Business Refocused

Lindsay Sexton & Carey Wallace
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  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Helps leaders navigate the numbers, people, and strategy behind sustainable growth. Hosted by Carey Wallace and Lindsay Sexton, the show dives into what really happens when a business is changing, whether it’s expanding, merging, transitioning ownership, or rethinking operations. Each conversation offers practical insight on analyzing your business, making data-driven decisions, and building a company built to last. Show previously named Insurance Refocused, but changed to Business Refocused in November 2025. Business owners of all industries face the same challenges as independent insurance agencies. 

  1. #177 - What Happens After the Deal Closes? The Real Work of Agency Mergers w/ Anne Baum

    3d ago

    #177 - What Happens After the Deal Closes? The Real Work of Agency Mergers w/ Anne Baum

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Carey and Lindsay sit down with leadership consultant Anne Baum to discuss a critical piece of agency mergers that often gets overlooked: culture. While most merger conversations focus on valuation, deal structure, and financial performance, Anne explains that the real work begins after the transaction closes. The long-term success of any merger depends on how well leadership brings two teams together, builds trust, and create a shared vision for the future.  The conversation explores practical strategies for integrating teams, reducing uncertainty, and helping employees understand where they fit in the new organization. Anne shares lessons from guiding organizations through mergers and explains why communication, transparency, and intentional culture-building can make the difference between success and failure.  Key takeaways include:  Why culture integration should begin immediately after closing  How leaders can reduce fear and uncertainty during a merger  The importance of communicating vision, expectations, and timelines  Practical ways to build trust between newly combined teams  Why retaining great people is often the biggest determinant of merger successConnect with Our Guest: Don't forget to connect with Anne Baum on LinkedIn to continue the conversation and gain further insights into leadership and organizational transformation. Connect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    33 min
  2. #176 - How to Read Your Insurance Agency Financials Like a CFO

    Jun 16

    #176 - How to Read Your Insurance Agency Financials Like a CFO

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Carey and Lindsay answer common financial questions they’ve recently received from agency owners and break down what a meaningful monthly financial review should actually look like. From analyzing six-month auto policies and understanding profitability to identifying discretionary expenses and building accurate financial reports, the conversation focuses on helping agency owners use their financials as a decision-making tool rather than simply a historical record.  Key topics include:  How to evaluate six-month policies in financial reporting  Which expenses should be considered discretionary or one-time costs  Why monthly P&L reviews matter more than annual tax returns  The risks of operating without timely financial statements  When to outsource bookkeeping and accounting functions  Using financial data to make better growth and investment decisionsConnect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    21 min

  3. Jun 9

    #175 - Get Your Agency a Health Check

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Carey and Lindsay explore how agency benchmarking is helping independent insurance agencies gain deeper financial visibility and make more informed business decisions. As more agency owners look beyond valuation and focus on long-term performance, health checks have become a powerful tool for measuring growth, profitability, book health, staffing efficiency, and operational risk. Carey and Lindsay discuss how agencies can use benchmarking data to understand where they stand, identify blind spots, and uncover opportunities for improvement.  Topics covered include:  How a health check differs from a traditional agency valuation  Why growth and profitability metrics matter together  The risks of carrier, client, and producer concentration  How staffing efficiency impacts agency performance  Why technology investments should create measurable capacity gains  Using financial data to make more confident business decisionsConnect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    26 min
  4. #174 - Building a Sales Culture in an Independent Insurance Agency w/ Patrick McClure

    May 26

    #174 - Building a Sales Culture in an Independent Insurance Agency w/ Patrick McClure

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Carey and Lindsay sit down with Patrick McClure of Impact Performance Team to talk about one of the biggest challenges agency owners face: creating a true sales culture. Patrick shares his journey from commercial insurance producer to sales leader and entrepreneur, helping independent agencies improve sales performance, develop producers, recruit talent, and build accountability across their organizations. What started as sales coaching has evolved into leadership consulting, recruiting, and operational support for growing agencies.  The conversation explores why many agencies hit a growth ceiling, how agency owners can transition from producer to leader, and what it takes to build a team that consistently generates new business. Key takeaways include:  The difference between managing producers and leading them  How to build accountability without micromanaging  Why recruiting the right people matters more than insurance experience  The five non-negotiables of a successful sales organization  How agencies can move from referral-driven growth to intentional sales growthConnect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    34 min

