20 Best Management Books That Will Make You a Great Leader
What makes a person a great leader? Is it a magnetic personality? Is it having a bold vision or confidence?
I would argue that all of these traits are possessed by great leaders. But how do you acquire these attributes? After all, there is such a thing as a “born leader”, but most of us who are called on to lead doesn’t fit into that category.
Fortunately, there is an abundance of information out there designed to give us the skillsets of a great leader. Reading management books is a good way to start.
Best Management Books For Aspiring Leaders
Here, I’ve listed the 20 best management books that will make you a great leader.
1. The One Minute Manager by Kenneth Blanchard Ph.D. and Spencer Johnson M.D.
This is a remarkable book that tells the story of a young man in search of a good leader. While he encounters different management styles, some autocratic care only about results, and the workers suffered. Others with a democratic approach were only concerned with people, and the organization also suffered. Finally, he finds what he’s been looking for in a manager that uses the one-minute method.
The one-minute method is basically a way to set clear goals or expectations for those you manage.
For example, if you were told to clean a room, does that mean sweeping the floor, dusting the shelves, or organizing the bookshelves? But if you are told to sweep the floor and organize the bookshelves, the expectations are clearer. Then, there are one minute of praisings and one minute of reprimands where you give praise and reprimands immediately and quickly.
2. On Becoming a Leader by Warren Bennis
Considered a must-read for any business person, Warren Bennis was a business school professor at the University of Southern California. He got his first taste of leadership during world war 2 when he was one of the youngest lieutenants to serve in Europe. He is a firm believer that leaders are made, not born.
This one of the best management books out there. It outlines several traits that make up a great leader. For Bennis, a leader is self-aware, curious, and are risk-takers. A leader sees the big picture and does what is right.
3. Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders by L. David Marquet
Marquet was the captain of a submarine and was trained to lead in the typical military fashion of issuing orders and getting results. However, one time he gave an order that was impossible to follow, but his crew tried anyway with near-disastrous results. When he asked why, the answer was “because you told me to”.
That’s when he decided to try a different management style, giving those under him the responsibility for their job and the autonomy to do it. The results from the change in his management style were significant.
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4. Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t by Simon Sinek
Why do some teams come together to get the task done while other teams disintegrate into squabbling, infighting, and backstabbing?
Sinek tackles this question in Leaders Eat Last after he had a conversation with a Marine Corps general. He noticed that all the junior Marines ate first, while the most senior Marines were all at the back of the line. The general explained that “leaders eat last” because what was symbolic in the chow hall was deadly serious in war.
Leaders need to sacrifice their own comfort and even their lives for the good of the team they lead. He goes on to illustrate his ideas through examples of true stories in business and military.
5. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
A list of the best management books will not be complete without this book by Carnegie. This is probably one of the most famous books on leadership ever written, and that’s for good reason.
Carnegie reveals some of the “soft skills” of good leadership, such as making people feel important and appreciated. Implementing the ideas found in this classic will help you be a better leader, negotiator, and motivator.
6. The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Written over two thousand years ago, this is still touted by business people all over the world as a must-read for leaders. Sun Tzu was a military leader who put his philosophies regarding war and leadership to paper.
It is filled with timeless wisdom such as “Avoid what is strong and strike at what is weak.” and “Supreme excellence rests in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting”.
The book is divided into thirteen chapters and each one is devoted to a certain philosophy.
7. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey
Another classic, Covey is widely known as a world-renowned leadership expert. Although he already has other published works, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is his most famous one.
Covey’s idea is that true leadership starts from within. A good leader must first manage their inner well-being, create a personal vision, and cultivate self-control. Only then can they extend their influence to others.
Here’s a short video on the 7 habits of highly successful people:
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8. The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You by John Maxwell
One of the most popular books on leadership of all time, Maxwell’s The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership is one of the best management books you can find.
Maxwell contends that while there may be more “laws” of leadership than 21, these 21 laws are true and needed for anyone to be effective. Furthermore, these laws apply to all leadership roles in society, be they be in the military, business, or government.
9. Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive By Harvey B. Mackay
Written by a self-made millionaire, Mackay gives practical advice on how to outsell your competition and motivate your employees. It’s a short read filled with useful and practical ideas. It contains much helpful advice like “If You Don’t Have a Destination, You’ll Never Get There,” “Make Decisions with Your Heart and What You’ll End Up with Is Heart Disease,” and “It isn’t the people you fire who make your life miserable, it’s the people you don’t”.
10. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini Ph.D.
Dr. Robert Cialdini spent his entire career researching the science of influence, earning him an international reputation as an expert in the fields of persuasion, compliance, and negotiation.
In his book, Influence, The Psychology of Persuasion, he breaks down the principles of influence and persuasion into six categories that are easy to understand and implement. This book will teach you not only how to persuade others but also how to protect yourself from deceptive persuasion.
11. Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box by The Arbinger Institute
This book might be a hard read, not because of the concepts involved or the language used, but because it forces the reader to confront their responsibility for problems. Most of us like to blame things outside of us for the problems we have. But in order to truly find solutions, you need to be able to see your role in the problem.
The Arbinger Institute is recognized as a world leader in improving organizational effectiveness and conflict resolution.
12. Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter by Liz Wiseman
A Wall Street Journal bestseller, this relatively short, 292-page read talks about two leadership styles.
In this book, leadership expert Liz Wiseman explores these two leadership styles, persuasively showing how Multipliers can have a resoundingly positive and profitable effect on organizations.
Multipliers are the ones who get more done with fewer resources, develop and attract talent, and cultivate new ideas and energy to drive organizational change and innovation. On the other hand, Diminishers are the type of people who drain creativity and innovation from their teams.
13. My Years With General Motors by Alfred Sloan Jr.
This is another management book that’s considered a “classic”. First published in 1963, Sloan’s My Years With General Motors became an instant bestseller. The author talks about the “discipline of management” that he has practiced for decades and which made him an effective leader.
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Still relevant today, Bill Gates praises this book as the best book on management. Even Business Week named it “the number one choice for its bookshelf of indispensable reading.”
14. Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace
This New York Times bestseller was produced by the co-founder of Pixar Studios – the people behind some of the most famous and successful films of all time. In this book, the authors explore the leadership qualities that have made Pixar so successful.
Readers can find many great ideas in this book such as, “Give a good idea to a mediocre team, and they will screw it up. But give a mediocre idea to a great team, and they will either fix it or come up with something better,” and “It’s not the manager’s job to prevent risks. It’s the manager’s job to make it safe for others to take them”.
15. Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott
Kim Scott was an executive at Google and later Apple. In this insightful book about leadership and management, she shares her years of knowledge about how to be an effective leader.
Her fundamental belief is that a leader must truly care while still challenging employees directly. If you don’t really care, it’s authoritarian. If you don’t challenge, it’s bad for the company. And if you do neither, it’s just manipulative.
16. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink
Another New York Times bestseller, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us crushes the notion of the carrot and stick method of management.
In this book, Pink examines the difference between what science knows motivates us and what most businesses do. He postulates that people are motivated by three things, autonomy, mastery, and purpose. So, if you can provide them those things you will have a productive and efficient team.
17. Primal Leadership: Unleashing the Power of Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis & Annie McKee
What’s the most important attribute of a leader? Intelligence, motivation, vision?
The authors of this book put forth the argument that “emotional intelligence” is the critical factor for leadership. for them, qualities like enthusiasm, empathy, relationship management, intuitive understanding are qualities possessed by great leaders.
Using many real-world examples, the authors try to define and explain those key qualities. Good leaders bring out “resonance” among a team, while poor ones create “dissonance.”
18. The Truth About Leadership: The No-fads, Heart-of-the-Matter Facts You Need to Know by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner
In this book, the authors spell out ten “truths” about leadership. One of these is credibility, which is the foundation of leadership. A leader values and drives commitment, and the best leaders are the best learners.
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According to the authors, you either lead by example or you don’t lead at all. All of these truths must be understood by any great leader and you neglect them at your own peril.
19. Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by Tony Hsieh
Tony Hsieh is the founder of Zappos, an online retailer that does over one billion dollars in sales annually.
In this book, he explains his secrets to success. Some of the strategies he outlined include giving you employees control over their jobs (autonomy), acknowledging and encouraging progress both professionally and personally, connecting with your team personally, and being someone people would want to work for, among many others.
If you are interested in having your own business or just in managing people, this is a great read.
20. The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations by James Kouzes and Posner
Last but not the least, we have The Leadership Challenge, which is one of the best management books ever written.
Considered the “gold standard” of leadership manuals, The Leadership Challenge explores the difference between good leaders and great leaders. The authors outlined 5 practices of exemplary leadership: model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart.
