The Secret Gay Lives of Historical Figures: April Ashley

By: Bryan K. Ludeña Campoverde A Life of Courage and Transformation April Ashley, born George Jamieson in Liverpool in 1935, lived a life marked by challenges, rejection, and eventual triumph. At 25, she made history by undergoing one of the earliest gender reassignment surgeries, becoming one of the world’s first visible LGBT icons. Despite her hardships, … Read more

Celebrating the insurance industry’s DEI stars

This week, Insurance Business America released its report on diversity, equity, and inclusion in insurance. After 15 weeks of interviews and surveys, IBA awarded 17 participants its coveted 5-star rating. The report reaffirms that DEI is at the core of our industry, helping guide service provision, recruitment, HR and governance.  While implementation varies, one approach … Read more

Q&A with Our Latest IE Pledge Signer: MCJ Partners

Recently, we sat down with Mary Clare McGraw, CIC, Co-Founder at MCJ Partners to get the inside scoop into her company and reasons for signing The IE Pledge. Why did you sign the IE Pledge? I signed the pledge because our mission is to help insurance agencies create operations awareness and cultivate happiness and that … Read more

Authenticity in the Workplace

woman planting tree

“Bring your authentic self.” In the last few years, that has been a phrase to rise in popularity for many in the workplace, communities, gatherings, and more. While often well-intentioned, it may be a difficult newness to navigate for a lot of folks, especially for those historically excluded from doing so in the past.  Let’s … Read more

Why don’t we talk about getting it wrong?

We spend ample time, energy, and money figuring out how to do it right. Countless companies sell you “the next best thing” or “fail-proof” software and services. Yet often, our best learnings come from pretty big mistakes. So why don’t we talk about them? As a marketing rep for a national company, I took over … Read more

Rules of Engagement: How to best work as a team?

What are they, and why should we talk about them? Defining Rules of Engagement You typically see the term “rules of engagement” used in military lingo, but what exactly is it? Rules of engagement are a set of rules, orders, or procedures that are put in place so that everyone knows what is expected, what … Read more

Digital Loneliness: Navigating Connection in the “New Normal”

First, a quick disclaimer from IE: We’re delighted to share this perspective with you about wanting the opportunity to work in a physical work environment. An underrepresented viewpoint that’s often left out is that of Gen Z and how they are now starting their careers. You’ll hear from Kiera (an IE volunteer) while she talks … Read more

phoenix™ and the Components of Culture

Workplace culture plays a prominent role in our everyday lives. Whether it’s a remote meeting, internal communications, or standard operating procedures, how your culture feels directly impacts employee retention and the organization’s bottom line.  But how do you measure culture? And if you can measure it, what key factors matter most to employees and companies? … Read more

Leadership at a Conference: New Story Shared with IE

Authored by a brave soul in the insurance industry Culture Take a moment to think about what leadership means to you. Now think about a time when you were personally impacted by leadership – positive or negative. How did you feel? How do you feel now reflecting on it?  While I could (and probably should) … Read more

Solving the Insurance Talent Shortage

By Sarah Muniz Backstory I’ve been part of the Insurance field since 2001, have heard in conferences from leadership, and have seen numerous articles about the lack of interest millennials and the next generations have in our industry, making it extremely difficult to attract new talent. It’s been concerning to hear this frustration from numerous … Read more