Acquisitions for Agency Owners: Acquirer Capabilities—Look for the Unfair Advantage

The right buyer won’t just make your business a first-string player—they’ll give you an unfair advantage on the field.

However, getting there requires a specific combination of capabilities and resources. Look for these strengths when evaluating potential buyers for your business:

1. Successful recruitment and training programs for sales and support teams

Your people matter, and the best acquirer of your business will have infrastructure and programs in place to elevate and grow your team. Whether that’s improving producers’ skills with training on a value-driven approach to customer engagement or hiring the right administrative roles, your buyer should be able to take your sales and support resources to the next level.

2. The right balance of accounting and administrative support

Not all back-office support is equal, so take time to understand what your potential buyer will offer. Some companies take an all-or-nothing approach to accounting and administration. Instead, look for a mixed method to maximize your team’s strengths and bolster your weak points.

For example, if you have a strong controller, your business wouldn’t benefit from transitioning to fully centralized accounting. In this case, your acquirer could manage your cybersecurity while enabling your team to handle local tasks and roles. If you lack accounting and administrative talent, your buyer should provide regional resources to support these functions.

3. Expertise in a vast range of insurance products as well as niche areas

Joining a larger company should enable your team to serve your existing customers better while also widening your net to reach new audiences.

Beware of organizations that champion a wide range of products and innovative solutions. Look for a buyer who knows certain spaces better than others, and that gives you access to dedicated teams with specializations spanning from employee benefits to property and casualty to personal lines solutions. Look for specific expertise in areas such as surety, cyber, executive risk, aviation, trade credit, transportation and stop loss. This can present a tremendous opportunity for you to service your customers locally with the powerful backing of national capacities that help improve customer outcomes.

For example, one company we acquired had a very new producer whose customer needed a complex surety product. The producer easily accessed the company’s dedicated, nationwide surety resource, which helped provide the right solution to a complex problem.

4. Deep relationships with your target markets

Carriers are geographic by nature, and it’s important to evaluate the strength and depth of your potential buyer’s connection with the audiences you strive to reach. Take the time to ensure their products align with the needs of your customer base ahead of a potential acquisition.

5. Meaningful collaboration through an ownership culture

A potential buyer may have hundreds of locations, but if layers of bureaucracy burden each other and there’s no real collaboration across offices, then there’s no added benefit to your business.

Join an organization that prioritizes intentional relationship-building among leaders so your team can get assistance with needs outside of your immediate areas of expertise.  Join an organization that puts people first and provides tangible resources to make your teammates better both personally and professionally.

For example, Brown & Brown is 22% teammate-owned, and over 65% of teammates globally have some form of ownership in the company. Consider what an “ownership culture” means to you and your business and how to achieve that when evaluating a potential buyer.

What matters most to you?

The right acquisition partner will amplify your team’s strengths and minimize its weaknesses. Take the time to weigh potential buyers’ capabilities and make sure they are aligned with your team’s priorities and goals.

Interested in speaking with our Mergers & Acquisitions team? Email [email protected] or contact us directly.

Acquisitions for Agency Owners
by Vaughn Stoll, SVP & Director of Acquisitions

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