Allen People

Mallory Follett of Owls Head has joined Allen Insurance and Financial as a scanning technician based in the company’s Camden office.

A 2009 graduate of Rockland District High School, she is enrolled in the company’s in-house education program as the first step toward obtaining her property & casualty insurance license. She plans a career in insurance.

Follett says she enjoys the challenge of working in the insurance industry. She adds: “I am proud to be part of such a well known team of experts here in Midcoast Maine.”

Outside of work, she enjoys  music, reading, cooking, knitting, being outdoors and spending time with family and friends.

On a Thursday in the spring of 1964, Cindy Norton graduated from Rockland District High School. The following Tuesday she started working for a local insurance agency for $1 an hour. At the end of 2011, after 47 years on the job, Cindy is retiring.

In the early days, it was typewriters, carbon paper and hand-penciled ledgers. Today, Allen Insurance and Financial runs a paperless office system, with three computer screens on everyone’s desk. Keeping up with technology has been just one part of the job, Cindy says.

“If you change with the times, you don’t have to give it much thought,” she says. “It’s kept me young. I always said I wasn’t going to let the young ones get too far ahead of me.”

The single most important constant over the years is the relationships – the ones she’s built with co-workers and with the insurance clients with whom she works.

“It’s easy to say Cindy is an institution, and that’s a true compliment,” says Gilbert Fifield, the company president. “She’s been a great help to many of us here at Allen Insurance and Financial as well as to some of the area’s most successful businesses.”

Now that she’s 65, it’s time to give up her desk job and trade an office to-do list for one she makes with her husband. That’s likely to involve reading, walking, ‘floating on Pitcher Pond,’ and maybe some traveling. And there are always the things at home that are long-delayed because she had to go to the office every day.

Cindy, who is the company’s Rockland office manager and a customer service representative, doesn’t like goodbyes. She prefers “see you later.” And when Cindy says “you can call me if you need me,” she means it.

Michael Pierce

Effective Jan. 1, 2012, Allen Insurance and Financial will have a new company president and treasurer.

Following unanimous approval last month by the company board of directors, J. Michael Pierce, JD, CFP®, will replace Gilbert T. Fifield, CIC, who served as company president and treasurer for eight years, since 2003. Fifield, who joined the company in 1986, will stay with the company and retain his post as chairman of the company’s board of directors. He will continue to serve his business insurance clients.

Pierce, a member of the company’s executive team, was formerly chief operating officer of Allen Financial, the company’s financial advisory and employee benefits division. He will retain those responsibilities. Pierce joined the company in 1998.

Allen Insurance and Financial is an independent, employee-owned insurance agency and financial services company employing 70 people in offices in Camden, Rockland and in Southwest Harbor, where the company operates as L.S. Robinson Co.

Other administrative changes at Allen Insurance and Financial effective Jan. 1 include:

• The appointment of Michael Dufour as executive vice president and company secretary. He was formerly a company vice president, joining the company in 2002 and will continue to oversee the company’s business and personal insurance divisions. Sara K. Montgomery is the company’s other executive vice president.
• The appointment of Scott Carlson as personal insurance supervisor, reporting to Dufour. Carlson, who joined the company in 2011, will be based in the Rockland office.

For more information about Allen Insurance and Financial, please call 800-439-4311 or visit AllenInsuranceAndFinancial.com.

Jennifer Coffin, ACSR

“Jen is dedicated to improving her technical knowledge and enhancing her professionalism, taking steps to solidify her career,” said Gil Fifield, company president. “The ACSR designation shows our people are well-educated members of the insurance industry.”

The ACSR designation program was developed to recognize the contribution made to each customer by the service they are provided through independent insurance agencies such as Allen Insurance and Financial.

Coffin, a graduate of Medomak Valley High School, lives with her husband and their two daughters in Nobleboro. She joined Allen Insurance and Financial in 2004.

Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of independent insurance agents & brokers with more than 300,000 members. Find them online at independentagent.com.

Stephanie Griffin

Allen Insurance and Financial is pleased to announce that Stephanie Griffin has passed the Maine State Property & Casualty Producer licensing exam.

Griffin, of Camden, joined Allen Insurance and Financial in late 2010 as a receptionist in the company’s Camden office.

A native of Appleton, Griffin is attending the University of Maine in Augusta, working toward a bachelor’s degree in public administration. She has already earned a certificate in human resource management from UMA.

Griffin, who had not worked in insurance prior to joining Allen Insurance and Financial, participated in the company’s in-house education program, where employees who want to become licensed insurance producers in Maine attend class for four hours each week, then study and prepare for the state licensing exam on their own time.

Scott Carlson

Carlson studied for the state exam through the Allen Insurance and Financial’s in-house education program, passing the exam on the first try. He joined the company in December 2010.

The Allen Insurance and Financial education program is run by Gene McKeever in the company’s Camden office. Staff attend classes on company time as they prepare for their exams. Since the state also requires 30 hours of continuing education over every two-year period for those in the insurance business, Allen Insurance and Financial sponsors those classes, as well.

This kind of investment benefits both Allen Insurance and Financial employees and the company’s customers, said Gil Fifield, company president. “We see payback every day — our people receive support and the most up-to-date information and in turn they offer superior service to our clients,” Fifield said.

The state-issued study guide for insurance licensing is 400+ pages. The state exams are comprised of 150 questions drawn from a pool of 2,400 questions on a complete range of subject areas, including business and personal insurance, workers’ compensation, maritime insurance and Maine insurance law.

Allen Insurance and Financial is an employee-owned insurance, employee benefits, and financial services company with offices in Camden, Rockland, Saco and Southwest Harbor.

For more information call 236-4311, or visit AllenInsuranceAndFinancial.com

Scott Carlson

Scott Carlson of Camden has joined Allen Insurance and Financial.

Previously, he was a partner and client consultant at Links Online Marketing, a website development and Internet marketing business in Bangor. He has also worked as a division manager and design director at Moss, Inc.

A native of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, Carlson has a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Victoria and a master’s degree in information systems engineering from Polytechnic Institute of New York University. For his first months at Allen Insurance and Financial, Carlson will be without a specific job title as he participates in the company’s comprehensive in-house insurance education program.

“Scott’s background in design, manufacturing, engineering, project management and technology provides him with a solid foundation for providing creative solutions to challenging problems, as well as effective management of people, projects and more,” said Gilbert Fifield, president of Allen Insurance and Financial. “We are looking forward to Scott’s applying these skills to our work here, providing quality products and services to our customers.”

Carlson and his wife Donna live in Camden with their two young sons. He is a member of the Camden Rotary Club and the MCSA Youth Hockey board. Outside of work, he enjoys sailing, hiking, biking, music and spending time with his family.