The past few years have been untenable, as they've tried to address the Interne driven service and buying expectations of their customers without adequate technology to do so. As our agents gain access to the systems we are creating, they will be better equipped to provide the care that distinguishes their service. Through a variety of national-level initiatives, we're trying to connect the strengths of agents with technological capacity. We're crusading to drive the reinvention of agents, to help them become the most powerful distribution system for financial services products and realize their potential as a dominant industry force. It would be cavalier for us to talk about the reinvention of agents if we were not simultaneously reinventing ourselves.
Outstanding service is vitally important, but it's no longer enough.
To excel in this environment, you need to provide value. We must structure ourselves to anticipate and exceed our agents' expectations. To understand what our customers' value, we went out and asked more than 130 agency employees. What we learned forms the backbone for much of the work we did in 1999. Our conversations elicited what our agents look for in an insurance company, and caused us to revisit the essence of our business.