also know that I have to be a front-line underwriter because if I’m not profitable or have a couple of years of unprofitable business in a row with poor loss ratios, those relationships won’t last long. I have to continue to perform.
IBC: How can independent brokers, particularly those serving smaller communities in Canada, underscore their value proposition to clients in today’s risk-laden landscape?
AJ: To me, it’s always been about education. We have to be insurance professionals, not salesmen. When I look at what has made me successful when I got into the business, [it’s that] I immediately jumped into education. I didn’t want anyone to say, “He was just successful because he inherited or took over the family business.” You’ve got to be professional, you have to know your stuff, and you have to know what’s going on.
When I got into the business, I completed my CAIB designation in nine months; I completed my CIP designation two years after that, and then I completed my FCIP designation about two years after that. Then I did my FRM designation as well.
When I have a producer who wants to work with us, I tell them, “You’re not a salesman – you’ve got to be a professional; you’ve got to be adding value to that conversation because it’s not just about making the sale.”
As an independent broker, you’ve got to perform for the insurance companies, which means you’ve got to have good loss-ratio results and you’ve got to have below-average claims, so how do you do that? Part of it is knowing frontline underwriting, but how do you front-line underwrite? You have to know your product, and that goes back to your education – the insurance education is the foundation that undergirds a healthy business.
Whether it’s a business owner or a homeowner, no one particularly likes the insurance transaction, but if they really believe that you are trying to manage their funds well and be a good steward of their resources, and you develop that trust, it actually makes our job really easy.
IBC: How do you distinguish yourself as an independent broker in your community?
AJ: We just moved a new office, and we have really invested in our tenant improvements. We wanted our office to be different than any other insurance office you might walk into, so it’s unique, and that, for me, is how we are different and how we distinguish ourselves. I didn’t want to look like every other broker – we want to elevate the customer experience, and part of it is having a professional office.
