Chicagoland SIA Blog

Ever wonder how hackers gain access to online accounts at home or at the office? There are a variety of different ways, but one of the most common is by using the right password. That’s right. Criminals can gain access to your private information because they either have or can easily guess your login credentials. Unfortunately, most of us make it far too easy for criminals to access their accounts that way. Here are some common ways hackers gain access to your agency’s accounts and your own — and what you can do to thwart them:

Did you know that from Memorial Day to Labor Day each year, thousands of teens are injured or killed in driving accidents nationwide? That’s why this time period is called the ’100 deadliest days’ for teen drivers.

Does your agency have a quality and mobile-friendly online presence with clear online branding? It all starts with a great website. Many times the skeleton of a website — or a semi-functional site — is built and owners move on to more time-sensitive business issues. Here’s why you need to invest in a solid and mobile-friendly website:

Telecommuting has really taken off over the past 2+ years. Global pandemic aside, many businesses and employees have found that working at home at least part of the time has many benefits. Yet working from home or having employees working at home can definitely change things from a risk management/commercial insurance perspective.

As a busy insurance professional, you have a lot of demands on your time. And there’s only so much time in each day and week to work on your to-do list. How do you handle the time you have to run your insurance business? Here are some ways to better manage the time you have to serve your customers and manage your agency.

Finding great employees for your insurance agency can be challenging. That’s why interviewing job applicants is such a critical step in the hiring process. Talking to an applicant in person and observing how they answer your questions can help you determine whether they have the right skills and knowledge for the position and if they’ll fit well into your workforce.

Despite the growing awareness of cyber threats, many myths about cyber security still persist. Ready to separate fact from fiction? Here are four facts about cybersecurity to share with your small business clients:

There’s a lot of room for improvement when it comes to educating employees about cybersecurity. Case in point: the cybersecurity awareness training firm KnowBe4′s State of Privacy and Security Awareness Report. This report details the state of employee awareness and practices — and it’s not good news for most organizations.

Have you ever felt misunderstood? We all have. That’s why perception checking is such an important skill. Simply put, perception-checking involves directly asking another person for clarity to ensure you’re understanding what they’re trying to say with their words or body language.