Agency Spotlight: Marchetti, Robertson & Brickell Insurance & Bonding Agency
Marchetti, Robertson & Brickell Insurance and Bonding Agency’s president John Marchetti and executive vice president Ray Robertson stand in the lobby of their Jackson, Miss. location.
HOW ONE EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT BUILT A CAREER AROUND FAITH, FAMILY, AND CARE FOR OTHERS
Over our lifetime, we’ll spend the majority of our waking hours at work. But when you like the people you work with, spending those hours at work feels easy. This rings true for Ray Robertson, executive vice president at Marchetti, Robertson & Brickell Insurance & Bonding Agency (MRB), a full service insurance agency with locations in Jackson, Miss., Kansas City, Mo., and Atlanta, Ga.
Robertson majored in general business with an emphasis in insurance at Mississippi State University. It was the people that led him to the insurance industry. “I watched the insurance industry over the years and I saw the profession as an opportunity to have meaningful relationships with people,” said Robertson.
Robertson has had a long and successful career in the insurance industry, starting as a claims adjuster for Mississippi Farm Bureau. Then as a loss control engineer at Lumbermen’s Underwriting Alliance where he eventually transitioned into a role as a producer, focusing primarily on forest product industries, such as saw mills, plywood mills, and larger wood products businesses. From there, he was promoted to regional manager at Lumbermen’s and relocated to Memphis.
The decision to join John Marchetti in business was years in the making. Robertson and Marchetti had been friends for years, staying in touch and discussing life and business often, before officially becoming business partners.
“At the time, I was working for an insurance company in Memphis, so when the opportunity to partner with John came my way, I packed up and moved my family back home to Jackson,” said Robertson. “It was just John and I when we opened the doors in 1998. We came from different industry backgrounds and truly built the agency from scratch.”
The agency started with one location and has grown substantially over the past years. Today they have three locations and are licensed in every state.
With over 30 employees and a growing client list, Robertson owes the agency’s success to the employees and their loyalty and commitment to the business and their customers. “We are very blessed to have long-term employees with very minimal turnover,” said Robertson. He believes having the greatest employees possible translates into the way the agency services customers. “They have a deep care for our customers and they treat the customers’ business and assets as if they were their own.”
MRB focuses on being proactive with the services they provide through loss control, policy analysis, tracking sales and payroll, and quarterly service visits to make sure they are all on the right track. But their primary focus is taking care of clients.
“We are tenacious in responding to our customers 24/7,” said Robertson. They do this by laying out a service timeline to set expectations, stay updated with clients, and stay in the forefront instead of waiting for a call when a problem occurs. This process, coupled with a desire to have meaningful relationships with their clients and communities, has become part of MRB’s corporate culture.
MRB’s first Light the Night team raised over $1,200 in honor of Bubba Tarver and Mary Margaret Johnson (daughter of Kelli Burnum). Bubba has been fighting Lymphoma since 2003 and Mary Margaret has been in remission since 2012. Pictured from left to right are Sharon Tarver (wife of Bubba Tarver), Elise Ricks (PL Account Manager), Mary Margaret Johnson, Kelli Burnum (CL Account Manager), Tosha Stamper (PL Account Manager), Tina Meyers (CL Account Manager), Trent Meyers and Tori Meyers (children of Tina Meyers).
“Our values are centered on helping others and giving back to the community,” said Robertson, and the company walks the walk, so to speak, through outreach programs. “Our volunteer projects are all led by our employees and we support and encourage them to continue to volunteer their time outside of work with charities and organizations that are important to them,” he said.
But the community spirit doesn’t stop at the front door; MRB takes care of their employees as well. MRB has had employees affected by cancer and they’ve sponsored events highlighting and honoring them. “Our employees are truly family and our shared values and mutual respect makes it easy to come to work and provide a valuable service to our clients and business partners.”
Having a work-life balance is also key to success and happiness for Robertson. He has been married to his wife Mandy for 28 years and they have three sons. Their eldest son is in veterinary school at Mississippi State. Their second is a senior at Ole Miss majoring in accounting. Their youngest son David is a junior in high school and keeps them busy with football, soccer, and track and field. When asked if he cheers for Ole Miss or Mississippi State he laughs and said, “Both. We have a great time cheering on our teams as a family.”
From left to right: John Marchetti, Jean Burns, David Chandler, Jessie Windham, Brent Huber, Rita Clark, Elise Ricks, Marie Stephens, Tosha Stamper, Mallory Landreth, Jamie Dill, Janice Trippe, Cindy McCoy, Rene Boyd, Tina Meyers, Ray Robertson
Robertson draws many parallels between starting and growing a business and raising kids, and he credits success in both to his faith. “When your first child is born you have this grand idea of what things should look like, but in most cases, it’s never exactly what you imagined,” he said. “Running a business is similar in that you can make all the plans you want, but at the end of the day, God has already mapped out that plan and future.”
He shares this belief with his business partner, John Marchetti, and both say their faith is really what drives them. “We both put God first and we both understand he’s the most important thing, not only for our family, but for our business.”
“I hear it from my employees all the time how much they enjoy working with LUBA from their underwriters to management.”
Robertson also admits that relationship building is easier when you like the person you do business with. “That’s a great way to describe how we feel about our carrier partners like LUBA,” said Robertson. “I still remember the first time Trent Bondy reached out to us to partner. They’ve just been fantastic since day one and throughout the years.” He adds that besides their great service as a carrier, they have continued to exceed their expectations in terms of being a true partner. “I hear it from my employees all the time how much they enjoy working with LUBA from their underwriters to management. They’re a great fit for our operations — friendly, like-minded people — and that’s a comfort level that we’ve grown accustomed to. There aren’t many businesses out there like LUBA today.”
