StudioOne at 500: Reflecting on Growth and Looking to Rancho Mesa’s Future

In honor of reaching our 500th episode, Rancho Mesa's Alyssa Burley and President Dave Garcia discuss the history of StudioOne™ and plans for the future growth of Rancho Mesa.

Alyssa Burley: You’re listening to Rancho Mesa’s StudioOne™ podcast, where each week we break down complex insurance and safety topics to help your business thrive. I’m your host, Alyssa Burley, and today I’m joined by a co-host, Rancho Mesa’s President Dave Garcia.

Dave, welcome to the show.

Dave Garcia: Alyssa, man, I am so excited to be in StudioOne today and talking to you about this huge milestone.

AB: Yeah, so we're excited to record our 500th episode today. And we're taking this opportunity to give our listeners an update on what's new with Rancho Mesa and what we see in our future. But first, I think Dave, you wanted to talk a little bit about the podcast in general, is that correct?

DG: Yeah, because as the listeners know, I'm the oldest person in the company. And so podcasting to me was something I saw on my phone, but didn't really understand how it worked. And so I thought it'd be kind of fun just to go back in time and talk about how did we even get this thing started? So Alyssa, do you, your memory's probably better than mine. How did we get started way back when?

AB: Yeah, so that's interesting that you say that. And I do want to point out that this is our 500th episode. That is a huge milestone. So I did a little bit of research before today's episode and I found some interesting statistics. So Riverside says that only 90% of podcasts reach episode three. Okay, so that's pretty easy, right? But even fewer actually reach episode 20. Okay, that seems pretty reasonable, right? You know, you do a couple of episodes and then it kind of trails off. But another company or organization, Podmatch, says that podcasters have about a 10% chance of reaching episode 50. We blew that out of the water, I think maybe our first year or just after we had been doing this for a year.

Now, what's even more impressive is that reaching episode 200 is only done by 2.52% of podcasters. I don't even know what the statistics would be for episode 500, but that is a very, very small percentage or likelihood that anybody is going to get to episode 500. So I'm really excited about that. And it's really just because of the people that we have here, our team here in this department, all of our sales team, everybody who participates, all of our guests, we could not have done it without them.

DG: Yeah, I'm really, really proud of that. And when you see those statistics, you realize that we're probably serving a great audience that we've lasted this long, that we're committed. We're just a company and agency that believes in hard work. And this has become less hard work because we've gotten really skilled at it. And it'll be fun to now talk about, well, how did this all get started and what got us to 500. How we started, we would not have gotten to 500. We made changes along the way. Yeah. So, Alyssa, remind my poor memory. This was pre-COVID?

AB: It was pre-COVID. Wow. So, we actually recorded the first eight episodes in the fall of 2019. So, we had gone to, I guess it's an expo or a conference called Landscapes, and it was in Louisville, Kentucky and Drew Garcia, your son, he actually interviewed a couple of carriers, clients and non-clients about the landscape industry. And our very first episode was with Cody Kamek from Landcare Management Services and I think that they're out of Texas. So in January 2020, we now had a few episodes that we had edited and we decided, okay, we're going to release an episode every month, and we had eight interviews, great.

That was going to give us eight months’ worth of content is what we thought, and that gave us eight months to come up with four more topics, and then we would have our first year completed. So I thought we were doing great.

But we decided very quickly that doing an episode every month was not enough so we started off with just the one and then we decided okay we needed to have more episodes so I started reading the articles that our team writes every week and you know it was okay they're not great I don't even know if some of them are still on the website at this point but by April 2020 we had started reading articles, and we decided they're going to sound a little bit better if I'm actually interviewing the author of those articles. So I think by May of 2020, we were doing an episode a week, I was interviewing the person who wrote the article, and then we quickly realized we probably should be doing two episodes per week, one with the author of the article, and then we were also going to do one that was client services related. So we could talk about the services that we were providing, our HR portal, the SafetyOne app. Well, we didn't have it at that time, but you know, so anything that our client services team was doing.

So now we are, we're recording two episodes every week. And, you know, it's just gotten better from there. And you know, what's funny is at one point we were thinking, Okay, how are we going to come up with enough topics to have two episodes a week? And now we actually have too many episodes already recorded, right, Megan? That we're booked out for over the next month. So there is no shortage of topics to talk about. And that's pretty exciting.

DG: Yeah. I'm really excited about that. And Alyssa's being a little modest. And she was really the catalyst behind this, her and Drew coming to me saying, "Hey, let's do a podcast."

And I was saying, I know what that is, but how in the world do you do it? And they were able to put it together really quickly, as she mentioned. And then I think because of our specialization and really demanding our producers really understand those marketplaces that they're in, asking them to become pros, pros within those industries and write articles that are specific to the industries that they're serving. This was just a natural flow from going from a written article, you know, I guess, segue, and again, I'll give Alyssa and Drew a lot of credit here.

