How To Become An Insurance Agent/Office Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is an insurance agent/office manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Tom Faulconer JD, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, CASL,CFP(r)

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an insurance agent/office manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $33.18 an hour? That's $69,015 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 32,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to an insurance agent/office manager?

Tom Faulconer JD, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, CASL,CFP(r)

Clinical Professor, Butler University

That depends on the type of agent the person is. Most of us deal with agents who sell personal lines, such as auto and home and life insurance. Their day is filled with prospecting for new clients, appointments to review current insurance with current clients, service work such as adding autos and changing addresses, and, helping take and resolve claims. Some agents specialize in commercial lines. They spend their days prospecting as well, but also work very closely with their clients on a regular basis to assure their insurance program is appropriate. This is because commercial clients usually have very large insurance policies, make frequent changes, and have lots of service work. Plus, the relationship is the key in commercial lines.

ScoreInsurance Agent/Office ManagerUS Average

Salary

5.4

Avg. Salary $69,015

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.8

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.15%

Asian 4.91%

Black or African American 9.41%

Hispanic or Latino 16.12%

Unknown 3.56%

White 65.86%

Gender

female 82.58%

male 17.42%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.9

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an insurance agent/office manager

Explore insurance agent/office manager education requirements

Most common insurance agent/office manager degrees

Bachelor's

41.1 %

Associate

29.6 %

High School Diploma

18.3 %

Start to develop specific insurance agent/office manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Customer Service	26.37%
Auto Insurance	10.39%
Bank Deposits	6.43%
Financial Resources	5.95%
Payroll	4.57%

Complete relevant insurance agent/office manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New insurance agent/office managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an insurance agent/office manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real insurance agent/office manager resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming an licensed insurance agent/office manager usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed insurance agent/office manager in most of states. 38 states require insurance agent/office managers to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alabama	-	-	Licensed Insurance Producer
Arkansas	Degree required	State exam required	Insurance Sales Producer (Agent)
Colorado	Specific course required	State exam required	Insurance Agent
Connecticut	Specific course required	State exam required	Producer License, Individual
Delaware	-	State exam required	Insurance Agent

Gain additional insurance agent/office manager certifications

Insurance agent/office manager certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific insurance agent/office manager certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for insurance agent/office managers include Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) and Certified Professional, Life and Health Insurance Program (CPLHI).

More About Certifications

Research insurance agent/office manager duties and responsibilities

Used consultative upselling techniques to provide leads
Facilitate communications between doctors, hospitals, third party insurance companies and patients to obtain and verify patient billing information.
Deliver on the GEICO promise to customers by solving problems and giving competent insurance advice in a courteous and proficient manner.

Prepare your insurance agent/office manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your insurance agent/office manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an insurance agent/office manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable insurance agent/office manager resume templates

Build a professional insurance agent/office manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your insurance agent/office manager resume.

Apply for insurance agent/office manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an insurance agent/office manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do insurance agent/office managers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Insurance agent/office manager reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020

Pros

Being able to motivate administrative personnel to do their jobs well and meet deadlines.

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019