Nicki Shields, Cpcu, Cic, Api, Acs, Ais, Ains Email & Phone Number

Northbrook, Il, Us

Leading teams responsible for designing, building, delivering, and optimizing our Field Sales Organization strategy/tools and our agency/MSA sales tools. Connecting with AOR's across the enterprise to align on priorities, provide expert consulting and support, and increase effectiveness within our organization and sales support offerings.

Northbrook, Il, Us

Reimagining the end-to-end agent and customer experience, amid significant strategic transformation across systems, platforms, products, and capabilities. Leading the research, conceptualization and future state design of critical moments and processes by collaborating with talent across Product, Data, Technology, Underwriting, Operations, and external partners.Highlights:Served as co-sponsor for the development of a new business owner product, taking ownership of all user experience workstreams. Prior to securing additional resources, assumed Program Management responsibilities, establishing the overall operating model and cadence. Created and refined roadmaps and workstream objectives to ensure consistent alignment and presented compelling business cases, presentations, and design iterations to stakeholders and senior leaders. Led and participated in competitive research and 3rd party vendor analysis and proactively engaged with enterprise teams outside of ABI cultivating critical relationships.Spearheaded a 6-month intensive design effort, in which we successfully created a customer-centric, user-friendly quote and application experience for small business, accommodating a new product structure and multiple distribution channels. To expedite the design process, secured funding and sponsored an engagement with a vendor, utilizing Figma for accelerated design efforts and VersionOne for development preparation.

Erie, Pa, Us

Successfully established the Billing & Payments department within our Experience division, defining and building its organizational structure which included leadership and talent across Experience, Data, and Billing & Payments. Served as the sponsor for the Billing and Payments Modernization program, overseeing key initiatives and driving transformation and effective change management to support new product development across the organization. To accomplish our objectives, our operating rhythm included monthly sessions with senior leaders across several divisions including our CEO and Executive team. Through this cadence I developed business cases that secured approval and funding for multi-year, multi-million-dollar efforts to upgrade the enterprise Billing system and deliver new products.Highlights:Played a pivotal role in a 12-week Blueprint effort, evaluating the replacement of the billing system, which encompassed 445 configurations, addressed 201 gaps, and involved over 50 participants. This endeavor included vendor evaluation and negotiation, as well as requirements definition and story card evaluation.Driven by valuable input from agents, customers, and employees, I championed continuous improvement efforts that supported modernization. Focus areas included enhancing the credit card option, backup payment solution, automatic payments digitization, non-pay cancellation process, and pay plan rationalization. I also conceptualized and gained broad support for our customer-led payment experience.In addition to program leadership, I took on the role of Enterprise Billing Data Steward, leading efforts related to Billing Glossary, Enterprise Data Warehouse, Billing Consolidated Data Store, and reporting capabilities. I also worked closely with IT partners to identify future Payment architecture, enabling new products, states, and enhanced customer experiences.

Erie, Pa, Us

Invited to this role to help lead the Underwriting division through a massive cross-training transformation. Direct accountability for a dynamic team of Personal and Commercial Lines Underwriters and Consultants who achieved profitable growth and impressive results across Kentucky and Tennessee. ERIE Explore Leadership Program graduate and alumni mentor, fostering leadership development within the broader organization. Selected as one of twelve Leadership Capability Champions.Highlights:Built and nurtured critical relationships with Branch teams, District Sales Managers, and Independent Agents to drive profitable growth. Led process improvement projects that enhanced Underwriter knowledge and confidence, ultimately improving the overall Agent experience. This included initiatives such as Material Changes, Commercial Driver Exclusions, and PPA application and guideline modifications.Played a pivotal role in talent acquisition and retention, interviewing and hiring the Underwriter Trainee Class of 2018 and promoting talent within my team. I also had the privilege of representing the Customer Segmentation project effort at Task Force and Executive Council forums.Spearheaded the GlossERIE initiative, where I led a team of 20+ to design, create, and maintain a new technical solution, that accelerated underwriting training and improved the experience for employees and Agents.Kentucky Results:Total P/C Written Premium increased 58%.Total P/C Loss Ratio improved 26.82%.Commercial New Written Premium surged by 201%.PPA Loss Ratio experienced a noteworthy improvement of 27.48%.Tennessee Results:Total P/C Written Premium grew 21.3%.Total P/C Loss Ratio improved 6.84%.Commercial Total Written Premium increased by 25.9%.Personal Total Written Premium increased 19.25%.

Erie, Pa, Us

Recruited, trained, and guided Independent Agents, providing expertise in sales, marketing, underwriting, re-underwriting, profitability, business development and overall agency management. Offered continuous support, coaching, and accountability. Built strong relationships, earning their trust and their business and maximizing their revenue potential. Ohio (4+ years):Piloted Virtual District Sales Manager role with executed district growth greater than $7.6 million in four years.Improved district annual new written premium from $1.7 million in 2012 to $3.69 million in 2016Improved district first year annualized Life premium 31.57% in 2016Appointed Independent Agency which grew to $2.2 million Total Direct Written Premium in first 35 months.Increased Founders Award Qualifiers from three (2012) to 15 (2016)Improved annual new written premium for eight agencies over 85%; five of these agencies improved more than 50% in 2016.Improved district overall results: all Agents produced more than $100,000 new written premium in 2016 (13 agencies below this threshold in 2012)North Carolina (12 months):Responsible for overall ERIE success with 19 independent agencies and $37 million in total premium volumeLed branch in Loss Ratio and Life Premium results.Exceeded 100% of Total Direct Written Premium and New Private Passenger Auto Premium goals.Completed District Sales Manager Training Program

Erie, Pa, Us

Erie, Pa, Us

Erie, Pa, Us