We realize as time goes on, people absorb their information in a lot of different ways. In my generation, I'm in my 60s, and we still like to read. Another generation might prefer to listen and another generation might prefer to just watch the video. So we thought at the time it would be good to try to kind of touch on all of those. Podcasting was the first venture down that. So I'm totally excited. I think it's gone from the guest reading their article to Alyssa really having an interview with them so that they really understand the content. So I couldn't be happier. Can't way to see where it goes.

AB: Yeah, and you know, what's interesting is, you know, we had planned to do the podcast like right before COVID, and obviously we had no idea that it was coming. But I think once everybody kind of went home and they were not in the office, the podcast really gave us another way to reach people that, you know, maybe people are at home, they're working, but they're listening to podcasts. And so it just gave us another way to reach those people.

DG: Yeah, and it was, you know, just digression of it back into the COVID days. I remember reaching out to Rob Darby, who's the president of Berkshire Hathaway, home state companies, large work comp carrier here in California, good friend. And we just talked about COVID. He and I just got on the line together. He was, you know, remote, I was remote. And that is still one of our all-time biggest plays of any one podcast.

AB: It is, still.

DG: Yeah, and it occasionally gets a play even today.

AB: It does.

DG: So, you know, we adapted to the COVID time and it really kind of accelerated the whole process of us doing podcasts and providing information to people in different kinds of venues. But funny story now, you're probably wondering, well, where did podcast. So listen, give us a little, give us a little background on how we started doing our podcast.

AB: Yeah. So, so like mentioned earlier, our first eight episodes, we recorded those at landscapes, right? But we knew that if we were going to continue this, we were going to need an actual space to record them. So it just happened that early 2020, We were actually opening up a second office. So our main office was in Santee, which is just a suburb of San Diego. And so we were going to open up another office in La Mesa, which is like five, 10 minutes away. And so when that group that was going to move to the La Mesa office actually moved, it opened up some offices, some space in Santee. And so we were able to actually convert our Executive Vice President Daniel Frazee’s former office into a recording studio. So that was really a game-changer for us because it gave us a space to record on a regular basis. You know we could have everything set up all the time. We didn't have to you know try to set up everything just to record. So that made a huge difference for us.

We did have some challenges though in that space. So if you're familiar with the area Gillespie Field is an Airport and we weren't too far from it. And so we would literally have to stop the podcast while the plane flew over and then we would just resume as soon as it was gone and even we had construction going on in the space next to us. And so we were constantly dealing with, you know, big trucks and backup alarms and all of those fun things that you get on a construction site, we were dealing with, we had all the noises.

So when we did move to our current location in Mission Valley, we actually got the opportunity to build out the studio that we're recording in today. And it really makes us appreciate how nice the studio is because we dealt with a lot of other things in the old studio. It's just part of the Rancho Mesa fabric now. It's just part of our history.

DG: Yeah, we have a gorgeous studio here now. We've got cameras, we've got monitors, we've got soundboards on the walls, we've got a producer's desk. It's pretty exciting and we feel like over those five years, six years now. We've really come a long way in being able to produce the podcasts and videos.

AB: Yeah. All right. So, Dave, you mentioned earlier that one of our early podcasts, you did virtually during COVID. So, do you want to talk a little bit about who we'd like to bring in as guests? I mean, sometimes it's just Rancho Mesa people, right? But oftentimes, we do bring in third parties. So, do you want to talk a little bit about guests coming in or maybe doing the interviews virtually?

DG: Yeah, I think that what we wanted to do was tap into different expertise in different fields. So we've had attorneys come in to talk about contractual language. We've had different safety experts come in and talk about tips, financial experts when it's on our surety side. But two that I remember the most, one was Rob Darby, which I mentioned earlier on the COVID side. But then I got an interesting phone call one day from a carrier that we work with that's homebase is in Wisconsin. And it was ahead of their claims department who had been listening to our podcast and reached out and said, "Hey, can I be on your show?"

And I'm like, when he said that, I'm like, "Oh, I have a show?"

I didn't even really realize that. Oh yeah, yeah, of course you can be on my show. So he wanted to kind of tell the story a little bit about what he felt made his company unique and claims handling this worker’s compensation care. So we you know we went back and forth with questions and then maybe two weeks before we were going to tape it he said, “Hey can I bring a third person in? He's our head of our claims and he's in Pennsylvania.”

And I'm feeling like wow I'm syndicated now so I'm going to be in Mission Valley one guy's going to be in Wisconsin and the other guy's going to be in Pennsylvania. I say okay, but then I've got to go see my boss to listen and say, “Hey, is this something we can do? Like, can we really have people in from two different states at the same time and make this work?”

