The Changing Face of the Independent Agent

The natural

Rux Bentley moves from young agent group to association president

By Elaine Tolen

Rux Bentley’s boss strode into his office one day and said to the young producer, “You are now a VP,” to which Rux replied, “Thanks! Do I get a raise?”

Agency principal George Bentley—Rux’s dad—answered, “No—now go out and sell something!”

Such is life when you’re a third-generation insurance professional and work in the family agency. Rux Bentley, CIC, doesn’t mind the good-natured banter because Columbiana, Alabama, and Rux Carter Insurance Agency, are exactly where he wants to be.

A bedroom community of Birmingham, Columbiana and its 3,500 residents “are like Mayberry,” Rux says. “I love it here. Even before I went to college, I knew that I wanted to come back.” True to his word, Rux took one week off after graduating from Auburn University in 1994 and began working full time at the agency as a producer.

Born into the business, Rux was no stranger to the family agency. During high school he worked there part-time, filing and cleaning. “I’d come in at 5:00 p.m. or maybe 9:00 p.m., depending on what needed to be done,” he remembers.

“The agency was established in 1906, and when my grandfather, Rux Carter, bought it in 1947 he changed the name to Rux Carter Insurance Agency,” Rux explains. “He sold it to his son-in-law, my dad, George Bentley in 1977. I joined the agency in 1994, and my youngest brother, Casey, began working here in 2007.”

Rux says the 10-person agency has a mix of 35% personal lines and 65% commercial lines business. The agency specializes in contractors, municipal business—as well as “Main Street” business.

Even though Rux’s title is vice president, “the truth is, in a smaller agency in a smaller town, you have to wear many hats,” he says. In addition to producing business, Rux handles operational responsibilities, including staffing and customer service supervision.

Rux points to two educational experiences that helped him advance in the industry. One was on-the-job training with the principal of a small agency that Rux Carter Insurance Agency purchased. “I took over the agency’s book of business,” Rux explains. “I went with the owner to meet his clients and watched how effectively he dealt with them. That taught me a great deal about how to handle clients.”

The other training program that Rux says helped him develop his sales skills was the State Auto PaceSetter Program. “I was in the inaugural class,” he remembers. “The program provided motivation and tools to relate to people and improve sales.” Rux’s brother, Casey, is now going through the PaceSetter Program with Rux as his sponsor.

Making his mark

For Rux, growing up in the industry also meant an early exposure to the Alabama Independent Insurance Agents, Inc. (AIIA), watching his father, George Bentley, who was active in the association. “Many AIIA board members who I serve with are Dad’s friends. We know each other’s families, and several have been like mentors to me,” Rux says.

Shortly after joining the family agency full time, Rux became involved in the AIIA Young Agents Committee (YAC). Active in many of the YAC subcommittees, he also served as YAC chairman in 1999-2000. According to AIIA Executive Vice President Victor D. McCarley, CIC, there was “a major realignment” of the YAC while Rux was in the YAC leadership.

“It’s one thing to say that this or that needs to be done, and quite another to have someone who makes it happen,” McCarley explains. “Every so often a young man or woman comes along who volunteers for tough assignments and does an exceptional job with them. Rux has done this many times.

“He motivates others and is a natural-born leader. You can’t help but smile when you’re around Rux because he has that type of personality. People just naturally gravitate towards him,” McCarley continues. “Rux is involved in several areas from church to politics in his community and, while he won’t say so, he makes things happen. We have other stars in our young agents organization and have had many others in the past, many of whom have come up through the leadership ranks of the Big ‘I’, just like Rux.”

The Alabama Independent Insurance Agents named Rux Young Agent of the Year twice—in 1998 and 2007—for his industry contributions, and he moved to the AIIA board of directors in 2005. Rux was named AIIA Outstanding Board Member in 2006. And, following in his father’s footsteps, Rux will become AIIA president in 2009, at the age of 37.

Rux’s contributions to the industry extend to the national level as well. In 2003-2004 he served on the board of the InVEST program of the Big “I,” which educates high school and community college students about insurance, financial services and risk management.

Rux says that he benefits from being involved as much as the association benefits from his involvement. “The value of networking and being able to learn from others is immeasurable,” he says. “I want to help my agency’s employees as well as our association members do their jobs more easily so they can take care of clients, because those clients depend on us.”