  5. May 19

    #173 - Building the Next Generation of Insurance Leaders with Launchpad

    In this episode of The Insurance Refocused Podcast, Lindsay and Carey Wallace welcome Beth DeLaForest back to the show to talk about Launchpad, a new webinar series designed to help the next generation of insurance professionals learn, grow, and build meaningful industry connections. Beth and Carey share why knowledge transfer matters more than ever as experienced leaders prepare to exit the industry and younger professionals step into bigger roles. They discuss the value of mentorship, outside perspectives, peer relationships, and learning from leaders who have already walked the road ahead. The conversation also highlights the heart behind Launchpad: creating a free, collaborative space where future leaders can hear from experienced voices across the industry on topics like leadership, delegation, imposter syndrome, AI, and building confidence in their careers.  Link to Upcoming Launchpad Sessions Connect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    30 min

  6. May 12

    Run Your Agency Like You're Selling It Tomorrow (Carey & Insurance Leaders Lab)

    In this special re-release, we’re sharing an episode originally featured on Nina Shepard's Insurance Leaders Lab Podcast. Carey joins Nina to talk about financial clarity for independent insurance agency owners.  They discuss why waiting until you're ready to sell is a mistake, how your compensation structure could secretly be tanking your agency's value, and the three key drivers that determine what your business is really worth—growth, profitability, and transferability. Originally featured on the Insurance Leaders Lab Podcast Connect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    42 min
  7. #171 - The Story Behind the Numbers

    May 5

    #171 - The Story Behind the Numbers

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Carey and Lindsay break down what they’re seeing from real agency benchmarking data and how top-performing insurance agencies are driving growth and profitability. They walk through the key metrics that matter most, including organic growth, profitability, staffing, technology spend, and revenue per employee. More importantly, they explain how these metrics work together and what actually drives performance inside an agency. One of the biggest takeaways is high growth doesn’t always mean high marketing spend. In fact, some of the fastest-growing agencies are spending less than 2% on marketing, relying instead on referrals, niche strategies, and operational efficiency.  They also dig into how technology, AI investments, and compensation structures impact profitability, and why simply adding tools or people doesn’t always improve results. Key insights from the episode:  How to use benchmarking as a health check for your agency  Why growth and profitability vary based on strategy  The real impact of marketing spend on organic growth  How technology and staffing decisions affect performance  Why compensation structure can limit profitabilityConnect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    19 min
  8. #170 - Inside AgencyFocus: From Valuations to Fractional CFO

    Apr 28

    #170 - Inside AgencyFocus: From Valuations to Fractional CFO

    In this episode of Business Refocused, Todd Hufford interviews Carey and Lindsay Wallace on the story behind AgencyFocus, how they each found their way into insurance, and what it took to grow the business beyond agency valuation. Carey shares how a role with the PIA of Ohio led her into valuation, perpetuation planning, and data analytics, eventually becoming the foundation for AgencyFocus. Lindsay shares her own path into the industry and how her experience helped shape the company’s next stage of growth. Together, they talk about how AgencyFocus evolved from a valuation-focused business into a firm that also provides fractional CFO services, mastermind groups, and deeper financial consulting for independent insurance agencies. This episode is a behind-the-scenes look at agency valuation, fractional CFO services, insurance industry career paths, and what it takes to build a business focused on helping agencies make better financial decisions. Connect with us: Follow AgencyFocus for more conversations that help agency owners build clarity, confidence, and long-term value. Learn more at https://agency-focus.com/ Show previously named Insurance Refocused

    45 min
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About

Helps leaders navigate the numbers, people, and strategy behind sustainable growth. Hosted by Carey Wallace and Lindsay Sexton, the show dives into what really happens when a business is changing, whether it’s expanding, merging, transitioning ownership, or rethinking operations. Each conversation offers practical insight on analyzing your business, making data-driven decisions, and building a company built to last. Show previously named Insurance Refocused, but changed to Business Refocused in November 2025. Business owners of all industries face the same challenges as independent insurance agencies. 

Information

  • Creator
    Lindsay Sexton & Carey Wallace
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    178
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Business Refocused
  • Show Website
    Business Refocused

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