And she's like, “Of course, it's easy, it's nothing to it.”

I'm like, okay, cool, let's do it. So that was super fun and really enjoyed it. We had the cameras up and running and we were looking at each other. It's kind of like a Zoom call, but we're recording it. And it was just fascinating. And I know they now use edits from that podcast in their onboarding process with some of their new claims examiners. So that was really just another cool story.

AB: Yeah, that was probably one of the first or maybe the first episodes where we had multiple people all in different locations. And it sounded great.

DG: Yeah, you wouldn't know it. You for sure wouldn't know it. And we probably could have made that a podcast because we did have the video as well. So yeah, that was a check that box. We can do that for sure. And then we've had, and listen, do you want to talk on this or do you want me to talk on getting to know different people?

AB: So the Getting to Know series is where we get to talk to employees and get to know a little bit about them. So funny enough, these episodes get the most plays out of any other topic by far. And I do think that it's because people want to know about the people that they're working with. It could be our clients that are listening, it could be carriers, it could be strangers. But I do think that people really enjoy learning about other people and how they get it in the industry and what they like to do in their free time, it just makes us feel more real to people. So I think that it's one of our better episodes when we get to actually talk to somebody that works here.

DG: Yeah. I've been fortunate to be the interviewer for those different episodes. And it's all voluntary, so we don't force anybody to do it. But I've worked with some people here, we're in our 26th year and I've talked to some people that have been here 15, 20 years. I thought I knew pretty much everything about them. And then we get into this conversation and I find they were a black belt in Taekwondo when they were a kid. And I'm like, hang on, what? And so, I think one of our core values here is we believe that insurance and life should be a people business. And so just the better that we know our clients, our carrier partners, and most importantly our employees, the better we all are for that. So I thoroughly enjoy that. I try not to twist people's arms to come in and do it, but it's so fun to find out where they grew up and what are their likes outside of work and things like that. So that's been just an awesome series. And then because of its success, we've extended it outside to some of our clients and carrier partners and just gotten to know them on a different level. So we did not see that coming at the start, I would say that.

AB: Yeah, yeah. So along those same lines about getting to know us as individuals, do you want to talk about your latest venture, Dave's Dugout?

DG: Yeah, thanks, Alyssa. Thanks for plugging in. So Dave's Dugout as a separate podcast channel and just briefly I guess it's a tribute. I grew up in a baseball family and my father was very influential to me and I realized in growing up I was around him a lot in the summer times because he was out managing in the minor leagues and at the end in the major leagues and I would spend just months on end with him and I was in the dugout a lot in the clubhouse, in the bullpen, the outfield, infield. And he was a really terrific, common sense leader of men. And as I've gotten older, I realized that so much of who I am today was because of things I learned just observing how he handled situations.

So in an effort to kind of get some of those stories out, to maybe help people, their stories that, so that those podcasts are three, four minutes.  They're kind of somewhere around baseball story type thing, but there's a little life lesson in there. Maybe it's applicable in business, in your home life, or just how you treat other people. Maybe you'll find some, you know, happiness and use in it. So we're going to continue that. And the ultimate goal is bringing other people in to share their dugout stories with me. And so if you're listening to this and if you listen to a couple of Dave's dugouts and kind of get the feel for them, you feel like you've got something to share, absolutely call me, love to have you in the dugout.

AB: Yeah, I'm really excited about those and we've only heard good things about each of the episodes. So make sure that if you're listening today that you check out Dave's Dugout, you should be able to find it on all of the major channels.

DG: Yeah, and if you really want to have a good laugh, the cover jacket, the picture for it, is the only picture of my father and I in baseball uniform that exists. I was 16 years old. My dad was managing in El Paso, 1974. And you can give me a hard time about how long my hair was. But so if you, for no other reason, look it up just so you can tease me about that picture.

AB: Oh yeah, we're excited about that.

DG: Yeah, it really does look great. So now that we've talked a little bit about the podcast, how we got started, do you want to talk about what's going on with Rancho Mesa and all the exciting things that are happening?

DG: Oh my gosh, I actually kind of got chills just then when you said it that way. Yeah, I really do. We're super excited. You know, we We're just putting the final paint touches on our expansion here in Mission Valley. So we're going to have the entire floor. We just added what we're calling the East County Lounge, just kind of a communal area where people can go in, relax, play a board game, have a meeting, talk it over with their coworkers, different clients, friends, family, whatever, and then just added a ton of additional space. So I know you know, we're looking to hire 30 plus people. And that's pretty exciting, don't you agree?

AB: Oh yeah, absolutely. So we recently published an article that talks about the expansion. And the reasons why we're expanding, you know, a lot of companies right now, unfortunately they're getting purchased by larger insurance agencies. And that's not the case for us, we're growing, we're growing organically and we're looking for good people here in San Diego and we're making a really nice place for them to work. We have a great culture, great atmosphere and we're just really excited to move into the new space and to welcome some new people.

