Board Spotlight: Alicia Rosier Stevens

 

Like most people, I fell into it. I’m a third generation on the independent agency system side. My father has been an agency owner my entire life. I was in college, and my father needed somebody for processing, and he asked me about doing it, and I told him no. I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I was certain insurance was not it. After unexpectedly leaving a job, I called my dad and started the next day at 8:30 a.m. 

 

I started with processing, then started answering phones when the woman who used to do it quit, and quickly got my 4-40, then my 2-20, and became a producer. I spent six and half years at the family agency before I left to see what else was available in the industry. I was a marketing representative for a homeowner’s carrier for about five years, then I came back to the family agency because I realized my passion was talking with the consumer and being able to help them.  

 

 

My father. When I was a young producer, he never tried to steer me in one direction. He let me figure it out. I remember one day when it was well after 5 p.m., and he came to my office and asked me how things were going. I was sitting there overwhelmed, and he told me, “You cannot be all things to all people.” He told me to know what I have the markets for, know my passion, and stick to that. It’s not that I can’t work with a particular client; it’s that maybe there’s another agent who might be a better fit for whatever reason it might be. And that was kind of like an “a-ha” moment for me. It changed my thought process. And while it’s scary as a producer to say, “I’m not going to write that account,” it’s worth it in the long run.  

 

 

Do not be all things to all people. I’m not saying to focus on the premium amount, but you have to think about what your time is worth and what you know. And, you need to read your policies and know what it is that you’re selling. 

 

 

I grew up in this industry, visited the FAIA offices as a kid, and when I got into the industry, I learned more about what FAIA does, especially from the advocacy and educational perspective. I absolutely love this industry and want to see it thrive and grow. If it's something I'm truly passionate about, I'm not one to sit on the sidelines; I want to be able to help drive it forward. There's a lot of good that this Association does, and has done for well over 100 years. And to be chosen by your peers to serve on this board is incredible.  

 

 

I would describe it as organized chaos because you never know what’s going to happen. I always plan for the week on Sunday, and each day I reevaluate. Then things come up and you feel like you're just trying to organize squirrels at a rave. I’m a sticky notes person, but I am trying to go paperless and be better organized. I aspire to be better, so if I can be just a little bit better than what I was yesterday, that’s progress. 

 

 

People may not know that my brother and I won a fishing tournament in 2019. My brother and I graduated from Florida Gulf Coast University, and they have a fishing tournament that supports a scholarship. My brother is an avid fisherman, and it was just one of those things where everything that day worked out. I’ve got the trophy I won sitting in my office. 

 

 

I really thought I was going to do interior design and I realized I can’t lie to people. So, if they really wanted something in their house that I thought was absolutely hideous, I wouldn’t be able to hide it on my face. I also thought about being a personal assistant at one point, because I’m good at keeping others on track and organized.  

 

 

Earning my CIC designation. I didn’t go to school for insurance, and it wasn’t something I ever thought I would do. Now, I like to get nerdy with insurance. To keep your CIC designation active and proudly display it, you have to do a yearly update. Their classes are phenomenal and the topics that they get nitty gritty on are thought-provoking. I have a weird definition of fun, but it is very fun for me to learn these things from the classes, and then talk to other people that I know in this industry and go, “Hey, guess what? Did you know about this?” 

 

 

Microsoft Teams was huge. It arose as a positive out of COVID and it is incredible to use when working with a team. That flexibility has been a huge game changer for us. 

 

 

Being a young, female commercial producer. Insurance was very much male-dominated, or at least it was when I started out. Early on in my career, I had a prospect from New Jersey who was a “man’s man.” He originally talked to my dad, but my dad passed him to me, and I did all the work on his account. Eventually, I was ready to get the signed applications and asked my dad to come with me. I didn’t think the man would close on the deal without my dad standing there because he was somebody whose preference was to work with men because he assumed men know what they're doing. My dad told me he didn’t need to be there, but came with me anyway, and I remember walking into the office and hearing the guy tell my dad, “Bob, you’ve got a bulldog! Congratulations, you raised her right!” 

 

I had really only seen men in leadership positions growing up, or men as marketing reps, or on the commercial side. And the women were in the office. It’s definitely been interesting and after 20 years, to see how much the industry has changed, how many more female agency owners are out there, how many females are at the leads of carriers and in high up positions on the broker side is amazing. When you don't see it as a kid, you don't know that this is something that can be done. To see women like Veronica Della Porta and Cindy Webster – that was huge for me.