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From left: Account executive Mercy Perez and Vice President Brian Cohen cheer while associates Jordan Eagan and Amy Boudreaux Roth take turns playing Wii Bowling in Eagan Insurance Agency’s
downstairs lunchroom.
Photo by Frank Aymami
Eagan Insurance Agency
Don’t be surprised if you find employees at
Eagan Insurance Agency playing Wii during
their down time — management is perfectly
OK with it.
To add some fun to the daily grind, Eagan
recently put a large-screen television in the
lunchroom and added a Nintendo console.
“We actually have Wii tournaments at
lunch,” Senior Vice President Dotty Gettys said.
“Everyone enjoys it, and it helps build a lot of
camaraderie.”
Family-style businesses are noted for congeniality
and concern among employees, and
Eagan can sometimes take things one step
further.
When Executive Vice President Chris
Trapani started with the company 20 years ago,
he was taken aback when Eagan offered him a
personal loan to buy an engagement ring for his
girlfriend.
“I had only been here a couple of years and
was trying to buy an engagement ring, but it
was more than I had saved up,” Trapani said.
“They offered to loan me the money. I knew then
and there they were making an investment in
me and making a long-term commitment.”
Now marking its 50th year in business,
Eagan has built itself up by maintaining a
tight-knit staff. The company goes beyond
the standard benefits package by offering a
few other bonuses that are hard to find in
other offices.
One of Eagan’s most popular benefits is its
Flex Fridays program, in which two rotating
groups of the entire staff can take every other
Friday off. That adds up to almost a month of
extra paid time off throughout the year.
Eagan also offers flex hours for those who
need it and works with parents who need to
tend to their children and after-school activities.
Insurance Associate Beth Carter-Drury characterizes
Eagan’s culture as one of “balance
and harmony.” Having been in the industry for
15 years, she started at Eagan a year ago and
said she’s noticed a striking difference in her
new work atmosphere in terms of cooperation
among departments and few internal power
struggles for sales and clients.
Nature of business: insurance
Where based: Metairie
Employees: 65
Average starting salary: $41,000 for staff, $125,000 for
producers
Median salary: $44,000 for staff, $159,000 for producers
Average employment time: 10 years
Benefits: medical, dental, vision, prescription, 12 weeks
unpaid maternity and paternity leave, 401(k), life insurance,
long-term disability
Wait time for benefits: 30 days
Paid days off: up to 58
Web site: www.eaganins.com
“It’s a real progressive work environment,”
she said. “They’re very innovative, always open
to new ideas and they always accept feedback
from employees.”
Despite being in a competitive sales-driven
industry, Trapani said Eagan doesn’t treat
its salespeople with the typical “sweatshopstyle
pressure” of making employees produce
at any cost. The freedom the agency has
given him, along with solid training and an
investment in his career, has allowed him to
serve his clients better.
Gettys, who has been with the company for
22 years, said Eagan’s competitive compensation
along with its family atmosphere helps
keep the average employee’s tenure at 10 years
in a field noted for high turnover.•
— Craig Guillot
16 2009 Best Places to Work