DG: Yeah, it's a wonderful place to come every day and if you're out there and you're looking for different opportunities. You know, look us up on the website, come by the office, doors always open, love to have you here. But it's really exciting because to me, it just feels like we're at this next cusp of the next stage of Rancho Mesa.

And we operate in 22 states right now, all from San Diego. We've got a producer and his client manager on an airplane right now heading to Seattle to visit one of our clients. It's just totally exciting stuff going on here. So the space somehow has just made it 3D. It makes it feel real. And so we're here to stay and we're here to remain independent. We are not going to sell our agency. We've got 12 partners now. I'm excited about that, watching young people kind of embrace their careers and grow within Rancho Mesa. It just makes Rancho Mesa bigger and stronger and allows us to provide more services and resources to our clients. So it's a win-win all the way out.

Along those lines, we just continue to build out a suite of services. Let's just touch briefly on some of the things that you've got planned for the year.

AB: Yeah, so as many people know, we do have our SafetyOne platform and it includes a website and a mobile app, and it's based around safety, trying to make sure that our clients are training their employees and everybody has all the information that they need, but we're always adding new enhancements. So we're listening to our clients, we're listening to what they need, and we're adding some really cool features, so we're excited about that.

In addition to, we for workshops and webinars every single month, live and recorded, just to try to make sure that our clients are educated, they know what's happening in the industry and they can provide safety trainings to their employees. So we're excited about all of the different services that we offer to our clients and know that we're going to continue to constantly improve. We're not static over here.

DG: Yeah, definitely not static and definitely not static inside either. We really want to encourage our employees to kind of reach for the stars in their professional careers and their personal lives to try to give them a platform of knowledge and education and encouragement to go out and be the best version of themselves. So quarterly we do try to bring somebody in to conduct some kind of a workshop for us from time management skills all the way to nutrition. So we're always looking for those topics that our employees find engaging but beneficial. And that's just, for me, that's one of the most exciting things. It's just to watch somebody come in and then just their eyes get open and they're like, "Wow, okay, I can really go places here." And they can because as we grow, it just creates more and more opportunities within the company. So that's probably one of the things I'm most proud of is that opportunity. If you want to come in here and really see where you can go, I think we're the runway for you to do it.

AB: Yeah, and I think it's important for people to understand that, you know, we're hiring people with experience, but we're also looking for people who want to change their career and really want to get into insurance or, you know, maybe you're in accounting or, you know, media communications. We have positions available. It's just, we're not just looking for experienced insurance people. We've grown so many people that had no experience, but, you know, we've taught them the Rancho Mesa way and some people have been here for, you know, their entire careers, that's pretty cool.

DG: Yeah, and we do an engagement survey each year to just try to put our finger on the pole so we don't want to just drink our own Kool-Aid. We really want to know what are the employees thinking, what do they need, what do they want. And this last time we just did it in November, I think this past year. And listen, what were some of those numbers like?

AB: We were in the 90th percentile in most of the things. Most of them, I think we’re like 97-point-something percent satisfaction in a lot of different areas and you know we've been posting on LinkedIn those stats so check out our page on LinkedIn if you want to know all of the results. But I was really I can't say I was surprised but I was pleasantly surprised to see how high those numbers were and keep in mind this is a third party that administered this survey We had nothing to do with the questions or, you know, the answers, so that really makes me feel good that what we're doing, it's what people want, you know? They're happy to be here, and I think our people see that we're trying to make a culture that makes people feel comfortable, and they want to be here. And I think that's evident everywhere that you look at Rancho Mesa.

DG: Yeah, a lot of attention to detail, try to make everything really nice for them. And you know, one number that really jumped off at me too, Alyssa, during that was, I think it was 85% of our employees have all been here longer than five years.

AB: Yeah.

DG: And I'm super proud, I don't know if there's another business of any sort that can say, wow, you just don't lose people. And we don't, we lose them when they retire. That's pretty much when they leave us. So, but we know we're the type of people that we know there's another level, you know, we believe in the one of one that you can't not reach, but that's what we're striving for. So we don't know what the next, if we were at 97.2, we want to know how do we get to 98?

So, you know, we're looking to do that on an ongoing basis and you know, just to have a, obviously I've been here the longest, I couldn't do this alone. It's the group of people that's here and it's a shared mentality of really good people who want to work hard and give something back and just kind of make it a better place and keep it a people business. So I'm sorry, I can go on and on about all that. So thank you so much. 500 episodes, that's incredible.

AB: Yeah, I think your comments was a great way to end this 500th episode. So thank you so much. We'll see you at the next 500. Well, I'm sure that we'll hit our thousandth. That's what you say. 1000th episode.

