1

How to Get the Most Out of Your

Agency Management System

2

Intro: Get the Most Out of Your Investment ............................................. 1

Partner Right ......................................................................................... 4

Make it a Perfect Fit ................................................................................ 6

Map Your Processes to Your System ...................................................... 8

Never Stop Learning ............................................................................. 10

Know When It’s Right ........................................................................... 13

CONTENTS

3

Get the Most Out of Your InvestmentAs an agency, you rely on your agency management system to take care of everything

from tracking leads to invoicing clients, so you want it to work with you and for you.

You shouldn’t be battling with your agency management system, or with your provider.

You need a tool that fits your agency and not the other way around. Whether you have

an agency management system, or just started looking for one, this eGuide will help

you find out how to make it work for you.

4

Partner RightBefore you invest in a specific management system, look at the

provider. You’re not just getting an agency management system,

you’re getting the people who created it, provide service for it,

and decide how to change it. You want to be sure your agency

fits with the management system and the people behind it.

When looking at a potential provider, search for one who:

Has staying power: Look for a vendor who has been around for

a while, and intends to stay. Be careful of start-ups as a larger, less

personal vendor could acquire them in the future.

Goes with the flow: Find a provider that is aware of technological

changes and the evolving needs of your agency. Look for a company

that will make changes to what you have instead of making you switch

over to a new system year after year.

5

Lends an ear: Choose a provider that listens to your concerns and responds to what you

need. Look for a place with great customer service, preferably one where you get your own

personal representative.

Stays in touch: Look for a provider that is available when you need them. Find a provider

that makes it easy for you to reach them, providing you ways to contact them by phone and

e-mail, and who gets back to you ASAP.

Puts you first: Be wary of companies that are tied to investors or are just looking at the

bottom line. Independent providers are less restricted by these pressures and can focus on

you, their clients, first.

Builds community among users: User group are a great place to learn about new

tools and find out what you can do with what you have. Good providers learn what their

management systems can do, and what it should do, via these users groups.

6

Make it a

Perfect FitWe all know the story of Goldilocks and the three bears: Goldilocks tries out the bears’ food, chairs

and beds and settles in to the items that are “just right.” When it comes to your agency management

system, you need to be Goldilocks (minus the breaking and entering, of course).

You should be wary of providers that try to talk you in to capabilities you don’t need. Ultimately you

should look for a provider with personalized customer service who will be honest with you about your

agency’s needs and capabilities. No matter what capabilities you choose, make sure you educate

yourself on how to use them so your investment doesn’t go to waste.

7

As you take a look at different capabilities

offered, below are a few your agency will

likely want and use:

Consistent automatic back-up

Integrated accounting

Mobile access

Email integration

Electronic signature verification for E&O compliance

In the end, it all comes down to ROI. Is your

investment in additional capabilities going to

yield results? You should only commit to paying

for the things you’ll be using often. Verify

the capabilities you need most and test them

thoroughly. A good provider will listen and work

with you to make sure the solution meets your

requirements and, when needed, offer options

for adding capabilities in a manner that is both

affordable and enhances agency productivity.

8

Mapping Your Processes to Your SystemOne great way to get the most out of your agency management system is to ensure your processes fit its

capabilities and vice versa. Start by evaluating your processes. Check in with your employees to identify your

systems and get them together to talk about how processes happen from start to finish.

Hit topics like:n Handling quoting and renewals

n Writing policies

n Handling collections

n Integrating with your carriers via real rime connections

n Retaining business and customer communication

n Actively pursuing new business

9

Once you’ve honed your agency’s systems and processes, look to your agency management

system to see how you can map your workflow to your system. Any good system should

integrate well with your agency’s needs, but you must first identify those opportunities for

increased efficiency. Here are some great ways your agency management system can help

your processes work faster and smarter:

n EMAIL INTEGRATION, such as Partnet XE’s Outlook integration, will link all your emails

with clients and prospects listed in your system. This links all account history to one

place, saving you steps and ensuring E&O accuracy.

n TO DO LISTS, which can be attached to client, policy, claim and/or Individual profiles,

put your agency’s processes right in your management system.

n INTERNAL MESSAGING allows you to get updates to a co-worker right as they are

working within your agency management system. This makes it easier for them to act as

they have all the info they need right in front of them.

These are just a few of the many ways your agency management system can map right to your agency’s

processes. However, all of the above capabilities may not be part of your agency management system, and if

they aren’t you should take a second look.

10

Never Stop

LearningAlthough your agency received set-up training,

you may have overlooked some of the ways your

agency’s management system can work for you.

There are hosts of ways to continue your education on what your agency management system can

do, and you should continue to take advantage of these opportunities. Along with continual system

updates, your provider should give you different ways to stay up to date on these changes.

Some of these

resources

should include:

11

User groups and conferences that provide networking

opportunities with other users. Attending these

conferences will let you see your agency management

system in a new light through the experiences of other

users. Many provide interactive training sessions on

system updates, allowing you to test out new capabilities

first hand.

Training workshops, which function like mini-

conferences, and tend to focus on specific system

capabilities like accounting, prospect research, or e-mail

integration. These workshops offer a great opportunity

to learn more about features you may not use often,

and provide perspective on connections between the

different capabilities of your agency management system.

Some providers, like SIS, also offer individualized training

workshops tailored to your agency.

12

Webinars to fit training in to your busy schedule,

and to provide consistent education on your system’s

capabilities. Since many webinars are recorded, you can

sign up and watch them later if something comes up.

When participating in webinars, pay attention to the Q

& A sessions as you may find some questions provide

insight into new ways your management system can help

you. Good providers offer webinars at least quarterly,

and whenever new features are added.

Online and onsite training to give your employees

hands-on training. These sessions should be offered

when you first launch your agency management system

and as it is upgraded or your agency gains employees.

Online training is convenient as it can be recorded and

viewed later as needed. Many providers have client

specific portals, like SIS’s PartnerNet, which provide

access to a host of training and support resources.

13

Know When

It’s RightIt will take some testing to see how your agency management system can work best for you, but ultimately if you have a good system and provider it shouldn’t take much effort. Take your time in selecting your provider and your agency management system, and the rest will come easy.

Although we can’t speak for other providers, we at SIS can confidently

say we meet the provider checklist. With customizable systems,

personalized customer support , and a host of training and learning

resources, SIS and PartnerXE are ready to help your agency run

smoother. Visit us online or contact us to find out about what

PartnerXE can do—we look forward to talking with you!

14

About SISHeadquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Strategic Insurance Software (SIS) is

the team behind Partner XE—an innovative web-based insurance agency

management system that helps independent agencies streamline workflow

and grow their business. Built on a foundation of strong technology and

exceptional service, we’re moving forward with a constant eye on innovation

that will make independent agents’ lives easier.

About Partner XESupporting downloads from nearly 300 carriers, real time interaction,

integrated agency accounting, and much more, Partner XE is a full-featured

agency management system at an affordable cost for the independent

insurance agency. For more information, please visit www.sisware.com

4181 Arlingate Plaza, Columbus, Ohio 43228 | 800.747.9273 | www.sisware.com