Bringing in new people to care for those clients is a challenge, Rux admits. To encourage students to pursue insurance as a career, the YACs (during the time Rux was a leader) initiated the idea of the AIIA Excalibur Education Foundation, which provides scholarships to insurance majors. With help and support from AIIA, Excalibur has provided $17,500 in scholarships. “Several recipients have said that they would have had to drop out of college had it not been for funds from the Foundation,” says Rux.

To attract young people to the insurance industry, Rux has a message: “Everything in life depends on insurance. The title ‘doctor’ is impressive, but that doctor can’t practice without insurance. Who is the most important person when there’s a loss? The insurance agent.

“This is one of the greatest professions you could have,” he continues. “For one thing, your income is determined by how hard you work. And there are so many facets to the industry—actuarial, underwriting, life insurance, risk management, claims—you don’t have to be a producer to find your niche.”

As association president at such a young age, what will Rux do when he has fulfilled his term on the board? “Well, I do have political aspirations,” he declares. “I would one day like to be a representative in the Alabama State Legislature.” Rux got political experience when he served as chairman of the AIIA Legislative Committee and attended the Big “I” Legislative Boot Camp, which is designed to equip agents and other industry professionals to run a successful campaign for public office.

Rux served for two years as chairman of the Shelby County Republican Executive Committee and was asked to run for mayor several years ago but declined. “The timing wasn’t right; I had a lot of other commitments,” he says.

Outside of the political realm, Rux’s ties to his community run deep. In 1996 he participated in a local program called “Leadership Shelby County,” through which he learned how the county government and local businesses operate. Rux thought it was such an important educational vehicle that he helped start “Youth Leadership Shelby County” for high school juniors. “We want to catch students when they’re juniors so they’ll have a year to give back to the school and community,” he explains.

Along with his wife, Amanda, and daughters Maddie and McKlane, Rux is involved in a variety of community groups, including the Columbiana United Methodist Church. Rux is active in the Alabama Walk to Emmaus, a spiritual renewal program; is a lay speaker at churches; and has served as a youth director and Sunday School teacher.

For about 10 years, Rux has also been involved in CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) of Shelby County, which provides trained volunteers to represent in court the best interests of abused and neglected children. Currently serving as the group’s vice president, Rux says, “CASA is all about protecting children who are typically not able to take care of themselves. As insurance agents… we are in the business of helping others. This is just another way of doing that very thing. I have a heart for young people…and a heart for helping people…so CASA has been a great organization for me to be involved with.”

Challenges and opportunities

In addition to the problems that a soft market brings—clients price-shopping, reduced commissions, working harder for less money—Rux says that “there is tremendous pressure right now on small agencies. We’ve been approached to sell, but we aren’t interested.”

To strengthen itself, the agency joined Shared Agency Services of Alabama, a network of agencies that was formed to pool resources. The 19 agencies in the group, Rux says, share common interests, ethics and goals.

Rux looks at the bright side of doing business in today’s challenging economic environment. “We’re especially affected by the downturn in the housing market since contractors is one of our niches,” he continues. “You just have to find ways to adapt and be in a growth mindset.

“And companies are getting creative with the ways they market insurance, which provides more opportunities to write new business,” he continues. “For instance, one company has started ‘group programs’ which offer discounts to certain organizations such as chambers of commerce. Another company just came out with a program that allows a client to pay for their workers compensation insurance through the client’s accounting software. Several are developing new ‘niche’ programs tailored to certain business segments.”

A personal challenge for Rux—a common one for both new and veteran agents—is time manage-ment. “I am a commissioned producer…and I like that. I like to write new business,” he states. “I still get a rush whether I’m writing an account—large or small. I like meeting new clients—getting to know them and helping them. However, management responsibilities sometimes pull me away from that. I have to balance my schedule to be able effectively handle all those areas of responsibility. To that end, I try to be in the office on Mondays and Fridays and out selling on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

As Rux and Casey prepare for the day when they will take the reins of their family agency, they have been closely watching their father and taking notes about how the agency operates. Among the pieces of wisdom that Rux has picked up over the years: “Dad supports employee education and isn’t afraid to spend money on technology to help employees do their jobs better.”

Next year, look for this friendly, charismatic young agent to be directing the board of the Alabama Independent Insurance Agents. After that, you might see him in the halls of the Alabama legislature. And maybe some day in the corridors of Congress. Rux Bentley’s “can-do” attitude and respect for the business have given him a strong foundation for continued growth.