DG: Yes. Yeah. So stay tuned. Follow us. Talk to you soon. Bye.

AB: Thanks for tuning in to our latest episode produced by StudioOne. If you enjoyed what you heard, please share this episode and subscribe. For more insights like this, visit us at ranchomesa.com and subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

Getting to Know Your Rancho Mesa Family with Daniel Frazee

President of Rancho Mesa Insurance, David Garcia, sat down with Vice President Daniel Frazee for an interview on on Frazee’s upbringing, personal life, and professional career.  

David Garcia: Welcome back to StudioOne™. I’m Dave Garcia, President of Rancho Mesa. I'm really pleased that I'm joined today by Daniel Frazee, one of my best friends, also our Executive Vice President, and one of the partners in the agency. And today we're going to be finding out a little bit more about Daniel, and I know quite a bit, so we don't know which direction exactly this show will go, but Dan welcome to the show.

Daniel Frazee: Thanks, Dave. Happy to be here and excited to spend some time with you.

DG: Okay. How hot is your seat right now?

DF: It's hot. So go easy.

DG: All right. Well, here's the layup tell the audience Dan, where did you grow up?

DF: I grew up here in San Diego actually in Point Loma. I was born and raised at Mercy Hospital and had the pleasure of growing up in Point Loma and spent all 18 years of my life there before I headed off to college.

DG: Oh that's great and you know Dan your family if you're willing to speak about it a little bit your family is very well known here in San Diego; made a big mark on the San Diego community in many different ways. Can you share a little bit about your family?

DF: Sure, there's more to it, but my dad and my uncle operated for Frazee Paint and Wall Covering for many years. Before that, my grandfather was involved in the business and even before that, my great-grandfather started the business in 1896. And it was really just a distributor of paint to Sherwin Williams, using Sherwin Williams paint. And fast forward to the early 1960s, my dad and my uncle convinced him to start manufacturing their own paint and that was at the facility on Miramar Road and the company kind of changed its course from that point on and they ended up selling the company in the late 80s, early 90s and it's now shifted hands ironically to Sherwin Williams, but that was a big part of me growing up. I spent a lot of time going with my dad to the office out on Miramar Road. And there are some great memories and have only good things to say about that experience.

DG: Yeah, you know, I grew up in San Diego as well. And Frazee Paint was just synonymous with paint. You know, really actually, it's like Kleenex is tissue paper. You know, that's how it seemed at the time. And so I was able to get to know your dad and your family pretty well over the years, and they just made such an impact, not just in the painting community, but honestly just in the San Diego community at large.

And I know, I don't want to put you on the spot here, but your family's done a lot, different charitable endeavors here in San Diego, different interests, you know, like your dad was, I think he was the Commodore, the Yacht Club at one time, and excellent racer, and rescued somebody at sea. I mean, this is just like a storybook here.

DF: Yeah, there's some crazy stories about my dad's sailing days and he was a very prominent, really long-distance sailing racer. I think maybe what I'm most proud of is my great-grandfather and grandfather from the Midwest. There are a lot of Midwest values that they brought to San Diego and just work ethic in general and that I think has kind of flowed through our family and something that I like to think that I've taken from that and even though we grew up in this beautiful town in San Diego, as you did, I feel very fortunate to have that connection to the history of the family.

DG:  Yeah, it really shines through Dan. I know you've probably have carried on a lot of those family values and commitments and things like that. So that's something, you know, I vicariously got to know your mom and dad. They had an imprint on me as well. So, just really cool when you have a San Diego family of that prominence who are really honestly Midwest people, just honest, good, hardworking, treat everybody fairly, things like that.

But let's put you back on the hot seat here, Dan. So growing up, you said you grew up in the Point Loma area. What high school did you attend?

DF: I went to Francis Parker; really didn't think I was going to end up there. All of my friends ended up at Point Loma High School and my parents convinced me to try Francis Parker in seventh and eighth grade before they had a middle school. So I went there for two years and we had a little bit of an agreement that I could always go back to Point Loma after eighth grade. But that changed. I really grew to develop some strong friendships there and ended up staying through high school and had a phenomenal experience. I felt very fortunate to have attended that school and it was just a great experience for me.

DG: So since I know you well, I know you're a really good athlete. Were there things in high school that you participated in while you were there?

DF: I played baseball and I played basketball and had just a super fun experience with the coaching staff on both sides and developed some really strong friendships, and then really kind of zeroed in on basketball. That is really something that I enjoyed and I loved and I put a lot of time and effort into that. And just again, had a great experience and very positive memories. And some of my closest friends to this day are from Parker.

DG: Oh, that's outstanding. So it's always nice when your high school experience is that way and you build these lifelong relationships like that.

So Dan, outside of work, what are some of the things you enjoy doing?