Anyone looking for great management and leadership books has to add this to their list.
The Bottom Line
Leadership is both an art and a skill. And while you can’t teach the art part of leadership, you can acquire the skills of a leader.
This list of 20 best management books is by no means exhaustive, but by gaining the insights that they possess, you will be better equipped to lead.
In effect, the knowledge you can acquire from these books will have you standing on the shoulders of giants.
Featured photo credit: Daria Nepriakhina via
Best 30 Business Management Books of all Time
Every business owner or entrepreneur needs to know how to manage their business effectively. Therefore, there are many different things that you can do to keep your business on track. Indeed, Management books are a great resource for business owners and entrepreneurs to get business insights.
But some business management books can be very long and hard to get through. Many students who are pursuing management as a major, know this difficulty. However, they can take business management assignment help from available online experts. Although, in this blog, I will include some best books for beginners and entrepreneurs. These books will help you in managing your time and tasks more efficiently with a business diary and planner.
What is business management?
Business management, sometimes referred to as simply management, is the activity of planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, coordinating, and controlling an organization, particularly a business or nonprofit organization. Although, it is the coordination of all the different departments inside a business.
Moreover, the term management may also refer to a business or other managerial position.
However, Business management is the art of running a business and managing clients, employees and other business operations. Although, the task of running a business is not an easy one. Besides, it requires a lot of skills and knowledge.
What are the types of management?
There are many types of management, some of them are as follows.
Sales Management
Strategic Management
Operations Management
Supply Chain Management
Marketing Management
Financial & Accounting Management
Human Resources Management
Project Management
Engineering Management
Risk Management
Program Management
Thus, these are the types of management.
List Of The Best Business Management Books
Here is the list of best management books for beginners and entrepreneurs.
Business Management Books For beginners/Students
1. An Introduction to Coaching Skills: A Practical Guide
Author: Christian van Nieuwerburgh
Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd; Second edition (May 5, 2017)
Language: English
Paperback: 232 pages
Ratings: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the book:
This book explains the basic but crucial aspects of coaching. In other words, it is a useful guide for anyone who is interested in the topic.
Moreover, the essence of this book is to give genuine, practical, and workable advice on how to coach people.
However, this book, ‘An Introduction to Coaching Skills’, outlines the different skills needed to be an effective coach and guides how to develop these skills.
About the Author:
Indeed, Christian van Nieuwerburgh is a well-respected executive coach, internationally-recognized academic and sought-after consultant.
In addition, he is a Professor of Positive Psychology and Coaching at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Global Director of Growth Coaching International.
Key tips of the book:
This book absolutely teaches how to help individuals, as well as teams, and yourself become more effective.
It also gives you practical examples of improving your coaching skills based on real-world examples.
2. Project Management
Author: Terrence Stone
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (March 26, 2017)
Language: English
Paperback: 198 pages
Ratings: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
This book is among the great business management books.
Project Management is essential for success in today’s competitive world. Although, businesses are managing their work on a project-by-project basis. This book is the best way to manage your company’s resources and maximize your profits. In other words, this book is for both the beginner and the professional project manager.
About the Author:
Terrence Stone is a serial entrepreneur and a passionate writer who loves to share his knowledge, tips and tricks on project management, team management and also time management.
Key tips of the book:
Firstly, the book is divided into five fundamental steps that help you become a master project manager.
Moreover, this book is a tried and tested guide on how to master the art of project management.
This book has more than 40 tips, strategies and hacks to help you master your project management skills.
3. The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management
Author: ERIC VERZUH
Publisher: Wiley; 6th edition (January 7, 2021)
Language: English
Paperback: 544 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
This is not only a textbook but also a listing of the latest trends. However, it is filled with real-life practices, examples and tips on how to approach projects to meet business goals and make you and your organization successful.
In other words, the book gives step by step instructions along with a lot of examples.
About the Author:
ERIC VERZUH is the President of The Versatile Company, meanwhile providing project management training to thousands of professionals each year.
However, his clients include major government agencies, large and small companies, and nonprofit organizations in such diverse industries as transportation, aerospace, health care, education, and information technology.
Key Tips of the Book:
This book covers those skills and gives a good overall understanding of project management.
In addition, the book is a practical guide to coaching skills, written in a format suitable for beginners.
