Thread regarding State Farm Insurance layoffs

Post correction: Ed's speech was given in 2005, not 1992. And it was addressed to The Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. So that was just 13 years ago, not 26.

In 1992, our former Chairmen Ed Rust gave a keynote address speech to the Young Business Professionals in San Francisco, Ca.

The topic? Business Ethics. The talk focused on a string of ethical failures that were making the news in recent years. At the time, Elliot Spitzer was the hotshot NY Attorney General, cleaning the clocks of white collar crime. In his speech, Ed lauded him for his ethical successes. And rightfully so, Elliot was doing some amazing work. Elliot later was elected as the states Governor - and - later disgraced when Elliot (client #9) fell from power for sleeping with a prostitute. The man who convicted the wrong doers - became the wrong doer.

Ed's speech was powerful. So much so I still have a copy of it today. Kudos to JS for writing it. It is a chilling and prophetic speech, as history determined for Mr. Spitzer's fate - and those who today, are quietly crossing the line to make the numbers.

To my friends in Ballston Spa: 26 years ago, Mr. Rust spoke about those who are being asked to "quietly cross the line....to make the numbers". People are being pushed. It's happening, and the ethical winds of similarity are roaring in.

It should be required reading for Mr. Tipsord as well as the rest of the organization.

Numbers, metrics, goals....yack, yack, yack, blah, blah, blah...

These games have been played for decades. They just reappear under another name.

True story. The best games were when managers in CSO's would meet or exceed our goals before the end of SF's annual reporting period which was Sept 30th.

Some Div Claim Supts (now known as Section Managers) would instruct the sectys to deposit all recoveries under 400 (even MPC reimb) so their sub numbers would look great. They also instructed CR's to not issue any 400, 100 or 200 pmts until after Sept 30th. This made the agents happy too...some agents even wanted claims to hold off on any big 100 payments until Jan 1st.

Some managers even had secty's drive to Bloomington with these paper checks to deposit to avoid snail mail lag time and beat the Sept 30 date.

All the managers would look great and were promoted and/or got big raises.The CR's were told to look the other way and work 10-12 hour days 6 times a week since they were salaried. Never mind they had paper file pendings numbering 200 or more.

Come October, the managers would then make the corrections on the recoveries. It didn't matter, they already looked great on paper and blamed the deposit error on the secty's or accounting.

Yes, we caught a few of these managers but this mindset continues today....instead of paper, it's now digital....more stories on that for another day.

I am recently retired and am free to speak the truth.

I didn’t understand it when in tier 2 for property. Then everything felt ok except for the time clocks. When I got the boot to tier 1 I lost my mind. Didn’t make it that long in that kind of environment

Goodhart’s Law

if Wells Fargo can do it why can’t State Farm? We are 10-20 years behind the rest of the world so we’re just getting started.

Twenty years ago when i started the Illinois office would “pass” and issue an auto policy, so it couid be counted in their metrics as being issued within 10 days. Then they'd pile the paper apps up and underwrite them later and cancel what they needed to. I was appalled, SF has always had stupid metrics and ways to jump through them. Its just worse now...

I agree.

You are exactly right, huddle board metrics are the only thing they care about. The main reason for the huddle boards is to place employees against each other like it some kind of race as who has the most points and not in the yellow or green. These metrics are set up for factory work on an assembly line where everyone is doing the same exact job. There are no two claims alike so it’s worthless. As of today we are so short staffed I don’t care what they tell me because I don’t care anymore. They can do me a favor and fire me and I will ride out my unemployment.