“Which animal are you?” was a frequent question attendees posed to each other during breaks at the NASBP Executive Leadership Conference held in October. The question stems from one of the enlightening and humorous group exercises conducted at the one-day event, which was sponsored by Chubb Surety and presented by Rick Milczanowski, Master Trainer and Director of Consulting Services, and Kevin Pitts, Senior Facilitator, of New Haven Consulting Group, Inc.
The animal characteristics exercise helped participants identify their behavioral traits and preferred style of communication and represented one of several fun and sometimes puzzling training sessions attendees participated in during the Conference.
"Hands-on training and role-play situations allowed us to develop our strengths and improve our weaknesses," said Brad Babcock of Babcock Solutions, LLC. in Cedarburg, WI.
"One of the games involved putting together puzzle pieces to represent a picture that your partner had, but you could not see," said, Christopher Migonis of Berkley Surety Group in New York, NY. "Without going into detail, the key to constructing the puzzle quickly was to ask open-ended questions." "This was a memorable exercise as it demonstrated the importance of active listening," he added.
Prior to arriving at the Conference, attendees were asked to complete a 
personality profile DiSC questionnaire. "As a leader, it is important that you see the DiSC assessment tool as an opportunity to visit both the strengths and weaknesses of your tendencies," said Chris Downey of Downey and Company in Albuquerque, NM. "Furthermore, this assessment indicates the style with which people prefer to communicate," he said. "Communication is the key to success, so being able to understand an individual’s behavioral preference is key in understanding the message," he added.
"The DiSC profile report identified my leadership challenges and provided tips for improvement," said Migonis. "Honestly, I would recommend completing the assessment to leaders and future leaders, and, also to anyone looking to improve his or her interpersonal skills," he said.
The Conference had 50 participants including producers and underwriters. Ten participants currently serve on the NASBP 5-15 Leadership Committee. "We were excited to have so many future leaders of the surety industry participate in this conference, said Chad Martin, Chair of the 5-15 Leadership Committee and of TIS Insurance Services, Inc. in Knoxville, TN. "I felt that regardless of your agency or company affiliation, the program gave everyone better insight into the leadership styles of the people with whom they work, both within their own organization or among a network of industry peers."
Jill K. Tucker of Cory, Tucker & Larrowe, Inc. in Metairie, LA, who also serves on the 5-15 Leadership Committee, said "The Conference taught us about communication styles, which is beneficial to me in working more effectively with colleagues, building stronger client relationships, and relating to prospective clients."
The satisfaction survey revealed that 80% of the participants felt that the Conference was a worthwhile career investment and that it provided them new skills and knowledge. "I was able to dive deeper into the components of my own personality/style and how I can more effectively communicate with team members who have a different style than me," said Kyle Howat of Propel Insurance in Tacoma, WA. "I felt the consulting team provided a useful 'road map; to take a 'vision' from infancy to implementation," Howat said. "I learned different approaches to gain buy-in for new ideas and strategies," he added.
Earlier this year, NASBP President Susan Hecker and Rick Ciullo, Chief
Operating Officer of Chubb Surety, discussed the value of providing executive leadership training for surety professionals, which resulted in the Conference being organized and held the day before the NASBP Midyear Meeting. “I am pleased to have been part of a NASBP effort this year to focus on talent and leadership development for surety professionals," stated Ciullo. "NASBP clearly understands that this is a crucial issue to secure the future of the surety industry.”
Downey said, "I am currently making this DISC assessment available to all of my employees, not only because it is interesting, but so it can help us communicate better and operate more efficiently." Babcock added, "I left the Conference with a working knowledge of my leadership style and ways I can use it to help my organization."
For more NASBP resources on enhancing leadership skills, be sure to register for the NASBP Virtual Seminars scheduled in 2016 that are part of the Leadership Series presented by Mark Harris of Harris Development Group. Also, view the articles on leadership by Ciullo and published in the spring 2015 issue and in the summer 2015 issue of the NASBP Surety Bond Quarterly magazine.
"Hands on training and role play situations allowed us to develop our strengths and improve our weaknesses," said Brad Babcock of Babcock Solutions, LLC, Cedarburg, WI. "I left the conference with a working knowledge of my leadership style and ways I can use it to help my organization.