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DEALER'S CHOICE Before negotiating a successful M&A deal, know what you want and what you will do when the other player shows his hand. Leader's Edge Magazine, October 2008 Market Temperature: Chilly M&A Summer Recess: Finally, dealmakers get some R&R. Leader's Edge Magazine, October 2008 TAKING 14 SALES STEPS TO CATCH UP Average firms lose 10% to 15% of their clients annually—so you might begin your new year behind your last. Leader's Edge Magazine, September 2008 Market Temperature: Hot and Humid No summer vacation for deal makers. Leader's Edge Magazine, September 2008 BUT THEY DON'T WEAR CLEATS Wanna field a winning team? Keep the new players coming Leader's Edge Magazine, July/August 2008 Market Temperature: Thawing Out Deal Momentum, Activity Up: The pursuit of the good deal continues. Leader's Edge Magazine, July/August 2008 Market Temperature: Frigid Where, oh where, have all the deals gone? Leader's Edge Magazine, June 2008 MAKE YOURS A TALENT AGENCY The biggest issue facing our business is lack of talent. Put lip service aside. It's time to make talent your priority. Leader's Edge Magazine, May 2008 TAO OF COLLABORATION We all think ourselves straight shooters, good listeners, and people who appreciate and support each other. But saying so doesn't make it true. Leader's Edge Magazine, April 2008 CULTURED PEARL After a quarter century, we discovered the perfect gem: a firm that lives and breathes a culture of success, surpassing every measurable benchmark. Leader's Edge Magazine, March 2008 TEN STEPS TO BECOMING A GREAT BOSS Being a great boss is not about you; it's about your employees. Reinventing yourself as a leader is the first step in building a better team. Leader's Edge Magazine, January 2008 NEW YEAR'S REVOLUTION The party's over. It's time to resolve to revolutionize your firm with a new strategic plan, renewed sales culture and new investments in staff. Leader's Edge Magazine, December 2007 REVIEW & OUTLOOK 2007 What were the most significant trends affecting agents and brokers in 2007? American Agent & Broker Magazine, December 2007 THE ACQUISITION AUTOBAHN Why some banks crash and burn after buying brokerages while others pass them by in the fast lane. Leader's Edge Magazine, November 2007 NO-FAULT DIVORCE Employment pre-nups save a lot of heartache when your best workers bat their eyes at other suitors. Leader's Edge Magazine, October 2007 A YIELD GUIDE TO NEGOTIATING Authority has its limits. That's when negotiating skills kick in. Leader's Edge Magazine, September 2007 HUNTERS OR FARMERS? Does your agency compensation system create hunters of new business or farmers of old? Leader's Edge Magazine, July/August 2007 DOUBLE AGENT Get stirred, not shaken, when you learn you won't be double-crossed by the nefarious tax agent. A 90-proof solution: double taxation conquered to save your deal. Leader's Edge Magazine, June 2007 AIMING FOR THE UPPER DECK What's in the cards for great performing agencies? Will you get what your firm is worth? Leader's Edge Magazine, May 2007 TALENT SCOUT Private equity groups recruiting brokers in the M&A game for their solid renewals and healthy, predictable returns. Leader's Edge Magazine, April 2007 THE ART OF INTEGRATION Nothing thwarts a merger faster than poor blending of firms. The acquirer must apply integration the same as its business plan: methodically, purposefully and diligently—and then execute. Leader's Edge Magazine, March 2007 DEVICES AND DESIRES Five temptations and how to avoid them when building a winning team. Leader's Edge Magazine, January/February 2007 40 WAYS TO RUIN A DEAL If you resolve to abide by our bottom-40 list in the new year, we guarantee you'll screw up your next merger and acquisition deal! Leader's Edge Magazine, December 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein YOGI BERRA BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY 101 When you come to a fork in the road - take it! What to do when your agency is at the crossroads. Leader's Edge Magazine, November 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein REALISTIC AGENCY VALUATION: A complex blend of art and science NAILBA Magazine, October 2006 IS YOUR CASH COW PRODUCING SKIM MILK? Agencies urged to consider whether other investments would outperform ownership The National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, October 2, 2006 HIRE YOUR NEXT ACQUISITION You may be buying the firm, but the hired help comes with it. Check under the hood and be sure you get what you pay for. Leader's Edge Magazine, October 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein THE BEST MERGER MENTALITY: Conservative and Calculating Insurance Journal, September 25, 2006 BEYOND THE TOASTER How the right bank came up with the bread to save a growing firm's buns. There really is a Santa Claus for agency capital. Leader's Edge Magazine, September 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein DEATH BY MEETING Keep your meetings energized, the ideas flowing and the BlackBerrys out—or risk the deadly consequences. Leader's Edge Magazine, July / August 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein THE POLLYANNA COMPLEX Get the right prescription for those rose-colored glasses or the view from the top will quickly lose its focus. Leader's Edge Magazine, June 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein AGENCY VALUE HINGES ON TRANSACTION TYPE, INTANGIBLES The National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, May 15, 2006 KEEP PRODUCERS ENGAGES, PRODUCTIVE WITH A SMARTER INCENTIVE PAY PLAN The