AA Munro Receives National Award for Culture of Excellence

by Angus MacCaull

Human Synergistics Canada has recognized AA Munro Insurance with a Culture Award of Excellence.

“We’re really describing an organization that’s able to change with the times and move forward,” said Allan Stewart, the company’s president. “And the way you do that is through each other.”

Human Synergistics surveys people across the world. The data they gather provides behavioural benchmarks for the workplace. They look at behaviours that are passive, aggressive, and constructive. In their 2018 survey at AA Munro, the insurance brokerage scored better than 80% of all organizations in North America—across all industries.

“We’ve heard so many times when somebody joins our organization, be it somebody new to the industry or from another brokerage, they talk about how different it feels here,” said Wayne Ezekiel, AA Munro’s president. “How much more open it is. How much more free it is.”

Ezekiel noted AA Munro does not usually seek out awards. The leadership team spends more energy helping coworkers feel autonomy and feel safe. They want to see progress from within as people speak openly and suggest improvements.

But recognition from an outside source can be useful.

“It shows we’re moving in the right direction,” said Tracey LaTulippe, AA Munro’s staff development manager. “We have a great environment to work in and we can rely on each other.”

“It really means that we’re conscious of how we treat each other and how we treat our clients and our company partners,” said Tammie McLearn, a broker in AA Munro’s Greenwich office. “It clearly shows that we care.”

Human Synergistics has been studying organizations since 1971. They began celebrating organizations in Canada with corporate awards in 2015. They operate out of Ontario and Quebec, with a broad network of independent consultants, including Peak Experiences in Nova Scotia.

“There’s a rewarding feeling that you get when you come into a workplace where you just know that you can feel accepted,” said consultant Frank Gallant, who advises AA Munro. “You can be real and work with each other to serve clients and ultimately serve each other in that process.”