JoANNE YBARGUEN DORSEY
Posted On: Jul. 29, 2007 12:00 AM CST
Vp-West Region Aviation Practice Leader
Wells Fargo Insurance Services of Nevada Inc.
Las Vegas
Age: 51
After 13 years as a commercial accounts manager and then manager of the account staff at Regal Aviation—a small Hillsboro, Ore., aviation agency—JoAnne Ybarguen Dorsey joined Marsh Inc.’s Phoenix aviation division as assistant vp in 2002. She was promoted to vp in 2004 and became manager of the division in 2005, overseeing accounts such as Portland International Airport, McCarran International Airport and other general aviation airports. In February 2006, Ms. Dorsey joined Wells Fargo Insurance Services of Nevada Inc. in Las Vegas. As its vp and west region aviation practice leader, Ms. Dorsey is charged with creating and growing the practice by coordinating risk transfer and risk financing alternatives for aviation clients of Wells Fargo & Co. and WFIS. In April, she became the west region’s aviation resource, handling aviation insurance-related problems that team members of the bank or WFIS refer to her.
Greatest influence: "There is not just one person but several. The common thread with all has been their integrity and honesty with their clients and customers. I have worked for and with several different brokers in my 30 years of insurance, and the most successful business colleagues have been the ones that have always remembered that they work for their clients. They have listened, brought value and solutions to clients’ problems and concerns."
Interest in aviation: "I was working at a midsize brokerage in Portland, Ore.—later purchased by Acordia, interestingly enough—as the personal lines/small commercial department manager. I had a friend call up and tell me about her friend’s husband who was a headhunter in need of an interviewee for an aviation broker in the area. He could not get anyone to interview as one of the owner’s reputation was not employee-friendly. I finally agreed simply because I was familiar with aircraft, having been around air shows and married to a pilot. After a half hour into my interview with one of the partners, I indicated that I didn’t feel I was what he was looking for because I couldn’t tell him from looking out the window at the ramp if one of the aircraft was a Cessna 172 or a Cessna 150. He immediately wanted me to interview with the other partner. They made me an offer…I thought I would be learning something new and different from everyone else and that it would set me apart for future employment. I accepted the position and I’ve never looked back and never regretted my decision."
Best professional advice: "Never stop learning. Always be open to more knowledge."