License to Lead: Meet 10 Young Agents 35 and Under – IA Magazine

“License to Lead” sounds like something you’d earn after passing a test on parallel parking and motivational quotes.
But in the independent insurance world, the “license” is less about a plastic card and more about a mindset:
learn fast, serve well, build trust, and keep showing up when the market (and your inbox) gets spicy.

IA Magazine’s spotlight on 10 agents age 35 and under reads like a field guide to modern agency leadership.
These pros aren’t waiting for permission to leadthey’re leading from wherever they sit: owner, producer,
account manager, marketing, communications, or “the person everyone secretly relies on to make the day work.”

What “License to Lead” Really Means in Independent Insurance

Leadership in an agency isn’t a corner office situation. It’s the ability to:
translate complexity into clarity, earn confidence during stressful moments,
and build systems that let your team do great work without burning out.

The best part: this kind of leadership doesn’t require a title. It requires repslike a gym, but with renewals,
carrier appetite changes, and the occasional “Can you quote this by noon?” curveball.

Why Young Leaders Matter Right Now

Independent agencies are thriving, growing, and modernizingyet they’re also managing rapid shifts in technology,
client expectations, staffing, and market volatility. In that environment, younger agents often become “change translators”:
fluent in digital tools, comfortable with constant learning, and motivated to create better customer experiences.

What’s changing on the ground?

• Speed expectations: clients increasingly want faster quoting and quicker answersoften same-day.
• Tech stack pressure: agencies must connect CRM, rating, servicing, renewal workflows, and communication tools without turning staff into human copy/paste machines.
• Talent realities: agencies need new peopleand strong mentorshipbecause the knowledge gap can grow faster than a book of business.
• Trust-building: consumers still need guidance on coverages, rate changes, and “why this costs more now.”

The 10 agents below show how leadership looks when you’re building careers in real timeinside real agencieswhile still
trying to have a life and drink a coffee that hasn’t gone cold.

Meet the 10 Young Agents: Quick Roster

Here’s the crew IA Magazine highlightedplus the leadership “signal” each one sends loud and clear.

The Leadership Lessons Behind the Spotlight

1) Ander Urdaneta Respect Isn’t Given; It’s Built in Meetings

Ander’s path screams entrepreneurial: inspired by his father’s advice about freedom, he launched a scratch agency young
and learned quickly that being the same age as “everyone else’s sons” means you have to set the tone early.
His leadership move is simple but powerful: turn isolation into community.
He found support by getting involved with young-agent groups, and that created a practical “phone-a-friend” network for
hard-to-place risks, underwriter guidance, and real-world agency wisdom.

Takeaway: if you’re early-career, don’t just build your bookbuild your bench. The fastest way to get better is to
surround yourself with people who’ve already seen your “new problem” five times.

2) Kate Adams Leadership Can Look Like Starting the Room

Kate’s story highlights a different kind of leadership: not “I own the agency,” but “I create momentum.”
She’s lived the reality of rapid tech change and the talent gapand instead of waiting for the perfect moment,
she helped launch a Next-Gen committee through a state association.

Takeaway: leadership can be initiating infrastructureevents, networks, training circlesthat make everyone stronger.
If your state or region doesn’t have a young agent community, that’s not a dead end; it’s a blank page.

3) Jackson Doyle A Niche Isn’t Just a Specialty; It’s a Strategy

Jackson leaned into a tough commercial nichecontractors in areas that can be difficult to placeby pairing straight talk
with market relationships. His edge wasn’t magic; it was intentional relationship-building with partners that could access
the right programs, then doing the unglamorous part: making the calls.

Takeaway: the niche playbook is repeatable:
find a hard problem → build access → become the person clients trust to explain it.
Leadership is being the calm expert when everyone else just says “no appetite.”

4) Brooke Stout “The Face of Insurance” Is a Leadership Role

Brooke’s leadership lesson is customer experience. Working reception and assisting account management means she’s often
the first human voice clients hearright when they’re confused, stressed, or convinced insurance exists solely to ruin
their day. She leans into making those interactions positive and wants to grow into a producer role because she enjoys
meeting people and writing new business.

Takeaway: leadership includes service excellence. If your agency wants retention, empower the people who shape daily client
experiencesand treat “helpful, clear, and kind” like a core process, not a personality trait.

5) Ryder Roberts Win by Offering Better Options, Not Louder Opinions

Ryder’s story is a reminder that people often enter insurance through relationships (and sometimes, unexpectedlylike learning
from a coach who owned an agency). He’s also working in a market that can be uniquely challenging, which forces creativity:
exploring alternatives like surplus lines when the admitted market tightens, and staying resilient when clients feel rate pain.

Takeaway: leadership in hard markets means you don’t just deliver bad newsyou deliver a plan. Clients can handle “this is harder now”
when it’s paired with “here’s what we can do about it.”

6) Yuliya Karpov Time Management Is a Revenue Skill

Yuliya highlights the “relational + technical” duality of insurance. She sees NextGen involvement as a real engine for support,
continuing education, and giving backwhile also being honest about the work it takes to do the job well.
Her leadership approach is reflective: fine-tuning processes so she can be productive and present for health, family, community,
and whatever personal “ultra-marathon” goal she’s chasing.

Takeaway: in agencies, time isn’t just a scheduleit’s a resource. Leaders design their calendar the way they design coverage:
intentionally, with margins, and with fewer “surprise exposures.”

7) Deuel Romero Serve the Underserved by Becoming the Teacher

Deuel’s leadership is rooted in service and representation. As a bilingual agent, he saw opportunity in supporting Hispanic business owners
who were underservedespecially in segments like construction subcontractors that face serious market access challenges.
His focus is education: helping business owners understand risk management and coverage realities, so they can protect their work and keep bidding.

