Insurance Careers Month: Q&A with Joe Pilla, Owner and President, ETA Benefits Group

Joe Pilla is the owner and president of ETA Benefits Group. Since 1999, ETA has been proud to serve our local community as independent agents focused primarily on employee benefits. In 2006, Joe officially added the P&C division to the agency, truly becoming a “one-stop shop” for customers’ insurance needs. Joe shares more about his position at ETA, role as active producer, and thoughts on opportunities within the insurance industry below.

Name: Joe Pilla

Title: President

Years in the Industry: 25

Years at ETA: 19

What are some of your main job duties? I’m primarily responsible for new business development. I’m also an active sales producer focusing on group benefits, and overall company management.  

How did you get into this field? Prior employment (my background is in health care administration and physician relations) and interest in sales.

Describe a typical day for you.  No two days are ever the same. On a typical day I might be working with office staff and their needs, responding to clients’ needs, and staying in touch with our carrier partners and clients. I’m always looking at customers’ needs—I like to take a proactive approach and help identify the best solution for their unique situation.

What do you like best about your job? As I said in the previous question, no day is ever the same. I like the variety that comes with my job. I enjoy working with customers, our employees, and the different insurance partners we have contracted with.

Why is insurance a good field to get into? The insurance field provides a wide array of different disciplines that you can go into, whether you are interested in group medical benefits, issues with property/liability, personal lines like home and auto. If you like working with seniors and the over-65 population, Medicare is a good option—there are so many different facets that you can focus on.

What advice would you have for someone new to the insurance industry? To remain in the business long-term, you need to be empathetic and listen to customers’ problems. On the sales side, you must be able to handle rejection and see other people’s points of view. This means you must modify your delivery based on their needs, not necessarily your own.