4. The First-Time Manager
Author: Loren B. Belker, Jim McCormick, Gary S. Topchik
Publisher: AMACOM; 6th edition (January 3, 2012)
Language: English
Paperback: 240 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the book:
This book is good and also the best for beginners in the list of business management books.
The First-Time Manager is a book on developing and managing first-time managers. Additionally, this book focuses on new managers and their problems in the workplace, such as communication and leadership. This book provides different tools, such as questionnaires and checklists, to be used by the new manager.
About the Author:
LOREN B. BELKER was an executive in a major midwestern insurance company for nearly 30 years and also the author of previous editions of The First-Time Manager.
Key Tips of the Book:
The book was easy to read and well written.
This book is also considered an excellent resource for anyone starting in a managerial position.
5. Project Management Absolute Beginner’s Guide
Author: Greg Horine
Publisher: Que Publishing; 4th edition (February 6, 2017)
Language: English
Paperback: 448 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
The Project Management Absolute Beginner’s Guide by author Greg Horine is designed to take the mystery out of project management. And also help absolute beginners understand the basics of the field, such as what a project manager is and how they work with the team and the client who hired them.
About the Author:
Indeed, Greg Horine holds a master’s degree in computer science from Ball State University. In addition, a bachelor’s degree in both marketing and computer science from Anderson College (Anderson, Indiana).
Key Tips of the book:
This book will cover all the fundamentals you need to know about project planning, monitoring and controlling, reporting, and communicating.
This book is written to help those who are either new to project management or have never had the chance to become well-versed in it.
Business Management Books For Entrepreneurs
If you want to become a successful entrepreneur, you will need to learn to manage your time effectively. Although, here are some best books on business management that will help to become an entrepreneur.
1. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Author: Robert B. Cialdini
Publisher: Harper Business; Revised edition (December 26, 2006)
Language: English
Paperback: 336 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
This book is not only one of the most highly acclaimed but also the best-selling and most influential book on human behavior. In addition, it is a book that will teach anyone in business or marketing about the six triggers of persuasion.
About the Author:
Robert B. Cialdini is an emeritus professor of psychology and marketing at Arizona State University and also has written six books, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion being his most famous one.
Key Tips of the Book:
The book has touched on six major principles of persuasion that marketers can use.
However, this book contains principles and best practices on how to influence people using the art of persuasion.
The book has been written in such a way that you also discover the underlying psychology of the author and learn more than just the six principles of persuasion.
2. Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products
Author: Nir Eyal
Publisher: Portfolio; Illustrated edition (November 4, 2014)
Language: English
Paperback: 256 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
This textbook is one of the best in the business management books.
However, this book teaches a step-by-step guide to build an online business that can make you quit your day job. In addition, it talks about how to use the psychology of user habits to build better products.
About the Author:
Nir Eyal spent years in the video gaming and advertising industries, where he learned, applied, and at times rejected techniques described in Hooked to motivate and influence users.
Key Tips of the Book:
The book is divided into four parts: Hooking Your Users, The Habit Zone, Case Studies, and How to Build Habit-Forming Products.
Although, this book usually provides a detailed overview of the habits of users.
3. Smartcuts: The Breakthrough Power of Lateral Thinking by Shane Snow
Author: Shane Snow
Publisher: Harper Business (September 9, 2014)
Language: English
Paperback: 272 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
This book is all about how success is possible by finding a different way. Besides, it talks about the world of startups and how they are trying to step into a new area of thinking by coming up with something innovative and different.
About the Author:
Shane Snow is a New York City-based journalist and Web entrepreneur. As well as the co-founder and chief creative officer of the media technology company Contently. Furthermore, he holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.
Key tips of the Book:
Firstly, this book helps how lateral thinking can help a business achieve its goals.
Besides, it is a very engaging book written by one of the cofounders of Contently, a content marketing platform.
4. Your Brain and Business: The Neuroscience of Great Leaders
Author: Srinivasan S. Pillay
Publisher: Pearson FT Press; 1st edition (February 21, 2011)
Language: English
Paperback: 288 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
The Brain and Business I look at the five key neuroscience areas that can help enhance your business. Moreover, this book gives readers a new perspective on how to lead with empathy and not just authority.
About the Author:
Srinivasan S. Pillay, M.D., is a certified master executive coach, and brain-imaging researcher. As well as Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Moreover, he is also the Founder, CEO, and President of NeuroBusiness Group.
Key Tips of the Book:
It is one of the most definitive books on neuroscience and also helps how it can change your life and your business.
