Job Shadow

Maria Andersen
Job Shadow
CLSS 2100
12/01/2012

1.     I am Job shadowing Pete Mazeika who is an Insurance Agent.

2.     

3.     Questions:

What kind of degree do you have?

-I have an MBA from the University of Utah

What kind of problems do you deal with?

-I mainly am here to help clients be protected in case of a claim. I love to help making sure they are covered and that I am there to help the claim process and make sure that they are put back to where they were before the claim like nothing happened before.

How is the economy affecting this industry?

-I haven’t noticed much of a difference. Everyone needs insurance, and this industry with technology is constantly changing. We do have more and more people constantly shopping their insurance because it is so easy to get that kind of information now by just going online.

Do you have any advice to someone looking into this field?

-I would definitely recommend considering going into this industry. I love it because I am not selling something people don’t need. There would most likely always be a job/position in this kind of a job because of state laws.

What kind of advice to you have to a student looking into a career doing insurance?

-I would absolutely make sure that whatever insurance company you decide to do work for them first as a sales team member so you know the ins and outs of the company you are working with. That way you can see things like reputation, statistics, customer satisfactions and other aspects of the business.

If you didn’t do insurance, what would you have done next?

-I think I would still be doing insurance, but possibly doing it independently. I did want to go into something else like accounting or something else financially.

Is this industry growing in Utah?

-It definitely is. Because we are a growing state with move-ins and families growing and new home developments there are such opportunities still for business growth.

Are there any advancement that you can have in the future?

-Being an agent the real advancement you have is by growing your book of business. This company right now has opportunities in going into management but I feel that the best thing to do is growing your clientele. That alone can create great stability and also more income.

I think that this shadow was pretty impressive to see a little more about what happens on a day to day basis, the phone calls and clients that someone deals with on a daily basis and also the rewards coming in. I am still undecided that I want to go into this because it is a business and I would have to have start up revenue in order to open my doors.