Well – we made it to the end of the year!!! Happy New Year Everybody!!!! Thanks to everyone who took the time to read my blog. Next year I’ll be bringing you more insight into job hunting and insurance specific career building. Below I’ve listed all of my posts from this year. In case you are wondering the top five posts are ranked below:
- Five Dumbest Mistakes You can Make in an Interview
- Five Things Employers Do in the Interview Process that Suck
- The Four Skills that Every Insurance Account Manager Needs to Succeed in Their Career
- So You Got Fired… What Do You Say in an Interview?
- Five Things You Should Know When Working with a Recruiter
Looking back at 2011 I’ve had some great successes. Specifically speaking to my insurance recruiting I’ve seen the following types of positions:
Producers
Companies continue to hire producers. They generate revenue. If you can sell I don’t see you having much trouble finding a job next year.
Account Managers/Account Executives
This year I saw a sharp increase in account manager jobs. Most of them were low to mid level. However, at the tail end I started to find more companies hiring for higher level and specialized people. This bodes well for the industry. I expect to see many more next year.
Commercial Marketing People
This was one of the most pleasant surprises I encountered this year. Many of my clients began to look for marketing people to improve their service. This is a key position that many companies held off on hiring in the past couple of years. I anticipate as things become more competitive that we will see more of this.
Sales and Operations Managers
Many of the agencies I’m talking to right now are planning for perpetuation. Part of this typically involves bringing in an experienced leader to spearhead the project. If you have the ability to train, develop and lead sales people you will be in high demand over the next year.
Group Benefits Analysts
These people are responsible for analyzing groups claims data and marketing business to the carriers. As we get closer to healthcare reform I expect to continue to see more of these orders.
Underwriters
For the first time in two years I’ve begun to see carriers start to hire underwriters at a decent rate. I’m really hoping that this trend continues. The people that I have placed in this area have strong technical backgrounds but more importantly have intangibles including a strong business development sense and a drive to succeed.
Wholesale Brokers
I get the sense that we are one hurricane away from the market to harden up again significantly. Wholesalers are starting to look at growth again.
Below is a list of all of the articles I’ve written this year. Please feel free to email me at sthompson@insurance-csg.com if you have any suggestions or comments!
Happy New Year!!!
Have a Happy New Year!!!! See you in 2012!!!