National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, May 8, 2006 NAVIGATING SAFELY THROUGH MURKY M&A WATERS Think an M&A strategy is enough? Not so. You need a formal policy to steady the boat when you embark on your course of mergers and acquisitions. Leader's Edge Magazine, May 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein TAMING THE VALUATION MONSTER Merger mania keeps agency valuations high, but valuing a firm is as much art as science Leader's Edge Magazine, April 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein INTERMEDIARY M&A BOOM MAY GET LOUDER IN 2006 Agency, brokerage mergers and acquisitions hit second-higher level since 2000 The National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, April 3, 2006 PUTTING THE ANIMALS IN CHARGE OF THE ZOO: Release workers from their cages, make them owners and then watch your firm grow. Leader's Edge Magazine, March 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein GROW YOUR OWN: It's the people, stupid. Invest in your staff and reap the returns. Leader's Edge Magazine, January/February 2006 Author: Robert J. Lieblein PLEDGING ALLIANCE: Creating business alliances is no flight of fancy. Leader's Edge Magazine, December 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein 10 BASIC RULES OF SELLING AN INSURANCE AGENCY Health Insurance Underwriter - November 2005 FIVE WAYS TO SIMPLIFY THE DECISION ON PERPETUATING YOUR FIRM Leader's Edge Magazine, November 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein FOR SALE SIGNS: When to consider an exit strategy? That's a Dickens of a dilemma. Leader's Edge Magazine, October 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein THE ART OF THE DEAL: Do you really know how to negotiate? If there is no win-win and no win-lose, how do you get what you want? Leader's Edge Magazine, September 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein SIMON SAYS...Think you're hot? It's reality check time. Create an external panel of judges who don't suck up, but who will tell you the unembroidered truth. (It might just make you a star.) Leader's Edge Magazine, July 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein CLIMB OUT OF THE INDUSTRY CYCLE WITH AN ACQUISITION Health Insurance Underwriter - July 2005 PUMP IT UP: Put some muscle behind your compensation system to boost profitable sales performance Leader's Edge, June 2005 DEALS SLOW SLIGHTLY, BUT BUYERS ON PROWL National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, May 2005 CARNAC, A MAYONNAISE JAR AND SYNERGISTIC VALUE: Did the acquisition maximize shareholder value? Leader's Edge Magazine, May 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein CROSS-SELLING MAY BE A MISSED OPPORTUNITY FOR AGENTS & BROKERS - Part 2 Insurance Journal, April 18, 2005 BEYOND THE NUMBERS GAME: Do financials tell the whole story? Leader's Edge Magazine, April 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein FOR MANY AGENCY OWNERS, CROSS SELLING IS A MISSED OPPORTUNITY - Part 1 Insurance Journal, March 21, 2005 THE 24-KARAT & STICK APPROACH: Tie Your Compensation Carrot To A Strategic Measuring Stick Leader's Edge Magazine, March 2005 Author: Robert J. Lieblein CARRYING OUT THE GROWTH: The Art of Agency Acquisition - Part II Insurance Journal, January 3, 2005 WILL SPITZER'S PROBE CHANGE THE ECONOMICS OF BUSINESS? Leader's Edge Magazine, January/February 2005 PLANNING TO GROW: The Art of Agency Acquisition - Part 1 Insurance Journal, December 6, 2004 EXPECT MORE MERGERS WITH THE SOFT MARKET Independent Agent Magazine, December 2004 INDUSTRY CONSOLIDATION CONTINUES TO GAIN MOMENTUM: 2005 Looks Cloudy - 2004 Could Break Records for Announced Transactions Insurance Journal, Southeast Edition, November 22, 2004 THE SEARCH FOR SUNKEN TREASURE: Chart your course, navigate your future and take advantage of golden opportunities buried in your firm. Leader's Edge Magazine, November/December 2004 Author: Robert J. Lieblein PUT YOURSELF IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT: Mind your firm's dashboard as you drive toward your goal. Leader's Edge Magazine, September/October 2004 Author: Robert J. Lieblein AGENCY CONSOLIDATION PICKING UP SPEED National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, July 2004 SITTING PRETTY: Sell the firm or sit tight? Leader's Edge Magazine, July/August 2004 Author: Robert J. Lieblein ADD'EM & EVA: Do the math. Is your latest initiative adding value to your firm? Leader's Edge Magazine, May/June 2004 Author: Robert J. Lieblein RETAIL THERAPY FOR BROKERS Reactions Magazine, May 2004 GROWTH IN THE INSURANCE BROKERAGE INDUSTRY - REAL OR MANUFACTURED? The Risk Management Letter, Volume 24, Issue 6 BUYER'S MATH: REVEALING THE TRUE LOGIC BEHIND THE MYTH OF MULTIPLES National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, December 2003 AGENCY SUCCESSION PLANNING: OPTIONS & OPPORTUNITIES National Underwriter - Life & Health Edition, November 2003 TIPS FOR MAXIMIZING YOUR AGENCY'S RESULTS National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, November 2003 ESOPS MAKE SENSE FOR AGENCIES National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, July 2003 LESSONS LEARNED FROM PAST ACQUISITIONS National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, June 2003 BUYERS HAVE MUCH TO CONSIDER IN AGENCY ACQUISITIONS Business Insurance, March 2003 AGENCY VALUATION IS AN ART, NOT SCIENCE National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, November 2002 10 RULES TO FOLLOW WHEN YOU ARE SELLING YOUR AGENCY National Underwriter - Property & Casualty Edition, July 2002 -->



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