Jack Butcher

You’ve been involved with fire services in three different states since 1980. What inspired you to volunteer your time with that endeavor?

It’s shrouded in a long-held belief that I think really underpins the insurance industry, which is to be in service of others and our communities. It started, frankly, when I was a 12-year-old. I saw fire-rescue personnel rendering aid to my mother. And after she passed away not long after that, I decided that was not only something that I felt very strongly I wanted to do, it was something that was an impactful way to serve people, often in their darkest hour. So many people I admire in this industry serve in myriad impactful ways. This is just how I’ve tried to serve and have done it for decades.

Has your experience in emergency services informed your business life and career?

Without question. We work in an industry which, in order to really add to assurance and decision security for our clients, it’s a team-based process. While the consequences of failure may not be as dire as they might be in an emergency services or military environment, it does teach you the value of teamwork, the importance of sound execution, the value and the power of decision-making, decisiveness, and the need to continually learn and be very, very good at your craft.

You said you’re an avid sailor, that being on the water is your decompression chamber.

I find that maritime endeavors are a metaphor for business. You need to have a solid crew, you need to have a sound craft, you need to have a good plan, you need to have a destination, and you need to plan for contingencies.

What kind of a boat do you sail, and where do you take it?

I will sail anything, anywhere in the world I can get my hands on something. My personal craft is a kind of day power boat, and today I navigate the waters of the Long Island Sound and the Atlantic coastline up through New England. But I also love boating on the Chesapeake Bay.

You also told me that one of your mentors taught you to never stop laughing. Why do you find that lesson so important?

It was said to me at a time when I was intensely trying to build a career as a young producer in this business, and my mentor said, “Take your job, not yourself, seriously.” That was an instructive comment, that we have to take seriously the work we do for our clients and for each other, but it’s therapeutic to remember levity can be an elixir—it’s OK to laugh at yourself.

What three words would your co-workers use to describe your management style?

Collaborative, disciplined, and compassionate.

What business leader in any industry do you most admire?

Ram Charan, who has written countless books and articles, lectures worldwide, advises corporate boards and corporate CEOs. He’s full of wisdom and perspective and has an ability to crystallize and simplify the most complex concepts.

If you could change one thing about the insurance industry, what would it be?

Be more effective in merchandising ourselves to the next generation of talent. This is an amazing industry to work in, and I think we need to constantly be working on a more effective way to create more excitement about how we actually have an impact on the world.

What gives you your leader’s edge?

I love running to the problems. I find that most leaders don’t do our best work when things are going well. Where we really prove our mettle is when things aren’t going well, when people are having problems, when people are struggling, when people need help.