CHAIR OF THE BOARD’S MESSAGE

BRAVE NEW WORLD

The past 12 months have revealed how rapidly the world, and our industry, are changing. Looking back farther, to when I first began my career, the changes to our work processes, work flow, marketing, selling, rating, and managing are more than astounding. It is not even the same world.

Much of this change is good, of course. From sales, to service, to agency operations, we’re light years away from anything that I could have conceived. Automation and technology have, presumably, made us more efficient, more productive, and thorough, if utilized properly. In fact, we’ve had to keep pace with all of these tools, or our competition would have buried us.

However, exponential change is a double-edged sword. Technology has created new exposures for our customers and our own agencies, and these new exposures can be terrifying if not managed properly. This issue of Primary Agent explores a few: coverage implications of a new sharing economy venture, Hipcamp.com, (see page 4) and the tug-of-war over agency data (see page 12).

One of the benefits of your IA&B membership is insight into these changes. Your agents’ association is committed to staying abreast of the emerging opportunities for you and your agency, as well as the evolving threats to your business. Beyond this month’s magazine articles, a prime example is IA&B’s recent focus on cyber security vulnerability. If you haven’t, I encourage you to learn more at IABforME.com/Radiant and engage this vendor in a “cyber audit.” This is a tremendous resource that can help you solve any security gaps and is price effective in giving you peace of mind.

Yes, it’s a brave new world, so let’s focus on the positives, stay vigilant in controlling and calculating our risks, and, together, make the best of it. Through it all, IA&B will remain your ally and primary resource.

Respectfully,

Craig S. Mader, Chair of the Board