“We’re all part of one big family here,” explains Brendan Naughton, general agent for Charter Oak Insurance and Financial Services Co. “I want every employee to feel like this is a meaningful career, not just a job, and creating opportunities to foster that feeling is a top priority.”
Charter Oak, a general agency of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual), serves more than 70,000 clients throughout the Northeast and beyond, and is made up of more than 200 people. In offices across Connecticut and Western Massachusetts, the company offers insurance, financial services and fee-based financial planning to individuals, families and businesses.
According to Naughton, one of the reasons Charter Oak employees rank the company as one of the Best Places to Work in CT is because they feel recognized and appreciated, no matter where they sit on the totem pole.
“You can’t devalue any job description. We all play an equal role in making this engine run,” he explains. To show its appreciation, the company offers financial incentives to all employees and encourages people at every level to speak up when they see opportunities for improvements.
Charter Oak also encourages employees to take an active role in the planning and decision making that goes along with its philanthropic efforts. Through its ‘Dollars for Denim’ program, employees can wear jeans on Fridays if they contribute to local charities, and employees decide which charities the company should support.
“We empower our employees to take ownership of the projects that are meaningful to them,” Naughton explains. “Last year we set up scholarships so local kids could attend camp. Our staff went out into the community and interviewed a number of charities to find the ones for whom they wanted to raise money. Those kids had an opportunity to go to camp because of our employees’ hard work, not because management dictated where money would be spent.”
Charter Oak’s philanthropic arm, The Charter Oak Fund, recently teamed up with three local nonprofit organizations: FOCUS Alternative Learning Center of Canton; New Pond Farm of West Redding; and Whole Children of Hadley, Mass., all of which help children with special needs. “The ability to make a difference in a child’s life makes all of us feel good about coming to work every day,” Naughton said.
The company also offers flexibility in work hours and job roles. As long as employees get their work done, they can work the hours that best fit their schedules and job-share arrangements allow creative solutions to the challenges that come along with working and trying to raise a family. “The easy thing to do,” Naughton explains, “might be to find someone who could fit a 9-to-5 mold. But we appreciate our employees even if their schedules aren’t traditional, so we go the extra mile for them.”
Providing meaningful opportunities in an environment where recognition and flexibility are top priorities are the keys to success for Charter Oak Insurance and Financial Services Co. However Naughton and his partner, General Agent Peter Novak, recognize that their relationship with MassMutual plays a major role in employee satisfaction as well. Being one of the top producers for one of the most trusted brands in America is a source of pride and motivation.
“Everybody wants to play for the Yankees or Red Sox because they’re the best. People want to work for Charter Oak Insurance and Financial Co. for the same reason,” Novak said.â
