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Employees of Fleur de Lis Financial/MassMutual gather around their namesake symbol. Front row, from left: Sang Nguyen, associate; Grant Collier, New Orleans brokerage director; Sam Hebert, Baton
Rouge sales manager; Cham Mehaffey, New Orleans sales manager; and Gary Roth, associate. Back row: Christopher Bellew, Mississippi sales manager; John Oubre, recruiter; John Jabbia, Baton Rouge
brokerage director; Xavier Angel, associate; Greg Core, associate; and Homer Fouquier Jr., president and CEO.
Photo by Frank Aymami
Fleur de Lis Financial/
MassMutual
Every new employee at Fleur de Lis
Financial/MassMutual hears two presentations:
the Lou Holtz speech and the Johari
speech.
The first is a summary of a popular talk by
the former Notre Dame football coach that
centers on his use of the acronym TLC — for
trust, love and commitment — to explain the
secret to building relationships.
The other speech is an introduction to the
Johari principle, a psychological tool developed
in 1955 by Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham to
analyze interpersonal relationships.
The lesson drummed into new recruits in
the presentation is how trust and feedback
enhance the work environment.
Fleur de Lis President and CEO Homer
Fouquier said he has adopted the Holtz and
Johari philosophies as his own.
“I normally leave my door wide open,” said
Fouquier, adding that the company also conducts
periodic anonymous surveys of employees
to encourage feedback.
The boss’s management style has already
made an impression on Greg Core, a financial
services representative who joined the company
in July after a long career in managing
golf club facilities.
“He’s willing to go on any appointments
with you at any time,” Core said. “He’ll adjust
your schedule, which is very important, especially
for a new producer like me.”
The firm’s on-the-job training and support
system is another plus for Core, who sells a
variety of insurance products.
“When I wrote my first application, the new
business coordinator, compliance manager
and office manager all got with me to make
sure that I did it correctly and felt comfortable
doing it,” Core said.
Cham Mehaffey, senior vice president of
agency sales and Core’s supervisor, came
aboard in early 2005, bringing 25 years of
experience in the insurance industry.
Mehaffey said he was attracted by the freedom
Fleur de Lis Financial offered him to
make hiring decisions and by the company’s
method for training new agents.
Nature of business: financial services
Where based: Metairie
Employees: 40
Average starting salary: $36,000
Median salary: $60,000
Average employment time: more than five years
Benefits: health care plan with 50 percent coverage, dental
and vision plans, 401(k) with 3 percent match, continuing education
program, job sharing, employee recognition program,
fitness program
Wait time for benefits: none
Paid days off: 25
Web site: www.fleurdelisfinancial.com
Fleur de Lis Financial/Mass Mutual uses a
tightly structured three-year training program
that pairs each new salesperson with a manager.
“The whole day is planned out for each of
the first 90 days,” Mehaffey said.
The goal of the training program is to pass
along some of the many years of collective
knowledge that company veterans possess.
“It’s very important that (agents) are surrounded
with a support team and a mentoring
environment,” Fouquier said.
Mehaffey, who pointed out that most of the
company’s managers were hired either just
before or soon after Hurricane Katrina, said
their shared challenge of helping the company
rebuild has had a positive effect on their
working relationships.
“I guess tough times allow for great relationships
to evolve when you go through
them together,” he said.•
— Sonya Stinson
58 2009 Best Places to Work