DF: You know, I read that question beforehand and I think the honest truth is I spent a lot of time with my family. I've been married for 28 years to my wife Susan and really blessed for that relationship and I feel really fortunate that we have four children. Our life to this point truthfully has been watching them in their activities and being the best parents that we can be. So we spend a lot of time with family and that can be just interacting with one another, watching them in events. They're all largely growing up and moving on in their lives, but that's been a big part of my life to this point.

DG: Well, I've been blessed that you've given me the opportunity to get to know your children and they're cut from the same cloth, all well-meaning, very big hearts, very looking to how can they make the world better type of people so you and Susan should be really proud of that.

Do you have any hobbies Dan?

DF: You know I think my one hobby right now more than anything is I've started to--it's not really a hobby but it's more health-conscious-- I've started to plunge. And that's not, it's kind of an odd thing but that is I jump in an ice bath every morning and just do what I can to do something uncomfortable, but it actually kind of flips my mindset and it's really helped my overall mental health and it's really kind of motivated me and given me an opportunity to reset some things. So as odd as that sounds, that's something that is the closest thing to a hobby.

Truthfully, I'm trying to find other hobbies right now. We've been so immersed with our kids and raising them that that's now my mind has opened up a little bit to start focusing on, “What would I enjoy?”

DG: Well, plunging sounds like something I'll happily pass on for now, but I'm pleased to hear that you're doing that each day. Do you want to talk about some of your hidden talents like singing and dancing?

DF: Farthest thing, farthest thing; I have zero musical talent and my kids and my wife will attest to that. So, you know, I don't know that it's necessarily hidden but I like to think that I can connect with a lot of different types of people. And I don't know if that that's necessarily a talent but maybe something that was given to me and I've tried to utilize in a way that create contacts with people and maybe deeper relationship. And so I feel like I can walk into a room and I don't know anybody and I can walk out with maybe a couple loose friendships and I think that to me that that's something that I really feel fortunate that I have that mindset and I'm kind of blessed that way.

DG: Yeah, that really is a talent. I don't think everybody possesses that same openness to, you know, it’s like plunging, right? You're putting yourself in an uncomfortable position. You don't know anyone in the room, but by the time you leave that evening or day, you've met two or three, four people. So that's great.

Dan, I know you're very family oriented. So I'm going to guess that you have one or several favorite vacation spots that you and Susan and the family like to go to. Want to share something about that?

DF: Sure. You know, the easy answer there is a place in Maui called Hana, which you're familiar with, that's on the eastern shore of Maui. My grandfather and my grandmother went on their honeymoon there and introduced my parents to it. And then my parents went on their honeymoon there and Susan and I did as well. And it was a vacation spot for my three older sisters and me for many years, and it has kind of trickled down to our family as well. We haven't been able to get back there as often as we would like as our kids get older, but it's a really special place. It's a very small town. We've over the years developed some really strong friendships with some of the locals in Hana, and it's just a very, very special place for us. The beach, Hamoa Beach, has a phenomenal body surf which I love to do and obviously the water is warm and it's just very quiet and calm. It's kind of the opposite of what you think of like Honolulu and Waikiki and we love that and thankfully our kids have grown to love it as well. So we've been over there and been very fortunate to spend several vacations there and that easily is, it's a quick answer.

DG: Yeah, that's great. You know, and it sounds like I'm sure your children are going to perpetuate this further so that they'll be the fourth generation of Frazee’s invading Hana. So it'll be fun to see who the fifth is. Maybe you'll have another wedding there, who knows?

Dan, I'm going to jump into kind of your role here and your time at Rancho Mesa. So how long have you been with Rancho Mesa?

DF: 25 years. So, you know, 2000, you and I met again in 1999, as I think we both know, and I will share that when we met for a second time because you knew me growing up and came to some of my sporting events at Parker in that window. We met and I told people that there was kind of instant synergy and I didn't really know why, but I kind of knew that there was something that I wanted to learn more about. So, as you know, I joined the company in early 2000. And at that time, it was really just the two of us, and then also Kim Vasquez.

DG: Yeah, it's fun to think of those times. Dan, we started, I would think you would agree, very humbly, we're still very humble. And we were in that little office in downtown La Mesa thinking we were all that, you know, like, “Hey, we got an office. This is pretty cool.”

You know, you're like a brother to me and I appreciate that you shared with the audience that I must be old enough that I actually was able to go to your games when you were in high school. Thanks for sharing that little nugget. But let's talk a little bit about La Mesa. Are there one or two of your fondest memories from back in those early days of Rancho Mesa?

