"I chose my college major because it offered the highest average starting salary. I clearly didn't know what I was doing back then."
Before Joe Thompson built one of
the region's most respected insurance agencies, he was a University of Georgia
business student headed for computer programming. He landed in management
sciences, a mix of business and computer science, and found himself buried in
COBOL and Fortran. That's about the time he realized that a computer-lab career
was not for him.
"It just wasn't my
future," Joe said. "Not that I couldn't do it, but it's not what I wanted
to do for the rest of my life…sitting in front of a computer all day with
little to no interaction with people."
With an innate craving for human
connection, Joe sought a career that offered more social interaction and
opportunities to collaborate.
Offering one of the best risk
management programs in the country, Joe decided to take an elective insurance
class while at Georgia. "That class changed everything. I was hooked, and
that's when I made the change."
Two internships followed. The
first was inside a large insurance company—all cubicles and corporate scale—as
Joe described it. The other was inside a small property and casualty agency in
Northern Alabama where Joe was exposed to a highly active face-to-face sales
model.
"I very quickly realized that was a cultural fit for me. I wanted to be in front of people all day, not behind a screen."
After the second internship ended,
the agency hired Joe straight out of school in 1988, and he's been in the same
line of work since. "I just loved it; helping business owners manage risk."
From there, Joe went on to become
a minority partner at a large Atlanta agency and was named producer of the year
four years running. When a respected mentor retired earlier than expected and
leadership shifted in a direction that didn't match Joe's vision, he made a
bold move. He sold his equity, bought back his book of business, and built
something new alongside two future partners.
What started as three people grew into a firm of more than 50, operating across two offices and multiple states. Partners Risk Services (PRS) was born.
Today, following the merger that brought PRS into Nichols Cauley, Joe's focus has shifted from building his own book to building something lasting for the people who helped him get there.
"I want every person on our team to have great success. Making this work for everyone who now has a stake in it, that's the most important thing to me."
As a fiercely protective leader, Joe's superpower isn't a surprise: Steady, focused, people-first leadership.
"I had many people help me along the way, and that's what I want to do now for others…decisions are not made in a selfish way, but in a way that puts others first."
Years of building a successful career and business have left Joe with unique insight that he's readily willing to share with others still figuring things out:
