Agency Intelligence: The Insurance Podcast Network

What if trying to protect your money is actually putting your financial future at risk? Market volatility, political uncertainty, and the excitement surrounding artificial intelligence can make even experienced investors question their decisions. But while we spend a lot of time worrying about what the stock market might do next, we don't always consider how our own reactions can affect our long-t...

You don’t need to know how to build AI to get ahead with it. You need to know how to use it. IndieTech 2027 Featured Speaker Ruben Hassid sits down with Jason to talk about choosing the right model and how fast AI is getting cheaper, and as Co-Founder of GPC, he shares how companies actually get their teams on board. Key Topics: Ruben’s mission to teach people how to use AI, not how to build it Th...

What if you’re not behind financially? What if you’re just getting started? In this episode of Money in Real Life, Stuff About Money co-hosts Xavier Angel CFP®, ChFC®, CLTC®, and Erik Garcia, CFP®, BFA™, tackle the pressure young professionals feel to build wealth while paying down debt, starting careers, managing everyday expenses, and still trying to enjoy their lives. Xavier and Erik explore wh...

In this episode of Front Cover: A Rough Notes Podcast on the Agency Intelligence Podcast Network, Jason Cass sits down with Linda Fisher, Founder of Cardinal Insurance Group, the agency featured on the October 2026 front cover of Rough Notes Magazine.  Key Topics: Why taking care of the team comes before taking care of the client Moving from boss to leader and helping employees chase their ow...

What if your biggest competitor isn't the agency down the road, but your own habit of hiring? Jason Cass goes solo this episode to break down NexAgency's rollout of NexOne, why AMS platforms are becoming little more than a database, and how a lesson from Southwest Airlines reframes what real competition looks like for independent agents. Key Topics: NexAgency rolled out NexOne on September 1st, gr...

In this episode of Front Cover: A Rough Notes Podcast on the Agency Intelligence Podcast Network, pulling from the archives, Jason Cass sits down with Randall Boss, Certified Risk Manager and Certified Risk Architect at Ottawa Kent Insurance Agency (now part of HIGHSTREET Insurance Partners), the agency featured on the July 2012 cover of Rough Notes Magazine. Key Topics: What landing the cover of...

What if the biggest thing keeping young adults from building wealth isn’t how much money they make, but believing wealth is even attainable? In the second episode of Money in Real Life, Xavier Angel, CFP®, and his daughter Caitlin tackle the question that naturally follows their first conversation: I know what I want my money to make possible, but how do I actually get there? Xavier and Caitlin ta...

Turning an hour-long insurance quote into a 20 minute process is exactly the kind of problem Gaya was built to solve. Jason Cass sits down with Carl Ziadé, Co-Founder of Gaya, to unpack how the platform is reshaping the way agents fill carrier portals, handle transportation submissions, and prepare for what's next in agentic quoting. Key Topics: Gaya autofills carrier portals as a browser extensio...

In this episode of Insurance Shoptalk, Eric Stein sits down with Patrick Davis, CEO of InsurePay, to discuss how pay-as-you-go workers’ compensation is changing the way businesses pay premiums—and why insurance agents should understand it as both a client benefit and a retention tool. Patrick explains how pay-as-you-go connects workers’ compensation premiums directly to actual payroll, recalculati...

In this episode of Insurance Shoptalk, Eric Stein chats with Norm Hudson, CEO of Staff Boom, to explore why insurance agencies need to build the right operational foundation before AI and automation can deliver meaningful results. Norm shares lessons from working with insurance agencies, MGAs, wholesalers, and other organizations that have attempted to automate processes only to discover that inco...

What does “building wealth” mean when you’re still trying to figure out rent, your career, debt, relationships, and adulthood? In this episode of Stuff About Money They Didn’t Teach You in School, Xavier Angel, CFP®, sits down with his daughter, Caitlin, for a conversation that started when she gave him some unexpected feedback: “I don’t think you should give this presentation.” Xavier had built a...

What can four decades in the restaurant business teach an insurance agency about running a tighter, more profitable operation? Jason Cass sits down with Troy Korsgaden, Founder of Korsgaden Consulting Services and Keynote Speaker for IndieTech 2027, to unpack lessons on client engagement, AI adoption, and building a resilient agency built to last. Key Topics: Parallels between running Crawdaddy's...