DF: Absolutely. Absolutely. I think one of those memories is in October of 2000, we were having the opportunity to compete on some and earn the business for some new clients. I remember specifically, and I won't name the client just so we can keep it between us, but you remember that there was a situation where I was doing everything I could to try and earn the business. And the client was not responding. In this case, it was a prospective client. And you encouraged me to just call and basically ask for the business and then just be quiet. And I didn't really understand that concept at that time. But basically, we had delivered a really competitive proposal. And we felt like we could do a better job than their current broker. And I did that, I took your advice and I called, and sure enough, and I just paused. It was very awkward, but that prospective client ultimately said, "Okay, Dan, we'd like to do business with you."

And that was 25 years ago, and they're still a client of ours, and that was a great memory, and the other memory I have is our fax machine.

DG: You may have to explain to some of our audience what a fax machine is.

DF: Yeah, I think a lot of our existing brokers maybe don't even know or have had to deal with the fax machine, but that's where we used to get all of our quotes. And so there was a period of time where we would know that the quote was coming, we would hear from the underwriter, and then literally I would stand by the fax machine and just kind of twiddle my thumbs with excitement thinking, "Okay, this quote is coming through."

And the most hilarious piece is when the fax machine would jam, and I was so excited. And then I'd have to figure out how to put more paper in. Oftentimes it was Kim who would have to fix it. And it didn't happen often, but that was funny.

But there are many, many more memories that I could refer to that I'm sure you have and we shared, but those were, on one hand, they were really challenging times. We didn't, there was a lot of unknown. On the other hand, there was a lot of excitement, and there was a lot of focus on, "Okay, how can we get to the next level?" For us, it was just trying to find other businesses that wanted to grow with us, and that was really exciting time.

DG: We could probably do a whole episode on the life and times of Palm Avenue, La Mesa Boulevard. And maybe we should do that one time. But let's switch now to more present day, Dan.

So as an executive vice president here, so what are some of your responsibilities?

DF: Well, I think first and foremost is to manage my existing book of clients, which I think we take a lot of pride in. Even though we are in kind of management roles, our clients come first and they're the ones who really feed everything we do within the agency. So that's probably first and foremost.

I think the other is to a large degree be a resource and a voice for our brokers with the insurance companies that we work with. And I think making sure that we're aligned right, that we have carrier partners that can really help us inside the construction group and help us grow. And then I think involving myself with other brokers when it makes sense to partner and kind of offer my expertise and in some cases be a part of the proposal process. That's kind of how I view my role.

DG: Yeah and I would attest that you've excelled in both of those areas and one I think you really have done an outstanding job with as well is as we grow, we have a tendency to hire young producers without really any insurance experience. And you've been a terrific mentor, big brother, father figure to a lot of those young people, kind of getting them off to the right foot.

So is that--I was going to ask you, is there a couple of areas of your role that you really enjoy? I would, I know you like to coach. So that's kind of the coaching piece. I guess that's where I'm heading. Is that one of those areas you really enjoy?

DF: Yeah, and I think that's a good definition of it to some degree –coaching--but also, you know, part of being a coach also is collaborating and knowing that whoever you're working with has strengths and trying to make sure that they are able to utilize those strengths. And then you, kind of, fill in the gaps. And then I think you've talked about before, just kind of the longevity. You know, when I think that I've seen a lot, I know you've seen a lot more than me, but when you experience a lot of scenarios, if you're competing for somebody's business, things can go sideways, and they can be a challenge. And I think trying to stay calm and offer the right advice and then being a support, that is something that I really enjoy. And then obviously, at the very end, if we have an opportunity to work with that client, that's still really rewarding. More than anything, when someone says, "Hey, we'd like to do business with you," aside from everything else, what we do, that is absolutely the most rewarding piece of what we do.

And then backing that up. It's one thing to say, "Okay, we want to do business with you," but from our standpoint, I think you would agree, we have to continually earn the business every single year. And that is something that I think we really take pride in.

DG: Yeah, I would wholeheartedly agree with that. And you've been a big advocate of perpetuating that culture within all of our Rancho Mesa employees. How would you describe Rancho Mesa to a stranger, Dan?

DF: You know, I've had that opportunity to talk to people like just strangers and situations that I've been in. You talk about the fact that, “Hey, it's a second family,” and you hear people allude to that in their work environment, but I think it is 100% my second family. And I say that because we've had a lot of employees come and go--not a lot, a handful--but as we've added the right people and we've found the people that are the right fit, I like everybody that works here. And they're hard working, they're motivated, they're fun to be around, I can have conversation with really anybody, and it's fun, we do what we can.

I mean, everybody works hard, and I think you would agree our support staff is they are some of the strongest people that I know of in the industry, and we are so fortunate to have them on our teams. We're really just working as a team as much as possible. And I think they're just they're easy people to be around. And they make me laugh. Hopefully I do the same when it's appropriate. But it's just it's a very unique culture. And you know, as I describe it to other people, and the fact that we're largely, you know, we're in the office together, I just feel really blessed to be a part of that type of organization.

