faqs

“What is a remote employee?”

There are a few types of remote employees.  Most remote employees work in a service or call center, either domestically or offshore in countries such as India or China.  WAHVE’s remote employees are unique in that they are retired insurance industry people who work from home in the U.S. as a contract worker, using telecommuting technology to do any work you require just as if they were your own employees.  Wahves cost less because WAHVE’s remote employees are retired and do not require office overhead.

“What are the benefits of hiring wahves?”

There are many benefits to hiring our remote contract retirees.  We call them wahves for Works At Home Vintage Employees.  Our wahves are a very cost effective method for supplementing your regular staff.  You will save 40% to 50% on staff and overhead costs per employee.  These savings go right to your bottom line.  In addition, our remote staffing frees up your highly paid staff to focus on retention and bringing in new business, which leads to greater productivity and growth.  A wahve is a cost-effective way to fill a vacancy so that you can shift lower level work away from your highly paid staff.

“Are my computer system and data secure?”

Your computer system and data are completely secure.  Wahves work with you in a totally secure environment just as you currently do when you or your staff work off-site at a client or at home or even when you are on “vacation.”  Our remote staff works within your management system and none of the data ever leaves your system.  All of our clients’ work is password protected, and we have processes in place to protect against any of your information being shared with another.

“Do I have to fire any staff when I use wahves?”

No, you do not need to fire anyone.  But if you were intending to terminate an employee(s) for poor performance, wahves can be used to fill the vacancy at a much lower cost or provide you with the ability to shift lower level work away from highly paid staff.

“How will the use of WAHVE services be perceived by my existing employees?”

We help you craft the message to your staff, explaining how remote contract staffing will relieve them of the lower-level routine backlog they have and enable them to focus on the more rewarding work of client service.  Most insurance agencies, brokerages and insurance companies are understaffed and as a result most employees feel overworked and worry about potential errors.  By supplementing your staff with wahves, we help relieve the daily stress felt by your staff so that they can be more productive.

“Do I have to train wahves?”

Yes, you do have to train the wahves you hire, but because they are highly experienced and knowledgeable in insurance, the only training they need is in your particular processes and workflows and in the specifics of how you use your management system.  You train them the same way you would train a new hire who has many years of experience in insurance.  Typical training time takes no more than three to five days.

“Do I have to supervise wahves?”

Yes, you do need to supervise them but minimally, just as you would a highly trained, experienced employee.  You will be able to see immediately the quality and quantity of their work.  Managing people in an office is actually more difficult.  There are a number reasons why this is the case.  In an office environment, you don’t just measure the quantity and quality of work.  You are actually influenced by personality, interactions with other employees, office politics, friendship, even physical appearance.  Additionally, productivity and quality of work are impacted by office interruptions, socialization, and office politics so you are unable to measure pure productivity and quality

Each wahve also has a WAHVE relationship manager who makes works with you and your wahve to ensure the work meets more than your satisfaction.  If you are unhappy with some of the work, we correct the situation immediately.

“How do you determine what services I need and how many wahves I need?”

There are thousands of processes being done every day by your highly paid staff.   We work with you to determine which processes and tasks can be done more cost effectively by remote staff and which will free up your regular staff to perform more effectively.  Or you might be short-staffed and unable to find affordable talent to fill one or more positions.

We suggest you start with one wahve to see how effective wahves can be.  The wahve can be part-time or full-time or work on a project.  Once you experience a wahve remote contract worker, you will be able to decide what other processes and tasks you would like to outsource and then together we can determine how many wahves you might need.

“What size do we have to be to benefit from WAHVE?”

You can be any size.   No agency, brokerage or insurance company is too small or too large.

“How much time does it take to get started?”

Generally we only need three to four weeks to get started.  We work with you to determine the processes you wish to outsource.  We then search our database to find the wahves that match the skill sets you need and together we decide on which wahves you’d like to interview and hire.  Then we need a few days to set up your account, prepare the wahve’s remote desktop (and dual monitor is required) and test the communication.  Once these are accomplished, you are ready to start training your wahve on your management system, processes and workflow, which typically takes three to five days.

“How much of my staff’s time do you need?”

We need a minimal amount of your staff’s time to set up a wahve.  The staff time that is needed is for training your wahve on your management system, processes and workflow, just as if you were hiring a new, highly- skilled employee.   After that, wahves need minimal supervision.

 

“Do I need to purchase any technology and equipment?”

No, you do not need to purchase any technology or new equipment.  All you need is a Broadband Internet Connection, remote access technology, and additional management system user licenses.  If you use dual monitors, we will provide them to our wahves.

“Why do retirees want to go back to work?”

Most retirees want to continue to work in some capacity, which is now being called “phased retirement.”  The statistics are clear that today’s retirees and the upcoming baby-boomer retirees are living longer, need to supplement their income  and want to stay productive, but they do not want to work in a hectic office environment:  That’s why they “retired.”  Retirees also know that if they continue to stay engaged they remain healthier and live longer.

“Why is an insurance industry retiree a better option than outsourcing overseas?”

Insurance industry retirees are a far better option than outsourcing off-shore as they have years of insurance experience.  They deliver a:

  • Wealth of insurance knowledge
  • Strong understanding of the regulatory issues
  • Knowledge of the culture and a fluency of the language
  • Excellent work ethic
  • They keep jobs in America!

They also are able to communicate with clients.  Retirees still have the energy and plenty of years to contribute their intellectual capital.