Takeaway: leadership grows when you become the translatorof language, of insurance complexity, and of “what this really means for your business.”
Agencies that win long-term build trust in communities that have historically been overlooked or under-served.

8) Kendra Garrett Communication Is a Superpower (And Also a Compliance Tool)

Kendra entered the agency world through a family business and discovered quickly that her communications background was an advantagenot a detour.
She calls out a huge industry challenge: consumer education. People buy homes and cars without truly understanding insurance implications, then
feel blindsided when rates rise or coverage needs change.

Takeaway: in 2025, leadership often looks like better explanations. Clear coverage conversations reduce friction, improve retention, and create clients
who refer you because they finally feel like someone made the fine print understandable.

9) Lucas Anderson Bring Modern Sales Discipline to a Legacy Business

Lucas shifted from advertising back to a century-old family agency and brought a modern lens: tracking outreach, managing goals, embracing tech,
and updating how sales teams operate. He’s also active in advocacy work through a young agent committee, pushing peers to support industry advocacy
because it directly affects agency futures.

Takeaway: leadership is modernization without disrespecting tradition. The best “new way” keeps the agency’s heartcommunity impactwhile upgrading the engine.

10) Audriana Misic Train People Like You Want the Industry to Survive

Audriana’s career touched multiple facets of insurance before she found her niche in the independent world. Her leadership focus is mentoring:
explaining coverage clearly, helping clients understand value, and then training newer professionals so they can thrive, too.
She also sees the future as AI-enablednot replacing humans, but making the work more efficient and responsive.

Takeaway: leadership is multiplication. When you mentor well, you don’t just grow a bookyou grow capacity, confidence, and continuity.

How to Build Your Own “License to Lead” in an Agency

Whether you’re 24 or 54, the leadership playbook in this feature boils down to a handful of repeatable moves:

Choose a lane, then become unreasonably helpful in it

Niches aren’t limiting; they’re clarifying. Pick an industry segment, a coverage type, or a client problem you’re willing to master.
Then become the person who can explain it without jargon and solve it without drama.

Build systems that protect your time and your people

Clients want speed, but agencies can’t do “same-day everything” with pure heroics. Streamline your tech stack, standardize renewal workflows,
and use automation where it reduces manual work (not where it makes relationships feel robotic).
If you can quote and communicate efficiently, you win twice: better client experience, healthier team.

Join the rooms where the industry is shaped

The young agent committees and NextGen groups aren’t just networkingdone right, they’re leadership gyms.
You learn from peers, get introductions that matter, and build the confidence to handle problems before they become emergencies.

Make education a service you deliver, not a PDF you email

Most client frustration comes from confusion. When you teach proactivelywhat deductibles do, what exclusions mean, how claims affect pricingyou
become more than a seller. You become a trusted advisor clients keep.

Conclusion: The Future of Independent Agencies Looks… Busy (In a Good Way)

The 10 agents IA Magazine featured aren’t copies of each otherand that’s the point. Some are owners, some are producers, some are building careers in
marketing, account management, or communications. Yet the leadership thread is consistent:
learn relentlessly, serve clearly, connect intentionally, and build something that lasts.

If “License to Lead” has a secret requirement, it’s this: you don’t wait until you feel ready. You get involved, ask questions, do the work,
and let the results convince you.

Field Notes: of Real-World Young-Agent Experiences

The first “leadership moment” for many young agents doesn’t happen on a stage. It happens on a Tuesday at 4:47 p.m., when a client calls and says,
“My carrier is non-renewing mewhat do I do?” That’s when you learn the difference between knowing insurance and leading through insurance.
You triage, ask the right questions, and stay calm enough to give the client a plan instead of panic.

Another common experience: being underestimated. Young agents often walk into meetings and feel the room quietly wondering,
“Are you old enough to rent a car?” The best response isn’t defensivenessit’s competence. You prepare, you explain options clearly,
and you follow through fast. Trust builds the way a book builds: one solid interaction at a time.

Many young professionals also learn quickly that technology is not a magic wandit’s a power tool. A CRM won’t fix messy workflows.
Automation won’t help if data entry is inconsistent. But once you treat tech like an operating systemconsistent processes, clear standards,
and training that stickseverything improves. Renewals stop feeling like emergencies. Follow-ups don’t rely on memory. Team members stop drowning in
sticky notes and start working like a coordinated unit.

Then there’s the “niche reality check.” A young agent might choose a challenging segmentcontractors, hospitality, nonprofits, high-risk tradesand
discover that expertise is earned by doing the hard reps: reading forms, learning carrier appetite, building wholesale relationships, and explaining
uncomfortable truths to clients (“Yes, this costs more. No, that doesn’t mean you’re being scammed.”). Over time, that grind turns into a reputation:
you’re the person who can place the hard stuff and teach clients how to think about risk.

One of the most meaningful experiences shows up in mentoring. Young agents often seek mentorsand then, sooner than expected, become mentors themselves.
You help a new hire understand why a certificate request needs details. You explain the difference between “cheap” and “adequate.”
You show someone how to have a difficult renewal conversation with empathy and accuracy. That’s leadership, too: multiplying skill in the next person.

Finally, many young leaders discover the industry is bigger than their desk. They get involved in committees, advocacy, community service, and education,
and realize something powerful: independent agencies don’t just sell policies. They protect communities. The “License to Lead” isn’t granted once.
You renew it every time you show up, do the right thing, and make the business a little better than you found it.