More from Liberty Mutual’s 2026 Independent Agency Growth Study

For the last month, Weekly Industry News has been looking at Liberty Mutual’s 2026 Independent Agency Growth Study. It surveyed 1,149 agency principals and staff members about how trends in 2026 are shaping independent insurance agencies.

In the last few weeks we’ve looked at:

• AI adoption and AI use cases in agencies

• Client acquisition

• Changes in customer expectations

• And more

This story examines women working in, or owning, independent agencies. The survey notes women are still underrepresented in leadership roles. However, the gap between men and women in those positions is growing narrower.

The survey found since 2023 things have gotten better and women are growing more positive about their futures in the industry.

• 62% of millennial women want to lead or own an agency

• That’s up from 50% in 2023

• 41% of women of all generations want to own or lead an agency

• That’s up from 36% in 2023

A big positive finds management growing more women for leadership roles:

• 59% of millennial women say their manager is actively developing them for leadership

• That’s up from 38% in 2023

• 45% of women of all generations say managers are actively developing them for leadership

• That’s up from 30% in 2023

• An equal number of millennial men and women say they’re being developed to lead

More women say they have the skills they need to grow

• 88% of millennial women say they have the skills to grow their career

• That’s up from 70% in 2023

• 88% of women of all generations say they have the skills they need to grow their career

Women are also more optimistic about their leadership in agencies these days than in the past:

• 70% of millennial women say they are optimistic about their ability to grow in their agency

• That’s up from 56% in 2023

• 64% of women of all generations say they are optimistic about their ability to grow their career at their agency

• 31% of women in agencies say they need more support or training to achieve their career goals

Women are more satisfied on the job these days than in the past:

• 87% of women say they are satisfied with their current job at their agency

• 78% of women say they can maintain a good work-life balance

Lots of positives in the report but the bottom-line is women are still heavily underrepresented in leadership roles in independent insurance agencies:

• In 2026 women make up 22% of principals/owners

• Women in 2026 make up 78% of agency staff

• Barely over half — 52% — of respondents say their agency has women in leadership

Source link: Liberty Mutual — https://bit.ly/4zds86H