Furthermore, this book is a guide to improving your business by using the latest in neuroscience.
5. Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive, and Others Die
Author: Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (January 2, 2007)
Language: English
Paperback: 291 pages
Rating: ☆☆☆☆(4 out of 5)
About the Book:
Basically, this book is all about how people process ideas. And how you can present your ideas in a way that people will understand and remember. Furthermore, this book is revolutionary in the marketing world and is something everyone should read.
About the Author:
Chip Heath is a professor of organizational behavior in the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. Indeed, he lives in Los Gatos, California.
Key Tips of the Book:
However, this book is a great read for any marketer or anyone working in the startup world.
In other words, the book is very interesting and well-written.
10 best Business management books that will help you grow as a business owner
The Age of Unreason (1989), especially written by Charles Handy.
Emotional Intelligence (1995), written by Daniel Goleman.
The Essential Drucker (2001), indeed, written by Peter Drucker.
Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (1994), written by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras.
Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors (1980), basically, written by Michael E. Porter.
Competing for the Future (1996), especially, written by Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad.
The Human Side of Enterprise (1960), written by Douglas McGregor.
My Years with General Motors (1964), indeed, written by Alfred P. Sloan Jr.
How to Win Friends and Influence People (1936), indeed, written by Dale Carnegie.
The Goal (1984), especially, written by Eliyahu Goldratt.
Business Management books for Good Leader
The 48 Laws of Power; indeed, Author: Robert Greene.
How to Win Friends & Influence People; Author: Dale Carnegie.
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It; Author: Chris Voss.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change; Author: Stephen R. Covey.
Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win; Author: Jocko Willink, Leif Babin.
Thinking, Fast and Slow Kindle Edition; Author: Daniel Kahneman.
Think and Grow Rich; Author: Napoleon Hill.
Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.; especially, Author: Brené Brown.
Stop Overthinking: 23 Techniques to Relieve Stress, Stop Negative Spirals, Declutter Your Mind, and Focus on the Present; Author: Nick Trenton.
The 5AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life; Author: Robin Sharma.
Conclusion
Finally!! We hope that you enjoyed our blog on business management books. Moreover, no matter what business you are in, these books will help you succeed.
In other words, these books are great for general business knowledge and can help you succeed in any industry.
They can also be used as a guide to help you manage your business more efficiently. Furthermore, we hope that you were able to find a book that you will enjoy and that you can use to help you manage your business more effectively.
Frequently Asked Questions
10 Impactful Ways to Keep Your Book of Business Organized
10 Impactful Ways to Keep Your Book of Business Organized
Keeping Your Book of Business Organized & Your Employees Productive
Amongst the countless productivity stats out there, a common theme emerges: employees need to feel engaged with the company in order to be productive. There are several ways to increase employee engagement, and a big one is providing the tools necessary to help employees do their job efficiently and effectively.
With the right tools, your agency feels organized, efficient, and productive.
In this blog, we’re going to introduce 10 small, but impactful ways the right agency management system (AMS) can keep your book of business organized and your employees engaged.
1. Consistent, Reliable Data
This is first on the list because it’s probably the most important. Consistent, reliable data is achieved when everyone who is entering data into your book of business is following the same “rules”, like what to capitalize and which abbreviations are or are not used.
For your agency management system to run correctly, you have to have the right data in the right format.
With an AMS that has industry-specific fields and uses drop-down menus and other pre-populated data field options where possible, consistent data entry is much more likely, cutting down on manual entry errors.
Having uniform data makes it easy to use things like global search (as we’ll discuss later) that help you work more efficiently.
2. Connected Individual & Group Records
Depending which products you sell and services you offer, you might work with both individuals and groups. And if you work with groups, you know that there are many employees within that group that you need to keep separate within your book of business.
To work at peak productivity, use a system that allows you to track and manage individual and group records separately, but can also tie them together.
In AgencyBloc, this individual, Thad K Bridges, is tied to the group, Olympia Cable. You can view Thad and his data separately here in his individual record, and he also appears as an employee on Olympia Cable’s group record. All policies, enrollments, elections, and relationships are also connected.
When data is tied together, it makes it easy to move through the information and keep everything organized, no matter who is viewing or editing the record.
3. Security Groups
Security groups within an AMS control what a user can see and access in the database. Not only is this necessary for ensuring agents or staff can only access their books of business, but it’s also helpful to cut down on information overload and accidental data changes. By creating security groups, you can decide who can view and/or edit what data.
