Business Address: 3113 West Beltline Highway, Madison, WI 53713
Phone: 608-288-2810
Email: matt.cranney@m3ins.com
Website: m3ins.com
Birthplace: Liverpool, England
Spouse/Partner’s Name: Amanda Cranney
Board Membership: ASCNet: Large Agent Alliance/vice president
Organizations: United Way: Rosenberry Society, PIA Wisconsin
Education: B.A. (Hons), political science, Liverpool University
Matt, How long have you been at M3, and what is your day-to-day role in the organization?
I have been at M3 for eight years, and as the director of client services, my job is to help create an atmosphere that best supports our sales process through our service efforts. I get to work with an outstanding team of managers who, in turn, have exceptional teams of people who give their best every day for our clients. I love my role as I get to coach, mentor, build relationships, and still be the insurance geek I am at heart.
What was the most challenging situation you’ve faced since being hired?
I was asked to lead a team of professionals with significant industry experience as a relatively young professional.
How, specifically, did you address the challenge?
I inherited a team heavy on experience [so] set out to lead my team through a significant change by first changing our hiring model, hiring less experienced staff with great work ethic, positive attitudes, and a willingness to learn about and teach insurance. I led with positivity and laid out clear expectations and consequences for performance. Our transition will always be a work in progress, but it led to a [personal] promotion and, more importantly, to better service for both internal and external clients.
Who, outside your company, has influenced your career the most, and in what way?
My dad. My dad was the first person in his family to go to college and is now an executive vice president at a company with over 2,000 employees. He has taught me so much: the value of hard work, to always keep learning (he went on to get his master’s degree), to work for success your own way, to never give up, and to do it all while keeping work correctly prioritized.
Also, Steve Brown of Steve Brown Apartments. [We] meet monthly and his experience and wisdom have been invaluable for me as a young leader. His strong, charismatic, humble, and authentic leadership is what I want to emulate. He’s tremendously successful but always focuses on ways his company needs to be better for his clients, and he’s not willing to settle for just okay.
What is a long-range goal that you’d like to achieve before leaving your company or industry?
I would like to continue to focus on bringing new talent into our industry, and seeing them grow into prominent positions. Risk management and insurance is an emerging choice for college students – we have an amazing program here at UW-Madison – and we are beginning to see some really talented people come to us from there. For the majority of people in insurance, though, it seems to be true that we all “fell into” insurance and have never left after we came to love it. I would like to see our industry continue to find ways to focus and commit to attracting, retaining, and developing the best young talent.
And your personal goals?
I’d like to progress at M3 toward the executive level. I want to continue to have the opportunity to call people to be the best they can be, to coach each day and “make it their masterpiece,” as John Wooden said. Life is short and I believe we are called to make an impact on those around us and call them to understand just how much each of us is capable of.
You said you fell into insurance, not thinking of it as your first career. When you were in high school, what were your career aspirations?
In high school, the only thing I wanted to do was play soccer professionally. Everything else seemed like a poor second choice! However, if it wasn’t going to be soccer then I imagined I would run my own company. Of course, I had no idea what my company would do, but it seemed like a cool thing to want to do!
Your very first paycheck: From where, how much, and what did you do with it?
I worked a Saturday job in high school as a waiter in a coffee shop. I think my first paycheck was for 15 pounds. The elation of being paid quickly evaporated after I went immediately and bought a CD and video game and then realized I didn’t have anything left to pay for the bus ride home, and so had to walk. Still the most memorable lesson in financial discipline I’ve ever had.
Pounds … that’s right, you were born in Liverpool. What route brought you here?
I was born in Liverpool, England and moved to Perth, Scotland when I was 14. I emigrated to Wisconsin in 2005, as my wife was a Rhinelander native who had settled here in Madison after college.
And you met her where?
We met in Austria, and when we met, I had no idea where Wisconsin was. She mentioned it was famous for beer, cheese, and the Packers. That was enough to sell me!
Now that you’re here, what do you do “beyond the office” that brings you happiness or relaxation?
Being with my family is what I love. Amanda and I have two boys (Cole, 3, and Jude, 6 months) who keep us so busy. I just love to be with them and to watch them learn and discover more about the world around them. We love to attend our church, Blackhawk. My faith is so important to me, and we are blessed to be a part of the Blackhawk family. I love to work out and learned very early in my career that it wasn’t an optional activity if I wanted to maintain my energy at home and work.
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What is your favorite place to travel?
Perth, Scotland. I am really lucky to be able to call two places home, and Perth is still one home for me. My family is there, and it is always fun to travel home and spend time with them. It’s an added bonus that Scotland is one of the most beautiful places in the world. It’s also good to go back and recharge my British accent, as it is becoming more and more American every day.
Do you read for pleasure?
I love to read.
Can you recall a recent title that might give us the flavor of what you like to read?
The two books I’ve read most recently are The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin and The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni. I love how Seth can take complex problems and provide simple yet profound solutions. Lencioni is one of my favorite business authors, and his last book is maybe his best yet, focusing on the value of a healthy, vibrant, and attractive company culture.
Is there an author or a book character that you would you most like to be identified with?
John Wooden. I have read all of his books and books about him, and he was an amazing, humble man who placed a premium on leadership and developing his players into leaders. A lot of who I try to be as a leader comes from him and his pyramid of success. My favorite thing about him was that he achieved amazing success the right way – with a great work/life balance, faith, and focusing more on enjoying the journey rather than the destination.
That was a great description of him, and we’d also like to close the interview with a description of you. Can you think of three adjectives for that?
Energetic, driven, and eternally optimistic.
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