It’s All About Family at Otterstedt Insurance Agency

The home page of Otterstedt Insurance Agency’s website says, “It’s about people, not policies.”

After more than 100 years in business, the agency seems to know that living up to this motto starts with its own people.

“I have worked in a few agencies and none of them have gone out of their way to make their employees feel so appreciated and valued the way Otterstedt does,” wrote one employee in an anonymous Insurance Journal survey. “I feel like I am part of a big family.”

The survey was conducted as part of Insurance Journal’s annual Best Agency to Work For rankings in which employees nominate their agency and respond to survey questions about why they believe it’s the best. This year, Otterstedt won Insurance Journal’s Best Agency to Work For Bronze award in the East region.

“Otterstedt is of a dying breed of employers that truly cultivate a family type atmosphere,” another employee wrote. “Otterstedt ownership truly attempts to make certain its employees share in the success of its business, and leadership is determined to make sure the employees realize they are the heartbeat of the organization’s success.”

Indeed, Chairman and CEO Joseph Parisi Jr. said it “feels amazing” to know the agency’s environment is helping its employees thrive.

“We work hard to make sure that all members of our Otterstedt family have a place to work where they are safe, secure, and successful in all aspects of their careers,” he said.

Otterstedt was originally founded in 1919 by Fred H. Otterstedt, and Parisi’s parents purchased the agency in 1955 upon Otterstedt’s retirement. It has been in the Parisi family ever since, which is a big reason why the agency understands the importance of building strong relationships.

“We don’t just do transactions, we do relationships,” Parisi said.

He added that his parents would be proud to know how much current employees value the agency.

“We’re a family business and treat everyone as such,” he said. “These types of acknowledgements show we are going in the right direction, and my parents would be proud of where we are today.”

Indeed, employees cited the agency’s pandemic response as just one example of how the agency goes above and beyond for its people.

“During this pandemic, Otterstedt put the safety and needs of its employees first,” one employee wrote. “They went over and above setting us all up to work from home so our families would be safe. They kept us informed and helped us to all work as a team so that any employees with special needs were taken care of.”

Another situation employees pointed to where the agency went above and beyond for its clients was in its response to the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida.

Ida brought flash flooding and widespread damage to many areas of New Jersey, even areas that had never before experienced flood damage.

“[During] Hurricane Ida, for example, our staff stepped up and took care of our clients who were in need of immediate attention,” one employee said in the survey. “As this created an all-hands-on-deck scenario, our staff worked together with our claims team to work better to connect with our clients who needed help the most. No questions were asked, and our staff did whatever it took to step up and help those who needed us the most.”

Despite the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the conversation around climate change in New Jersey with increasingly widespread storm and flood events, Parisi said the agency’s values have remained the same.

“We continue to be who we are even with this everchanging world,” he said.

This strategy appears to be working well for the agency, as evidenced by its employees’ longevity.

“I have been with the agency almost 20 years and have seen us grow from a small, well-respected agency to a larger agency that now stretches from east to west New Jersey and has allowed us to help more clients throughout northern New Jersey,” one employee wrote. “I hear nothing but great things from our clients and carriers, and if you look at our staff, there are a lot of employees who have been with Otterstedt over 10 and 20 years.”

Parisi said his advice to leadership teams at other agencies is to “put yourself in everyone’s shoes, be flexible with your employees and approach situations with empathy and understanding.”

“We feel like Otterstedt is more than just a place for someone to collect a paycheck,” he added. “It’s a place where people like coming every morning.”

The agency’s employees seem to agree.

“When you enjoy going to your job everyday and the employees stay for years and years,” one employee wrote, “you are at the best agency you can possible work at.”