A month ago, I sent an email out to all of our staff and asked them to answer one question for me: What is the Ten Eyck Difference? These answers can be for potential clients, long-time customers, or even a potential employee. I let the question be open for interpretation.
After sorting through the numerous responses, it was obvious to me that these were easy responses to write. These answers were not forced, memorized, or regurgitated. These answers were genuine. They were believed in. They were instilled across the whole company from day one. Although the wording may have changed from one answer to the next, there was a similar pattern between everyone.
I can do my best to paraphrase the answers I received, but I think the only way to do it justice is to allow you to see for yourself the words from our own employees. What we believe is the Ten Eyck Difference.
"We put the customer first in everything we do and always conduct ourselves with the highest level of integrity. We treat others the way we would want to be treated — whether it's our customers, prospects, company partners and our employees." -Chris B.
"The Ten Eyck Group Difference to me is the fact we've been able to collect 30 people who have the same core belief and carry that with them to work. I love the Warren Buffett quote: 'In looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. And if you don't have the first, the other two will kill you.' And I think that's true here. I think we have a group who truly has phenomenal integrity and really genuinely want to help people." -Greg B.
"As a new employee of the Ten Eyck Group, there are many things I love but two things that stand out to me. The Ten Eyck group believes in honesty and integrity above all and doing what is right for the customer. That was very important to me when coming to an agency with over 20 years of carrier and agency experience. Honesty and integrity are important to me. The other thing that sticks out to me is the Ten Eyck Group's team / family relationship. Everyone is family and works as a team to get the job done the best and most efficient way possible. Nothing is too small or too big. No person or question is insignificant. You can always go to your co-workers or your manager for help and can feel comfortable doing so, because we are family and on the same team. I feel very blessed and fortunate to be a part of the Ten Eyck family." -Diana D.
"Working at Ten Eyck, even as a remote employee, is being like part of a family. Everyone truly cares about each other, supports one another and will help in a time of need." -Jayne G.
"I love that everyone works so well together. It really is a team atmosphere here, and everyone will step up where needed to help our customers." -Kristen V.
"The Ten Eyck Difference to me is that everyone here wants to be here. In my line of work (employee benefits) I talk to owners, managers and HR directors of many different businesses. We have constant conversations about employee hiring, retention and healthy employer/employee relationships. Many believe their employees are not happy, hate to come to work every day and are imbalanced. These companies typically have high turnover. Many make a conscious effort to build a balanced team. At Ten Eyck Group we have a great balance of: Conducting meaningful work, fair compensation, solid benefits, decision making input, volunteerism/community service, and enjoying ourselves. There are many different ways to keep a high-quality workforce together but the best we have found is to have happy people who feel their work matters." -Michael W.
"I think our expertise and 'client first' approach separates us from other agencies in the Capital District." -Kristi H.
"We don't just come to work and clock in. We all know each other personally. We have seen each other's children grow up. We share pictures of our vacations and weddings and family celebrations. We try to plan meeting times outside of work to relax and enjoy each other's company. We still include our retirees to company events – because we want to see them! We are family. Don't get me wrong. We work and we work hard. But I think that we also take the time to be present for each other as well. That doesn't happen often in a work environment." -Vicki D.B.
"I just want to say that TEG treats their clients and employees with special care! We take pride in each other personally and professionally." -Lisa P.
"For me personally, it's all about the relationships and trust that I have developed with my customers over the years. We become part of their fabric and they become part of ours. Some our low-cost competitors have commoditized insurance and are all transactional based. Their service representatives are evaluated on how quick they can handle a customer's question/problem. At TEG, we don't measure our representatives on how fast they can get to the next customer in the queue!" -Dennis N.
"As I've said before, I think that our difference is that we genuinely care about our clients. Like an 'All In' kind of care. What I tell my clients 'We listen. We review what coverage you have in consideration of what coverage you need. Insurance should be designed with only you in mind. We explain insurance in a way that you can actually envision how the coverage you choose helps to make you whole after a loss. As an independent agent, we represent multiple carriers to help you find the best fit for your needs and budget.' Life changes and your insurance should keep up. All too often, clients' coverage is based upon dated needs. This is the reason that we spend so much time on the review part of the process. Insurance is so much more than a price that we pay for it. Cheap insurance will eventually prove itself and unfortunately, its time comes when we need it most. We will never lead with price. We lead with advice and the promise that we will be there with you to help put the pieces of your life back together again after a loss." -Lisa P.
No matter which response you read, you will know these things remain true: We always put our client first. We not only care about each other professionally, but personally as well. And whether you are doing business with us, or working along side us, you know you are getting 110 percent.