Insurance IT Services

Resolutions for Leading Your Team Better in 2023

Just as quickly as it came, 2022 is coming to an end, which means it is time to think about how we want next year to be different. When choosing your New Year’s resolutions, leave room on your list for ones that will help you become a better leader. Consider these suggestions to get you started.

Focus on Team Clarity

Your team consists of individuals who think for themselves; they do not share a common brain. This means that no matter how determined and capable your team members are, they may go in opposite directions if they do not have a common vision to follow. For example, if your mission is to dig a big hole, you may work for hours only to find that half of your team has been dumping their dirt into the other half’s side and vice-versa. The result is an exhausted team and nothing to show for it.

Every team needs a leader who defines and simplifies the vision and clearly communicates it to every team member. There is no such thing as too much clarity or too much communication of clarity. To help guide you in creating clarity for your team, focus on three key questions that should have the same answer for every team member:

  1. Why are you doing this work? (Purpose).
  2. How should you behave? (Values)
  3. What do we need to achieve? (Goals).

In addition, each team member should be able to answer another individual question: Where do I fit? (Roles).

Foster Input from Everyone

Leadership comes with great authority, meaning you can make decisions with virtually nothing in your way. The obvious danger of that is that almost every decision impacts everyone on your team, so if your team members have no say in the matter, they start to feel powerless, especially if it happens routinely. That’s why it’s crucial to offer your team opportunities to provide input.

There is another, arguably more important, benefit to getting everyone’s input. It is quite simple: the best team members have the best ideas. No leader (not even you) is capable of singlehandedly making the best decisions possible on behalf of the entire organization. Indeed, it is up to the leader, in the end, to distill the various inputs into one coherent decision. But foregoing this process simply because it’s easier (or worse, you just don’t care) will stifle your team. Done the right way, you will build a solidly loyal team that always finds the best possible answers.

Engage with All Levels of the Organization

We all only have so many hours a day, and leading a team is certainly time-consuming. Despite this, we as leaders should strive to interact with team members at all levels of the organization. If you are leading the entire organization, you likely work directly with your leadership team but might not come in contact with most people in your company. You should find creative ways to get in front of your entire team, like walking the halls, taking them out to lunch, and attending department meetings. Of course, when you have employees that work remotely, this may require a bit more creativity and thinking outside of the box, but it’s still possible.

You owe it to your team to create a human connection with them. This is not just about getting to know your people but also about your people having the opportunity to get to know you. I genuinely believe that if your team feels a stronger connection at a human level, they will be more dedicated and do better work.

There are other noteworthy benefits to having higher engagement in your organization. I discussed previously the importance of communicating clarity. Every time you make an effort to interact with different levels of the organization, you have yet another opportunity to help communicate clarity (remember, no such thing as too much communication). Also, when you get to know new employees, you may find hidden talent you didn’t even know existed. You may just wind up meeting the next great leader of your company.

Hone Your Nonverbal Communication

A statistic often shared in business and psychology classes states that somewhere between 70%-90% of all communication is nonverbal. So, when speaking to someone, the words you choose only account for a tiny fraction of the message the other person hears. I remember the first time I heard a professor share this statistic and ask if I believed him. I hesitated, raised an eyebrow, and in a puzzled tone, I replied, “Yes, I believe you.” Needless to say, the professor saw right through my words and could sense my evident skepticism.

My experience working with people has made this point crystal clear to me. Words are important, but your true intent and sentiment come through more authentically in your tone and body language (facial expressions, stance, hand movement). Tone and body language can so easily and subtly communicate how you truly feel. To be clear, I am not suggesting that you falsify your tone and body language to sell something you don’t really believe. Instead, you should reflect on your thoughts properly and speak from a place of truth because when you do respond, it will be obvious if your words do not reflect your true feelings. When you are a leader, all eyes and ears are on you, so you must be acutely aware of what you are communicating nonverbally. 

Conclusion

If you actively seek out reading materials and podcasts and other ways to learn about better leadership, it tells me that you are a great leader. But I believe that you still have room to grow. Your job as a leader is to look inward and find ways to make improvements continuously. This process never ends. While this may be a popular time of year to think about and make New Year’s resolutions, your journey of leadership growth should be year-long. With the right attitude and approach, I know that we can all end 2023 as better leaders than when we started.

Picture of Daniel Gilbert

Daniel Gilbert

Chief Operating Officer
Kite Technology Group

Case Study: Managed IT Services for Pennsylvania Independent Insurance Agency

An independent insurance agency using Applied Epic and located in York, Pennsylvania has been working with Kite Technology Group for Managed IT Services since January 2002. Kite Technology ongoing IT Management and technical support. 

Project Details

The Client

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of two owners of a full-service independent insurance agency in York, Pennsylvania.

The Challenge

What challenge were you trying to address with Kite
Technology Group?

We needed a Managed IT Service provider to handle all of our IT needs.

The Approach

What was the scope of their involvement?

Kite Technology Group has provided on- and off-site IT services since January 2002. Over the years, they’ve purchased hardware and software solutions to improve our IT infrastructure. Kite Technology Group’s team has helped us implement Microsoft Teams into our phone system.  When necessary, Kite Technology Group comes on-site to execute projects. I’d estimate that they come into our office three times a year. 

How did you come to work with Kite Technology Group?

We’ve been working with Kite Technology Group for quite some time, so I’m not sure how the relationship started because I wasn’t with the company at the start of the partnership. However, I believe they had a relationship with the previous owner. I assume their geographical location and existence as one of the few insurance-based IT companies on the market influenced the decision to hire them.

What is the status of this engagement? 

We started working together in January 2002 and the engagement is ongoing. 

