GAMA International Journal January-February 2014 - 67

le ading f ro m t h e f ront

A Q&A on the Program's Company-Specific Option

American Family Ties

Senior editor Peter Craig recently spoke with Rich Steffen, East Region sales vice president
of American Family Insurance, about the company's participation in Leading From the
Front. Among other things, Rich addressed the program's overall value, its blendedlearning structure, and the capstone session at Gettysburg.

tell me a little about your business. How is the company structured and what does
it sell?
We are an exclusive agency force with American Family Insurance. We are a multiline
company, selling auto, home, commercial, farm and ranch, and life insurance in 19 states,
predominantly in the Midwest. We have approximately 3,500 agents, 160 agency sales
managers, 22 state sales directors, and three regional sales vice presidents.

PET ER CR ai g

"As a group, we
don't talk a lot about
leadership styles and
characteristics. ...This
program provided a
great opportunity for
us as a team to go
through those things,
as well as learn a
little bit more about
each other."

What was your main purpose in getting involved with Leading From the Front?
What business need were you trying to satisfy?
one of the main objectives, of course, was self-development for participants. I did it last year
with my state sales director team. It was an opportunity for us to see the program firsthand
- to see its value and decide if we wanted to expand it to our agency sales managers,
which we will be doing. The other objective was about visioning: I definitely wanted each
state sales director to walk away with a three- to five-year vision for their state.

How many state sales directors attended the program?
We started with six and because of promotions and reassignments ended up with a total of
nine enrolled in the course.

In what other ways did the sales directors benefit?
I think the program [through its use of the c.o.r.e. performance coaching Model from
Mccauley & co.] had a great impact on our sales directors' ability to "coach their coaches."
our agency sales managers are the frontline managers, and coaches for our agents, who
are independent contractors. There's not the "you're an employee and you have to do this,
this, and this, and if you don't, there are consequences." You have to influence and inspire,
and you do that through leadership style and techniques.
The next step is for our coaches to go through the program and then take [what they
learn] to their agents.

What would you say were the advantages and disadvantages of coming through
the course as a team from a single company, as opposed to the open-enrollment
option, where participants are from different companies?
A disadvantage probably would be that everybody thinks the American Family way, so you
do not get an outside perspective on issues, topics, leadership styles. Another would be [not
being able to create] new centers of influence outside of American Family.

january/february 2014

GAMA International Journal January-February 2014

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