DG: Yeah, I appreciate that. And you know, I was working on some numbers over the weekend just as we continue to grow. And I don't know if you know this number yet because I just did it over the weekend, but actually 85% of our employees have been with us longer than five years. And I think that kind of emphasizes what you're speaking to as this culture that we're trying to create of a, “Hey, we're going to work hard. We're part of a team, but we're a part of a family looking out for one another.” And, you know, as you said, we work hard every day, but we want to provide, you know, a workplace that you look forward to coming to. You're not on Monday saying, “Oh, when's Friday?” And I think it's up to you and I, as two of the leaders of this company, to make sure that that culture is, as your family did it for you, we need to do it for our family here. Make sure that the new people come on board, feel that exact same way, like, we have to keep it that way and you've just been a huge part of that for what now is 25 years. It's hard to believe.

DF: Well, and look you just you just said it you know, I can rattle off: Sam Clayton, Jeremy Hoolihan, Kevin Howard. I can keep going down that list of people that are 20 plus years. That just-- it's uncommon. The more I connect with people and talk with them about their businesses I think they oftentimes will double-take when I talk about that longevity. It’s very rare and I think making our culture continually making our culture better is maybe one of the most important challenges and I look forward to that.

DG: Yeah, I think that's a well said, and it's one of those two-edged swords. We're very proud of what we've done, but it's seemingly like we always think there's more that we can do. So to us, that's awesome. It's a great challenge. We love thinking, you know, “How can we make this even better?”

You know, as you well know, Dan, we're building out another 5500 square feet. That's exciting. It's on their same floor so we're able to walk in there and take a look at it. What do you feel about the future? Do you see bright sunshine ahead for us in the industry in San Diego or what are you seeing going forward?

DF: I'm, obviously, I'm very excited about it. I think more than anything we enjoy interacting with people and that can be our own company but that can also be perspective businesses out there that I think COVID changed a lot of mindsets. And I think it moved a lot of people away from those connections. And I think we have kind of the opposite mentality of we need those connections.

You know, I know for me, I enjoy interacting with people face to face. And so I'm very bullish on how we operate and how I think most people in business and or any type of industry, they need that connection. And so I'm looking forward to the opportunity to show people that we love that connection. And if we can maintain that, that's probably the biggest challenge is I think we'll grow and maintain what we already have.

DG: Yeah, I agree. Dan, before we wrap up, is there anything I've not asked you about that you'd like to share or?

DF: There's plenty we could keep talking about, but I think more than anything, you had an opportunity for a path after your career in baseball. You went down a path and you chose insurance. I had paths as well and ultimately I chose insurance in part and in large part because of you. Yes, I was in the business for a short time before we kind of reconnected but I feel very thankful and grateful that I've had 25 years with Rancho Mesa and you know I look forward to more and I just feel very blessed and I've used that word before. But I truly do that I've had an opportunity to make an impact on the company, and the company has made such an impact on me and my family.

DG: Thanks, Dan. I feel the exact same way. I know me personally, as a human being wouldn't be the same person without having you as a friend for the last 25, 26 years. Certainly Rancho Mesa would not be anything like it is without you. I'm excited about the future. I don't plan on going anywhere. This is my second family as well. So I'm really excited to see kind of if we do this again next year where we're at. But I just want to thank you for all that you do for me as an individual and for Rancho Mesa and also for joining me today in StudioOne™.

 So thanks everybody for tuning in to our latest episode produced by our great team at StudioOne™. If you enjoyed what you heard, please share this episode and think about subscribing to our podcast channel. Look forward to talking to you down the road. Goodbye.

NALP's ELEVATE Conference Brings Landscape Industry Insights

Author, Megan Lockhart, Marketing & Media Communications Specialist, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

From Left: RMI Landscape Group VP Drew Garcia, BHHC Sr. VP Chief Marketing Officer Margaret Hatmann, and Loss Control Supervisor Steve Hamilton

From Left: RMI Account Executive Greg Garcia and RMI Landscape Group VP Drew Garcia, stand at RMI Booth

From Left: RMI Landscape Group VP Drew Garcia, RMI Account Executive Greg Garcia, BHHC Sr. VP Chief Marketing Officer Margaret Hatmann, and BHHC Loss Control Supervisor Steve Hamilton

On November 3-6, our Rancho Mesa team had spent time learning and networking at the National Association of Landscape Professionals 2024 ELEVATE Conference in Charlotte, NC.

RMI President David Garcia, Landscape Group Vice President Drew Garcia, and Account Executive Greg Garcia also enjoyed hosting clients and partners at our OneofOne© Reception prior to the conference.

Following the event, Rancho Mesa's Alyssa Burley sat down with Greg Garcia to recap NALP’s ELEVATE Conference and share important takeaways for the landscape industry.