UCR Best Practice Review

Unregistered Carriers on 12/23/2009 - 1342
Unregistered Carriers on 12/24/2009 - 1333

Illinois - 93.81%
Maine - 93.34%

So far we've talked about four UCR best practices:

1) Know who's on your UCR Unregistered List
2) Routinely Solicit Your Unregistered Carriers
3) Know Your Statistics
4) Work Smarter, Not Harder

Best Practice #5 is really important to me, but you may find it ridiculous: Set A Challenge For Yourself and Your Staff

I've been as forthright as possible about the challenges I've set here in Illinois:

Register more of our state's carriers than anybody else.
Register a higher percentage of our carriers than anybody else.
Get to Zero.

I have to be honest - I think these kinds of challenges cause us to operate at a higher level. The thinking goes something like this, "I know we probably won't be able to do this ... but if we were going to try, what would that look like?"

Asking that one question, "... what would that look like?", has helped us to develop tools and processes that would not have happened otherwise. As corny as it sounds, it's the "stuff" from which innovation emanates.

So ... setting a challenge really just "puts a specific number target" on improving the operation.

And, I can tell you from first-hand experience that overcoming a challenge that didn't really look possible at the outset raises the expectations of everybody involved about what's possible. It has rewards that go way beyond UCR.

I Wish You A Merry Christmas And A Very Happy And Prosperous New Year!