Celebrating 15 Years with Durb and John continued

How Long Have You Been Here?!

Celebrating 15 years

Celebrating 15 Years
with AMIC: Durbin Christner and John Ameno

How has your job changed in the 15 years you've been here?

John: As far as my job, I make assessments, how we can help insureds make things better--still do. Now other things are included in our assessments. Now, more requirements from Pennsylvania include insurance companies helping with safety, etc. As our company has changed and needed more information to better assess our risk, we've definitely changed. Lots of that has to do with reinsurance companies needing different info so that we can get the coverage that we need.

Durb: It's completely different. When I first started, I wore so many different hats. I even handled some claims, I did underwriting and even typed policies back then. I worked in every department back then, from accepting an application to typing the policy to doing the audit to handling the claims.

What technology do you rely on today that you didn't have access to 15 years ago? And how has it made your life easier?

John: I use the internet somewhat now. I use the computer more than I did in the past--but you still have to go to the site and have personal contact with people. Now that I think about it--it's cell phones. Absolutely. They have made my life easier. Before them I used payphones when they were available. And they weren't always located conveniently or even easy to find. Cell phones have helped tremendously. Having better communications in general has been good. I can use the net to help me research companies. People can change my direction on the way to a site--before, if something changed in my scheduling I might go all the way to an out-of-the way site only to turn around and go somewhere else more urgent. Good communications have been a good time-saving thing.

Durb: Computers help to free up my time now and give me time to manage the five people in my department. We have so many different people who audit us--Alabama Insurance Department is in here now. I have more time to concentrate on the quality of the insurance policies that we write. We now have an underwriting manual we follow now. We really have to follow these guidelines because of the different requirements of all the different departments that audit us. We can put out a better product now because things are more automated and we can concentrate more on creating a good quality product--not on adjusting things manually. Before, we had to rate everything manually--now the rating is computerized and so much faster. When rates change, MIS can update the rates quickly. In the past, it was so time-consuming. Now, we have more time to get involved in management. If we did it the way we used to, we'd need lots more folks working in the underwriting department. Back then, we did lots of things in the typewriter. Now we rarely ever use one.

What's your favorite thing about working here?

John: I work with really good people. That's the #1 thing. The management and ownership is extraordinary. Great vision and they listen to and talk with people around them. Great relationship since the start. It's great to work with the people I work with because they are extremely good at what they do. They all do a good job and pay attention to detail and I think that's our reason for success. Finance, management, claims, loss control. Everything just comes together to have tremendous value. And management caring for employees is a big plus. I wasn't thinking about my 15th anniversary and I wasn't expecting it. I was just working and they surprised me. They tricked me into thinking I was heading into a meeting. I came in with my paperwork and they surprised me. It was fantastic. Of course, they learned to make sure I'd be there at this one because for my 10th Anniversary they planned to surprise me too. We were all set to go have dinner at a local restaurant. I had something I wanted to finish up at work that took a little longer than I thought it would. So I decided to skip the dinner and head home. They celebrated my 10th without me!

Durb: I'd have to say the relaxed atmosphere. Not lots of pressure. People are laid back. I enjoy my job and the people I work with. Because insurance is an ever-changing industry, it helps keeps me sharp and is always an exciting challenge to keep up with and pass on to my department. That's the best thing about it. We get things done but don't live with lots of stress and pressure.

What advice would you offer to someone just starting out at AMIC?

John: The advice I'd give anyone starting out here would be to pay attention to detail. Whether you have experience or not, you can--and should--learn from the people around you. Rely on the people around you. Don't be shy about asking questions. Someone will answer them.

Durb: I guess if someone were interested in working here, I'd tell them this is a great place to work. I'd suggest that they look at it as a long term career--I enjoy coming to work and I think everyone does. Insurance is an ever-changing industry. It could make for lots of stress, but that's not the case here and that makes the job easier and more fun.

Any more thoughts you'd like to share?

John: 15 years has gone by really quickly. I look forward to working the rest of my years with AMIC and making the company better and stronger as time goes on.

Durb: 15 years ago, when my former boss at Rockwood approached me about coming south to Alabama, I really didn't have an idea about what to expect. My wife was hesitant because all our family was in PA. It was hard to leave. In the summer of 1989, Nick Giovannelli offered to bring Wendy, my wife, and me to Alabama and show us the area. We liked it and we decided to move down in January 1990. Alabama is home now. We only make the trek to PA once a year--usually in the summer. I don't miss the snow! Wendy does, but we've fallen in love with Alabama--the schools, the area, the scenery.