Sales vs. Ops and the Rise of Pooled Teams

Which comes first — sales or operations?

The truth is: both.

That’s the real challenge inside most agencies today. When one side starts to slip — when either sales or ops begins operating on empty — performance drops across the board. It’s no different than what happens inside any team: if one player starts carrying all the weight, the whole game suffers.

The Energy Game Most Teams Miss

One of the biggest obstacles we see in agencies today is a misunderstanding of energy management. Too often, leaders assume that every person should be able to do every task at a high level — even the parts they hate or simply aren’t wired for.

But energy doesn’t work that way. No one can do everything at full capacity and sustain it.

When people are constantly being asked to stretch into roles that drain them, they start slipping into protection mode — trying to conserve energy instead of creating results. That’s when producers start feeling overworked, ops starts feeling underappreciated, and collaboration breaks down.

The Shift Toward Pooled Teams

Across the industry, more agencies are moving toward pooled service teams — where accounts are supported by a shared group rather than a dedicated partner.

The reasons make sense on paper:

• It’s hard to find enough people who have the right expertise.
• There’s a shortage of experienced talent entering the industry.
• It helps protect against losing a key person or account.

But there’s a tradeoff.

When producers are working in a pooled environment, it becomes much harder to double, triple, or quadruple a book. The energy of ownership gets diffused. Instead of full trust and flow between a producer and a dedicated partner, there’s often a sense of needing to double check everything — to make sure nothing slips through the cracks.

That lack of confidence is exhausting. It keeps people from doing their best work and staying in their zone of genius.

The Cost of Being the Backstop

Many producers find themselves stuck in a cycle of overwork because they don’t fully trust that things are being handled behind the scenes. So they stay involved in every detail, even when they shouldn’t have to.

By the time they get to the part of their job that requires the most energy — meeting clients, building relationships, driving growth — they’re already running on fumes.

That’s not a skill issue. That’s an energy structure issue.

When everyone on a team plays their position and protects one another’s energy, the whole organization wins. But when culture shifts toward one side dominating — whether it’s producers or ops — imbalance takes over.

Culture Is the Real Battleground

This isn’t just a structural issue; it’s a cultural one.

Some organizations over-index on producers, focusing almost entirely on sales and undervaluing the operations side. Others, like many we see now, have swung in the opposite direction — protecting ops so heavily that producers are burdened with more and more tasks outside their lane.

Neither extreme works long term.

The highest-performing agencies understand that energy and success are shared. There’s no “most important” position — only a shared goal and the alignment to achieve it.

Because when everyone’s energy is protected, everyone’s potential multiplies.

Through our programs at ELEVATION180, your future becomes predictable. If you’re ready to maximize your energy, grow your business, and unlock your Bigger Future, reach out to us. We’d love to explore how we can help you avoid burnout and elevate your success.

ELEVATION180 is a transformational coaching and mentoring organization that elevates your performance to achieve freedom, lifelong sustainable results, and a bigger future. Discover more by visiting www.ELEVATION180.com.

For insurance sales producers and agencies our GROWTH180 programs help you to transform your future by growing their book of business year after year.

For businesses, teams, and leaders, our ELEVATE180 programs help you transform your future by understanding yourself and your team to maximize energy, capacity, and capability.