Falvey Insurance Group CEO and president Michael Falvey started the business as Falvey Cargo Underwriting in 1995. The North Kingstown-based company has grown from a two-person operation to become one of the top five providers of cargo insurance in the United States. / PBN FILE PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY
Michael Falvey | Falvey Insurance Group CEO and president
Socialization is an integral part of the Falvey Insurance Group culture. However, when we were sent home to work remotely [for the first time in the company’s 25-year history] in March 2020, there was a problem: like many others, we were no longer physically in the same space.How could we maintain our tight-knit culture? Through internal survey data, we learned our employees feel more connected than ever, and we are one of Business Insurance’s “Best Places to Work” in insurance nationwide.
My advice to other businesses is to focus on culture over strategy:• Fight for your culture. The world will always throw unexpected curveballs that no strategy can address, but if you focus on keeping people motivated not only to work, but wanting to come to work, the rest will fall into place.• Communicate. Transparent and regular communication will pay back in dividends.• Support the community. Give employees the license to give back to the community they are a part of. “Doing good” transforms culture when employees lead the way.• Stay focused. Determine your goals and stick to them. If an initiative or project doesn’t support those goals, don’t do it.• Collaborate. Encourage an environment where people work together as much as possible. In the end, we are stronger together.