4. Teams
Add several people to a “team” and then assign activities to that entire group of people. Each team member will see the task on their dashboard. Examples of common teams created are the Sales team and the Client Support team.
In AgencyBloc, this new lead, Blake Wilson, will show up for any users who are part of the Sales Team. You can create teams however you’d like, splitting people up by departments or by even smaller groups of people (like one customer service rep and one agent).
5. Pre-populated Field Sets for Coverage Types
As you probably know, there are people on your team who are better at thoroughly filling in records than others. When you use predetermined field sets that are assigned to coverage types, it makes it straightforward what information needs to be filled in. This also keeps your policy screens looking clean, without a bunch of fields you don’t need for that specific coverage type.
In AgencyBloc, when adding or editing a policy, you select which coverage type the policy is. Then, a certain field set will show for that policy. You can see below how coverage types can be assigned field sets.
By assigning field sets to coverage types, your policy screens show only the relevant fields. The dental group policy below, for example, is using the dental field set.
6. “Pinned” Notes on Records
Especially when several people in your agency might be accessing the same records, pinning important notes is an easy way to ensure everyone who opens that record is quickly brought up to speed.
Things agencies typically “pin” to records in AgencyBloc include:
Personal notes - “Bob and Jenny just welcomed their first grandbaby, James; be sure to say congratulations!”
Business notes - “When working with this employer group, ask to speak with Kerrie. She is filling in for Kara who is on maternity leave.”
Internal notes for your team - “We’re still waiting on quotes for this individual. It is taking longer than expected.”
When someone opens the individual, group, or policy record, that note will appear on the side panel as a quick reminder of the important information.
7. Personal Dashboards
The data you care about and need in order to make decisions in your position is unique to you. That’s why creating a personal dashboard can be so helpful.
Personal dashboards are what you see when you first log in to your AMS or CRM. They typically contain your activities or to-dos for the day, but from there, you can personalize to show graphs or charts of data that’s important to you and also saved searches for information you need each day.
Example in AgencyBloc: If your role focuses on working with commissions and analyzing revenue, you might consider setting up your personal dashboard with these real-time charts:
Top Commissions Received - By Carrier
Top Commissions Received - By Agent
Actual vs. Projected - By Month
Actual vs. Projected - By Coverage Type
New Policies - By Coverage Type
8. Shared Reports
Along the same lines as personal dashboards, shared reports can save your agency time, as well. Create a report, name it, and share it with coworkers that also need that data. Each time it’s run, it uses the latest data.
Commonly shared reports might include production reports, pending policy reports, and group employee census reports. See more report examples in our downloadable, The Big Book of Custom Report Recipes.
Having a way to share reports within your AMS ensures everyone is looking at the same data and is pulling it the same way, which reduces data silos where only certain people have access to specific information.
9. Saved Searches
Think about the data you look up on a daily basis. Now, think about how much easier it would be to have a space on your dashboard with that information at the forefront each time you opened your AMS or CRM. This is where saved searches come in!
A good example of this would be a producer looking at new leads or recently-converted clients. This might be information they want to see each day as they’re working leads and as a motivator to continuously convert them into clients.
Identify the things that come up on a regular basis that you need to see and create saved searches to efficiently monitor that data.
10. Global Search
Last, but certainly not least, we have global search or “search all records”. Global search is simply a way for you to search across your entire book of business. You can search for groups, individuals, policies, and agents. Then, sort and filter your data to see only what you need.
Example in AgencyBloc: Searching for "Thad Bridges" will find any matches in Groups, Individuals, Policies, and Agents. The screenshot below shows that Thad Bridges and Thad Bridges, Sr. are both individuals in your book of business with multiple policies tied to them.
This serves as a really fast way to look a client up when they call in (you can always search for phone numbers!), research a prospect before you call, and more.
Get Your Team in the Right AMS
If you’re looking at this list of items and noticing your current AMS or CRM lacks in these areas, it might be time to consider looking into a new one.
AgencyBloc, the #1 Agency Recommended management system for life and health insurance agencies, includes all of these features and more to help your agency work at peak productivity.
To learn more about AgencyBloc, check out this 5-minute overview video.
What is AgencyBloc? AgencyBloc is an agency management system (AMS) that helps life and health insurance agencies grow their business with an industry-specific CRM, commissions processing, and integrated business and marketing automation.
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