The changing face of the independent agent

A STRATEGY FOR SUCCESS

John Olivieri, Jr., puts his career plan in action

By Elaine Tolen

John Olivieri, Jr., co-owner of J.K. Olivieri Insurance Agency, Inc., collects his clients’ autographs.

Unlike many youngsters who were dreaming of being firemen or cowboys, John Olivieri, Jr., CIC, LIA, AAI, planned early in life to be part of his family’s agency. And he had a strategy for success.

The story begins when John’s father, John Olivieri, Sr., ventured into the insurance industry in 1979 after owning a barber shop for a number of years in Brockton, Massachusetts, which is about an hour from Boston. “My dad had a good business,” John remembers. “His good friend, Dave Mason, had an insurance agency, and Dad was curious about the business. This led to Dad and Dave opening up a new agency together. It was near the registry of motor vehicles, which allowed exposure to a lot of potential clients, and with his barber shop clientele, they had a good pool of potential customers.”

In 1979, John Olivieri, Sr., decided to open his own agency, and the J.K. Olivieri Insurance Agency, Inc., celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. John, Jr., has worked in the agency in various capacities since middle school. He says, “My dad never pushed us into working at the agency. But even as a child, I always had an interest in his work. You get to talk to a lot of different people. You learn about other industries—not just insurance—when you’re in this business. For instance, I’ve learned about elevator contractors, apartment building ownership, various types of distributors—areas that I would not have a reason to know about were it not for being in the insurance profession.”

During summers in high school and college, John worked at the Olivieri agency as well as for Aetna. “Hm-m-m, while my friends were hanging out on Cape Cod, I was working in an office,” he remembers. “Did it pay off? Yes.”

Part of the plan

After graduating from Central Connecticut State University in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and education, John worked at Lexington Insurance Company, an AIG subsidiary. His plan was to end up at his dad’s agency after learning more about different facets of the industry.

“I suggest that anyone who is interested in being an independent agent work at an insurance company first. It gives you the perspective of the underwriters. You know what they really can and can’t do and you know what questions to ask,” says John. “For instance, if they say ‘no,’ I know to ask if it’s prohibited—and they really can’t do it. If it’s not prohibited, then I ask questions to find out if they just don’t have an appetite for that kind of risk or if perhaps they need more information.”

During John’s one-and-a-half years at Lexington, he worked part time—nights and weekends—for five months at Olivieri Insurance. “It was kind of a trial, to see if working at the agency would be a good fit,” he explains.

In 1994, John began working at Olivieri Insurance full time. During the first year, he sold personal lines, then moved into commercial lines. John called on his personal clients who had businesses but weren’t insured through Olivieri Insurance. As he became more involved in commercial lines, John also became more involved in community business organizations, such as Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce. In fact, this year he is serving as chairman of the Cranberry Country Chamber of Commerce.

John makes time for one of his favorite sports—no easy task when one is running an agency, serving on the Big I’s National Young Agents Committee, and chairing the local Chamber of Commerce.

“The purpose of getting involved in a group like the Chamber of Commerce is two-fold,” John explains. “First, it keeps you informed about local business and industry and, second, you owe it to your community to give in a way that will benefit the community.”

One way the Olivieri Insurance Agency gives back to the community is by sponsoring an annual golf tournament. “I love to play golf and try to play as much as possible. My brother, Ken, plays on a limited basis, and our dad plays maybe once a year,” John explains. “Fourteen years ago, my uncle and dad were talking about a local golf tournament, and my dad wondered if he could play in it. My uncle teased, ‘The only way you’ll ever play in a tournament is if you have your own.’ Sure enough, the next year was the first Olivieri Insurance Agency golf tournament.

“It started very small, with a few foursomes. We invited clients to play and charged enough to cover the fees and an after-tourney cookout. Every year, participation grew, and several years into the tournament we decided to include in the fee a donation to a local charity,” John continues. “This year we had the highest attendance ever and actually had to turn people away. Over the years we’ve given $25,000 to charities. Organizing the event has gotten so big that Dad, Ken and I take turns running it.”

Besides golf, John enjoys running marathons and participating in mini-triathlons. He has been in the New York, Chicago, Twin Cities and Boston marathons. “Boston was my first marathon. I said, ‘I’m just doing this once.’ But you get this adrenalin rush and you’re hooked,” he explains. The mini-triathlons consist of a .9-mile swim, followed by a 24-mile bike ride, ending with a 10K (6.2 mile) run.