The Outcome 

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  

Since Kite Technology Group provides us with weekly and monthly reports on the type and quantity of service calls and solutions they provide, I can report that all of those metrics are very good. The entire relationship with them has been fantastic. We trust them completely when it comes to IT management. 

How did Kite Technology Group perform from a project management standpoint? 

Their team has excellent project management. They use an emailbased management tool to create and track service tickets. From that management portal, their teammates can respond to our service tickets. We communicate with them through phone calls. 

What did you find most impressive about them? 

We trust Kite Technology Group. Their team is responsive to our needs and understands that we’re in a time-sensitive industry and do their best to respond to us promptly and efficiently. 

Are there any areas they could improve? 

There is nothing for them to improve.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to give Kite Technology Group the time to learn about your business — meet with them and give them the opportunity to win your business. 

Summary of Project Feedback

Clutch Client Rating

“The entire relationship with them has been fantastic. We trust them completely when it comes to IT management.”

 To check out the live review on Clutch click here. If you are currently working with Kite Technology and would like to leave a review on Clutch, please click here.

Interested in Learning if Kite Technology is the Right IT Partner for Your Business?

We would love the opportunity to meet with you and learn more about your organization’s objectives and goals. To schedule a conversation, please contact us and a member of our team will reach out to you. 

Case Study: Managed IT Services for California Independent Insurance Agency

An independent insurance agency using AMS360 and located in San Fransisco, California hired Kite Technology Group for managed IT services. They handle the server, provide support, and modernize security procedures.  Currently, they’re migrating the system to Microsoft 365.

Project Details

The Client

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the Operations and Marketing Manager at an independent insurance agency in San Fransisco, California.

The Challenge

What challenge were you trying to address with Kite
Technology Group?

We needed a new managed IT service partner to handle our IT needs because our previous provider wasn’t performing as they should have been.

The Approach

What was the scope of their involvement?

Kite Technology Group is our IT managed service provider. They manage our server, provide day-to-day technical support for our computers, and modernize our security procedures and setups. First, they completed a network assessment, analyzing where we were; they poked around the server and asked questions. From there, they developed a comprehensive outline of our system’s status and created an action plan with items in red, yellow, and green according to urgency. They shipped new equipment to us, and then one of their teammates flew in to install it. The team has also upgraded our firewall and made other necessary security upgrades. 

They work with Vertafore, which is our agency management system. The team has also helped with our new phone system. Kite Technology Group has completed all critical items, and they’re currently migrating us to Microsoft 365. The goal is for us not to rely on the physical server and be able to access everything needed for day-to-day business through Microsoft 365 directly.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with at least five different people from Kite Technology Group. In the beginning, I worked with the VP of Business Development and their CSO did our network assessment. Since then, we’ve worked with a project engineer, a client experience manager and a security engineer. We’ve also been in contact with different day-to-day tech support representatives.

How did you come to work with Kite Technology Group?

I discovered them on NetVU, which is a community of Vertafore users. I interviewed several vendors both local and around the country. Kite Technology Group was the provider I felt most comfortable with and the best match.

What is the status of this engagement? 

We started working together in January 2022 and the engagement is ongoing. 

The Outcome 

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?  

Everyone in our company has been so much happier since we started working with Kite Technology Group. Our previous provider wasn’t giving us adequate support; we’d go around in circles with them and their techs weren’t the most knowledgeable. That engagement got to the point where I stopped reaching out for support, and I was wasting time researching how to fix issues on my own. Meanwhile, Kite Technology Group is capable, helpful, and knowledgeable. Our office has daily conversations about how much we love their service.  The team resolves issues quickly once we submit a ticket. Although we don’t have the exact data showing how much time we save, office morale has improved; we no longer dread reaching out for support when there’s an issue. 

Kite Technology Group has also improved our efficiency, and we don’t have potential security issues like before. They give us peace of mind because we’re confident in their ability to fix things and in them as advisors. Moreover, the team is pleasant to work with; they’re positive and encouraging. I can’t say enough good things about them; I only regret that I didn’t go to them sooner. 

How did Kite Technology Group perform from a project management standpoint? 

We had a couple of initial Teams meetings with the CSO and VP of Business Development, where we went over the project’s priorities, our concerns, and availability. Then, we scheduled the day when they came down to install new equipment. Now, we primarily keep in touch through email and phone, and they always communicate well

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Sometimes during a sale, providers promise certain things that, as clients, we doubt will be the reality. Kite Technology Group has gone above and beyond all their promises in that initial sales process. They’ve been helpful and willing to fix anything. In the beginning, when we had many questions, they worked after hours to address all of them and figure things out. Overall, Kite Technology Group has been fantastic. 

Are there any areas they could improve? 

I can’t think of anything they need to do better. Of course, not everything is perfect since we’re dealing with technology. Although we’ve had some bumps in the road, we can tell that they’re trying to work on it. Besides, I blame those bumps on being behind the times due to our previous provider.

Summary of Project Feedback

Clutch Client RatingKite Technology Group’s work is fantastic; they’re knowledgeable, efficient, helpful, and encouraging, giving the client peace of mind. The team is organized and communicates effectively via email and phone calls. Moreover, they’re easy to work with, and they’ve gone above and beyond every promise.

 To check out the live review on Clutch click here. If you are currently working with Kite Technology and would like to leave a review on Clutch, please click here.

 

 

Interested in Learning if Kite Technology is the Right IT Partner for Your Business?

We would love the opportunity to meet with you and learn more about your organization’s objectives and goals. To schedule a conversation, please contact us and a member of our team will reach out to you. 

adam atwell

Adam Atwell

Cloud solutions architect

Adam is passionate about consulting with organizations across the country to help them develop and execute a cloud adoption strategy that meets their business needs and future objectives. Adam oversees and manages our company strategy for Microsoft 365 adoption and is responsible for future growth and development inside Microsoft 365 and other cloud technologies.