Johanna Auteri

My journey in insurance began 22 years ago when I started as a secretary at a small mom-and-pop agency on Main Street, answering phone calls. I quickly grew into different roles, becoming a personal lines customer service representative and taking on a managerial role early on, essentially running the whole office. When the family that owned the agency retired, I knew I had to push myself further. I went to school at Poe's Institute on Long Island to deepen my insurance knowledge, learning to be self-sufficient and a self-starter. I then moved to a much larger company, going from working with 5 people to almost 100, which was a totally different world. I started as an assistant supporting about 10 people, then became an account executive handling my own book of business. The game changer came when I moved into the high net worth space about 13 years ago. I fell in love with that world and the private client space, and it became my true passion. Every day is different, with interesting challenges that keep me learning and growing. Now I work with ultra-high net worth clients and recently stepped into a team lead position, which has been a dream of mine. I get to mentor my team while managing my service book, facilitating everything from new home and boat purchases to annual portfolio reviews and proactive renewal management. I earned my CPRM (Certified Personal Risk Manager) designation, which was a highlight for me because it shows my passion for learning. I also completed programs at Hartford School of Insurance and plan to pursue my CPCU designation next, which is the gold standard in our industry. What drives me is protecting people's assets and showing the value of insurance to my clients, helping them understand how valuable it is to protect themselves.