Another interest of John’s is preserving his Italian heritage. Several years ago, John’s father took the initiative to reconnect with relatives who live in northern Italy and Sicily. Since then, some of the Italian family members have visited the United States and the American relatives have visited Italy. “It has been great fun since they speak little English and we speak little Italian,” says John. “But Italians speak with their hands anyway, so we are able to communicate!” In October, John went to Italy to attend a cousin’s wedding and afterward traveled around the country, visiting other relatives as well.

Family members who are part of the J.K. Olivieri Insurance Agency staff (from left): John, Brett Peroni, John Olivieri, Sr., and Ken Olivieri. John’s mother and sister-in-law also work in the agency.

Growth of the agency

In 1996, John’s brother, Ken, joined the agency, and within a few years the two were discussing the possibility of purchasing the business from their father. “Again, we tried co-ownership on a trial basis,” says John. “Could we survive as partners?

“We looked at our strengths and interests and split up the various responsibilities accordingly,” he continues. “I handle most of the company relations and technical coverage, and Ken handles all of the accounting functions. Dad still works at the agency, but on a more flexible schedule. He handles most of the HR duties and has his own book of business.”

That’s not the end of family involvement at Olivieri Insurance. John’s brother-in-law, Brett Peroni, runs the life/health/benefits area; and his mom, Barbara, and sister-in-law, Jen, also work at the agency.

These family members are a few of the agency’s 19 employees (including part-time staff) who work in the agency’s two offices, up from seven employees 10 years ago. The original office was in Brockton, with a second one in nearby Lakeville. Since 1996 the premium volume has grown from $5 million to over $12 million, necessitating bigger facilities. Last year, the Lakeville office moved to another nearby town, Middle Bow.

In the last 10 years, John has helped steer the agency more into commercial lines. With the agency now comprised of more than 50% commercial lines, John comments, “In Massachusetts we have a lot of regulations relating to auto that make personal lines more complicated. Besides the fact that I think commercial lines is more interesting, I believe that the agency’s future success lies here.”

John visits with one his clients, Dave Fisher, owner of Chianti’s Italian Grille.

Part of John’s strategy of success is to not sell strictly on product or price. “If you sell on price, you’re going to lose. Someone can always come in a little lower. If you’re only selling the product, you can also lose because every carrier has a different ‘package’ of coverages which may include some things the insured doesn’t need or may exclude some things the insured does need. You can’t sell strictly on product because you’re not comparing apples to apples, so to speak,” he explains.

“Our approach is to focus first on our clients’ needs before talking product or price,” John continues. “From there we look at what coverages are necessary to meet their needs.”

“We also ‘touch’ every renewal,” John continues. “The producer and/or account manager review the account every year. This includes checking values on properties; contacting the insured to see if any of their exposures have changed; and checking coverages, especially in today’s marketplace.”

Industry involvement

A few years after John began working at the agency, he looked into getting involved with the Massachusetts Association of Insurance Agents (MAIA). He read a brochure from MAIA that listed the various committees and asked for agents to get involved. “I looked at committees like ‘Legislative’ and thought I was too new to the industry for that. Then I saw a committee called ‘Young Agents.’ I thought, ‘I’m young and I’m an agent.’

“From the beginning, being involved in Young Agents has proven worthwhile,” John remembers. “A lot of the agents were new to industry; we were all in the same boat. It wasn’t competitive.” He soon became involved in various projects and committees. In 1998-99, John served as Young Agents Committee chairperson and, in 1998, received MAIA’s Chairperson of the Year Award for his service. In that capacity, John sat on the MAIA board as a non-voting member. Since the end of his term as Young Agents Committee chairperson in 1999, he has served on the MAIA board as a regular member.

His first project as a MAIA board member was to start the Agents Awareness Committee, which was designed to promote the advantage of dealing with independent agents. According to John, “We had a budget of around $500,000 for television advertising, radio advertising, etc. It took a lot of time since we had to do ‘dog and pony shows’ to carriers and agencies to garner their support.” In 2000, John received MAIA’s Chairperson of the Year Award, this time for his work on the Agents Awareness Committee.

In 2002, John was asked to serve on the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers’ Association’s (IIABA) National Young Agents Committee. “Being countrywide, it has really broadened my horizons by providing a different perspective on the industry,” John says. “I’ve gotten to know people whom I would never have had the opportunity to meet.”

Advice to new producers

The insurance industry is not for ‘short-termers,’ according to John. “If you’re looking for instant gratification, this career is not for you. You can’t look a year down the road; you have to think about where you want to be in 10 years. Do you want a flexible time schedule and a good income? Then you have to be willing to take the time to build your book of business. In this industry, you really are the master of your own destiny.” *