An Atmosphere of Caring

The employees at the Central Texas-based independent insurance agency, The Nitsche Group, can’t seem to say enough about how proud they are of the great service the agency provides to its customers.

Responding to Insurance Journal’s 2019 Best Agencies to Work For survey, team members at The Nitsche Group attributed the firm’s high client retention rate to its emphasis on client care.

“Our customer service is amazing!” wrote one employee, summing up comments made by many others. Another said: “We just continually bring the best options to our clients, regardless of our compensation opportunities.”

But great customer service isn’t the only thing they like about The Nitsche Group, which earned the award for the Bronze Best Agency to Work for in 2019 in the South Central region. In declaring their agency as one of the best, team members also cited the opportunities for growth and employee development, the group’s diversity, the caring atmosphere and the agency’s rich community involvement, among other things.

“The Nitsche Group shows great dedication in helping others. Whether it is an employee in the agency, a client, the community. The agency shows great respect for all and offers all great opportunities to advance in their field,” one survey respondent stated.

Another wrote: “We take pride in our Agency, we have Integrity, we strive to have the expertise to do the best job placing our Clients Insurance business to maintain that business and build their trust.”

Headquartered in Giddings, the agency has 124 employees and offices across the state.

According to Brigette Burttschell, Senior Marketing Relations, the “agency works hard to protect and cultivate the genuine family culture we were founded on that fosters an atmosphere of earnest caring and support.”

The agency has deep roots in the community and a long “history of community involvement. One of the values we hold highest is the belief that our success is defined by how well we contribute to the success of others. From providing scholarships for bettering education to hosting fundraisers for employees and local families in need, our team takes pride in giving back,” Burttschell said in an email to Insurance Journal.

Burttschell added that the agency’s leadership believes that “employees understand and embrace how truly different our culture is from others in the industry, and that they appreciate the effort we put into ensuring that it doesn’t change. We hope they feel the value we hold in this culture and understand the importance we place in each of them — both professionally and personally.”

Judging from their responses to IJ’s survey, The Nitsche Group employees do, in fact, feel the love. Said one: “We are blessed to have very little turn over — once you join this agency you become a ‘lifer’ and you are treated with such respect. When any of our people are going through trying times we all pull together and take care of that individual when they are down. We leave ‘no one behind’! It’s true and this agency is the ‘real thing’! I count my blessing daily to be part of such an amazing organization.”

Another employee who’s been with the agency for 30 years said people are always asking when they might retire. “My answer is ‘I love what I do and I don’t see myself retiring anytime soon.”

What would Burttschell say to other firms seeking to create an organization where employees want to come to work every day? “Focus on leading as a servant. Listen to your employees, learn how to fulfill their needs, and offer them the guidance to grow personally and professionally. When you take care of your employees, your employees will take care of your clients.”