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Insurance Agency Employee Engagement: Dealing With Friction

Posted on May 11, 2021 by Kelly Donahue Piro

Insurance agency employee engagement

When we’re looking to drive employee engagement, there can sometimes be things that hold us back. Friction is definitely something that can grind insurance agency employee engagement to a half. While it might be a touchy topic, you shouldn’t let friction in the office hold you back from having a team that is fully engaged.

“You’re not gonna drive employee engagement when there’s rifts and fights between you and the team, and/or the team and themselves.”

Here’s why friction can hold us back from having insurance agency employee engagement, and what you can do about it:

 

Differences are bound to happen

Of course, differences in personality and opinion are bound to happen in an agency, and some people simply might not get along. But if there is too much friction that is being swept under the rug, it can turn into more of a mess, which can lead employees to disengage. Sometimes, leaders might hope that friction will blow over, when in reality, it’s just simmering.

 

There are different types of friction

In the office, there are different types of friction that can detract from insurance agency employee engagement. This can be friction between two different employees, or friction between an employer and employees. Either way, what we often see is that leaders typically spend a lot of time talking about friction, and less time acting on it.

 

Leaders become overly concerned about dealing with friction

We often see that leaders become nervous about dealing with friction, because they envision calling awkward meetings, or they’re worried about blowback, or “worst case scenario” outcomes. Because of this, they end up letting friction fester, and just hope for the best, which really isn’t a great solution.

 

You can make conflict resolution regular

Dealing with friction can sometimes feel awkward, depending on the way it’s handled. If a team rarely meets, and a leader suddenly calls people in for a meeting, it can seem big and intense. Alternatively, if a leader holds weekly or bi-weekly meetings, and incorporates conflict resolution into these meetings, it will seem much more manageable and regular to the team. If you’re routinely coaching your team, you can also catch these friction points much earlier.

 

The bottom line is that when there’s rifts and fights, you’re going to have a tough time driving employee engagement. By looking out for friction, and tackling it head-on, you’re setting your team up for success.

 

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