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Key personnel tend to be one to two people that your company heavily relies on. These employees can be anyone from a partner to an operations manager or a site foreman. The contribution of these key personnel is essential to run your company. If one of the key personnel dies, where would you find the financial resources to keep your business up and running until you replace them?

The answer is a key person life insurance policy, which your business will receive all or most of the proceeds. This term may also apply to other coverages used for business continuation purposes, including 1) buy-sell or shareholder insurance which will reimburse partners or investors; 2) debt protection; 3) and revenue protection. You can use the policy benefit to replace lost income due to the unavailability of the key person and recruit, develop, and train a replacement.

The policy’s cash value might be available to your business through a withdrawal or loan, if needed. You could also split the premium and death benefit between the firm and the spouse of the key person to ensure that she or he receives replacement for the person’s economic value to the family. These premiums are not tax deductible.

What’s more, this coverage provides a financial asset that enhances the creditworthiness of your company for commercial lending (by ensuring that the business will remain in business if the key person is out of the picture).

When reviewing packages, get quotes on different amounts,anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000. Take into account what your budget allows versus how much the business would need to survive while you’re bringing a new person up to speed.

Our agency stands ready to advise you at any time.

Your supervisors play a crucial role in managing your workforce to ensure high productivity, quality, and safety outcomes. They need to have performance management (leadership) skills.

Communicating productivity expectations to employees, including coaching and counseling them to meet these goals, learning how to balance the need for production and concern for workers.

There are four possible scenarios in this balance:

1. Low concern for both the workforce and productivity (“minimal management”). This will displease both management and workers, meaning the supervisor won’t be around long.
2. High concern for people, but little interest in production (“Country Club management”). This will please workers, while making management unhappy.
3. High concern for productivity, with little regard for the workforce (“autocratic management”). Although the company might meet its short-term goals, workers will be dissatisfied, leading to turnover and absenteeism issues that will make it tough to meet long-term production.
4. A balanced high concern for both productivity and workers (“team management”). This is the best scenario because the project will probably exceed productivity goals, due to an involved and engaged workforce.

Good supervisors need management skills, but great supervisors must also have leadership skills. Managers do things right, while leaders do the right things. Managers get workers to achieve productivity goals, while leaders get them to exceed these goals.

The “situational” leadership approach gets the best results by combining elements of other leadership styles, “autocratic,” “democratic,” and “participatory.” To lead effectively, your supervisors must demonstrate integrity, fairness and a respect towards all workers, based on understanding immediate needs of the employees.

How well do your supervisors meet this test?

Cold weather will be with us for a few months which can cause a variety of problems for contractors and their employees who work outdoors in winter weather.

To help your workers stay warm and safe on the job, follow these precautions:

• Make sure that they keep their body temperature at or about normal by wearing layers of clothing, both inside and outdoors.
• Provide proper rain gear, gloves, good waterproof boots, and an extra pair of clean, dry socks.
• Have workers protect their neck and ears; they can lose a lot of heat from these areas.
• Treat frostbite properly. The most important symptom is a numbing effect, which many workers tend to ignore. Other symptoms can include red skin turning to white, poor blood circulation, and blisters. To provide first aid: 1) never rub the frozen part in snow or immerse it in hot water (you can use warm water); 2) cover the affected area with extra clothing or a blanket; 3) get the worker out of the cold; 4) apply loose fitting, sterile dressings and splint and elevate affected extremities if possible; and 5) seek immediate medical attention.
• Make sure that portable heaters are maintained and inspected on a regular basis. Defective ventilation and incomplete burning of fuel can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. Locate fuel containers, regulators, piping, and hoses and secure them in sites where they won’t be subject to damage. Protect the valves from damage also.

Remember, the more effectively you help your employees stay warm and safe on the job, the higher their productivity,– and the lower your insurance premiums.

For more information, please feel free to get in touch with our agency’s Construction insurance specialists at any time.

As kids, we learn that there are two ways to get in trouble: doing stuff we shouldn’t (giving the dog a haircut) or not doing things we should (letting Fido go hungry).

As a contractor, you can get into serious trouble for not doing something,– under a legal doctrine called “negligent supervision.” For example, if one of your employees injures another person by driving a car recklessly while on company business, you might face a negligent supervision lawsuit alleging that you failed to uncover or ignored the driver’s bad record behind the wheel.

To minimize this risk, experts recommend that you:

Understand your exposure to potential negligence. Although it’s an exaggeration to say that anything you do (or don’t do) might be seen as negligent, certain situations demand particular care Promoting or certifying unqualified employees, failing to fire or discipline them for potentially dangerous behavior, or terminating them without an effective investigation.

Never make assumptions about employees. Just because workers volunteer for additional responsibilities for which they might be unqualified (out of boredom, a wish to please, or to earn a higher wage) doesn’t mean they can actually do the work. Check the employees petitions before assigning the work.

Don’t ignore or minimize signs that employees pose a potential danger to themselves or others. After the tragic shootings at the Washington Navy Yard, the media was filled with evidence of the shooter’s troubling behavior that the authorities evidently ignored. If you’re concerned about an employee’s actions, investigate, inquire, and consult with experts, including the police. It’s better to be safe than sorry!

We’d be happy to review your exposure to negligent supervision claims and how liability insurance can protect you against these allegations.