In this episode of Front Cover: A Rough Notes Podcast on the Agency Intelligence Podcast Network, Jason Cass sits down with Robbie Smith, Co-Founder of Oakbridge Insurance the agency featured on the September 2026 front cover of Rough Notes Magazine.  Key Topics: Robbie reflects on Oakbridge Insurance earning a spot on the cover of Rough Notes Magazine Oakbridge Insurance formed five and a ha...

In the final episode of the series, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT bring together the core ideas explored throughout The Psychology of Money. They revisit the framework that ties the entire series together: Your thoughts shape you Your habits build you Your choices define you The conversation expands beyond investing and budgeting into fulfillment, relationships, identity...

In this episode of Insurance Shoptalk, Eric Stein sits down with Marc Duffy of Duffy Insurance to explore how a family-owned independent insurance agency can grow through acquisitions while maintaining its culture, personal service, and local identity. The conversation covers agency integration, technology and management systems, employee training, recruiting, producer incentives, and the differen...

What if the negotiation you're losing has already started before you even open your mouth? Jason Cass sits down with Chris Voss, CEO and Founder of The Black Swan Group, to unpack the tactics behind high-stakes negotiation, from hostage crises to closing sales. Key Topics: The negotiation has already started before the first word is spoken Lessons learned from the Burnham-Sobero hostage case in th...

How much control do we really have over our financial future? In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT explore the tension between external circumstances and personal responsibility. While economic conditions, inflation, taxes, and unexpected crises are outside anyone’s control, the conversation highlights the many financial choices that still remain firmly within...

In this episode of Front Cover: A Rough Notes Podcast on the Agency Intelligence Podcast Network, Jason Cass sits down with Michael Cruz, Principal Owner of Foresight Insurance, the agency featured on the August 2026 front cover of Rough Notes Magazine.  Key Topics: Michael's reaction to being featured on the cover of Rough Notes Magazine Foresight Insurance's growth to 13 employees and 10 ye...

Why do less than a third of independent agents actually use a CRM, and what is that gap costing them? Jason Cass sits down with Mariah Gates, Founder of Accelerated Automation, to unpack agency operations, the shifting role of AMS platforms, and what it really takes to prepare an agency for AI. Key Topics: Why less than 27% of agents actually use a CRM, per a Vertafore study Growth through acquisi...

Money is rarely just about numbers inside a relationship. In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT unpack why financial conflict in marriages and partnerships is often rooted in deeper emotional needs like trust, security, control, communication, and vulnerability. Drawing from years of counseling couples and advising families, they discuss financial infidelity, po...

Everyone has financial regrets. In this episode, Erik and Dr. Matt tackle the emotional weight people carry from past financial decisions — debt, overspending, failed investments, divorce, financial scams, and seasons of instability. The real danger, they explain, isn’t the mistake itself; it’s allowing the mistake to become an identity. Dr. Matt introduces the difference between guilt and shame:...

What does it actually look like when an independent agent builds a fully staffed, four-day-workweek agency that outpaces the captives? Jason Cass sits down with Michael Cruz, COO of Virtual Intelligence and ERIE agent based in Maryland outside Washington DC, to unpack how virtual employees, smart staffing, and operational flexibility are reshaping what an independent agency can be. Key Topics: Mic...

In this episode of Front Cover: A Rough Notes Podcast on the Agency Intelligence Podcast Network, Jason Cass sits down with Angela Trimble & Janet Payne, Co-owners of TrustPoint Insurance the agency featured on the July 2026 front cover of Rough Notes Magazine.  Key Topics: How Angela and Janet went from college roommates to agency co-owners 17 years later Agency overview: three locations, 22 staf...

Most people believe financial transformation starts with motivation. ⁠Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™⁠ and ⁠Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT⁠ argue the opposite: motivation fades, but habits compound. In this episode, they explain why relying on bursts of inspiration or willpower almost always leads to inconsistency — especially when it comes to money. Using stories from fitness, personal finance, and everyda...

Money is emotional — and in this episode, ⁠Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™⁠ and ⁠Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT⁠ explore why emotions have such a powerful influence on financial behavior. From market volatility and economic uncertainty to comparison, insecurity, and fear of failure, people rarely make purely rational financial decisions. Instead, emotions often drive reactions that conflict with long-term g...