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Shield Insurance Blog - Ransomware attacks against schools could rise

Ransomware attacks against schools could rise

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Federal agencies warned ransomware attacks against schools may increase this school year, in a joint cybersecurity advisory issued Tuesday.

BusinessInsurance.com | Judy Greenwald | September 07, 2022

Attacks may increase as the school year begins “and criminal ransomware groups perceive opportunities for successful attacks,” said the advisory issued by the FBI, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center.

“School districts with limited cybersecurity capabilities and constrained resources are often the most vulnerable; however, the opportunistic targeting often seen with cyber criminals can still put school districts with robust cybersecurity programs at risk,” the advisory warns.

“K-12 institutions may be seen as particularly lucrative targets due to the amount for sensitive student data accessible through school systems or their managed service providers,” it said.

Ransomware Attacks

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Shield Insurance Blog - 16 Educational Podcasts for Minority Entrepreneurs

Minority Entrepreneurs and Educational Podcasts

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Hubspot | Written by Flori Needle

16 Educational Podcasts for Minority Entrepreneurs

Welcome to Breaking the Blueprint — a blog series that dives into the unique business challenges and opportunities of underrepresented business owners and entrepreneurs. Learn how they’ve grown or scaled their businesses, explored entrepreneurial ventures within their companies, or created side hustles, and how their stories can inspire and inform your own success.

Podcasts are an excellent way for minority entrepreneurs to gain inspiration and actionable career advice.

However, entrepreneurs in minority communities searching for podcasts for and about people with similar experiences and identities to themselves may have a hard time doing so.

In this post, we’ve compiled a list of educational podcasts for entrepreneurs in minority groups that are worth listening to gain inspiration and insight from people with shared experiences.

Recommended Podcasts for Minority Entrepreneurs

1. Side Hustle Pro

Side Hustle Pro’s host Nicaila Matthews Okome interviews inspiring Black women entrepreneurs that have grown side hustles into profitable businesses. Listeners learn about their processes, failures, and successes and leave with strategies to leverage to help them build their side projects or interests into successful ventures.

2. The Diversity Gap

The Diversity Gap Podcast, hosted by Bethaney Wilkinson, discusses the gaps between good intentions for diversity and the actual impact of those intentions. Each episode features guests that discuss strategies and best practices for creating an organizational culture that allows people from all racial backgrounds to thrive at work. It’s a great listen for business owners and entrepreneurs looking to champion DEI at their workplace.

3. ¿Quién Tú Eres?

¿Quién Tú Eres?, hosted by Pabel Martinez of Plurawl, empowers Latinx communities to be their most authentic and full selves at work by redefining what professionalism means and looks like in the workplace. Each episode features a guest who defines professionalism and shows how they show up as their most authentic selves at work.

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Shield Insurance Blog - Commercial Inventory

Guidelines for properly calculating insurance coverage levels for commercial inventory

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Commercial Inventory | Business Insurance | Self-quoting Portal

Shield Insurance Agency is here to assist business owners in the state of Michigan with all of their insurance needs. We can help you determine how to calculate your insurance needs to adequately protect your commercial inventory.

Give us a call today and let us get started on helping you!

Guidelines for determining how much coverage your commercial inventory requires

Inventory can be a tricky business when it comes to determining how much insurance coverage you need to protect your investment. This can be made even more difficult if you are a seasonal business or if your business has significant fluctuations year over year. Even for businesses that are relatively stable, calculating inventory coverage can be challenging.

The first thing to look at is the time of year when your business has the most inventory. For some, it may be at the start of the year, and for others, it could be right before the busy holiday season. Whenever this time period may be for your business, it’s important. Once you review your inventory trends, and when they are at their highest level, you will be in a better place to determine your inventory insurance needs.

Typically, a business can look at its highest inventory level and make the decision to have its insurance coverage match that level. This is a smart idea for businesses that have inventory that is of extremely high value or moves rather slowly throughout the year.

Let’s work together to protect your inventory!

Michigan business owners can depend on Shield Insurance Agency for all of their commercial insurance needs. If you have questions about commercial insurance, we are here to help. Give us a call today and let’s get started working together! We look forward to hearing from you.

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Shield Insurance Blog - Why companies need to foster design, visual communication to succeed in hybrid working

Why companies need to succeed in hybrid-working

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Now that hybrid-working is here to stay, the ways an employee presents themselves and their company on screen matters more.

Worklife | July 20, 2022 | by Cloey Callahan | hybrid-working | Business Insurance

Strong presentation and graphic design skills have typically gone hand in hand with certain commercial or creative design roles that require them. Now, they’re being regarded as skills that every employee should sharpen, in order to excel in a hybrid or remote working setup.

That’s why some businesses are calling for design literacy to be baked in at the onboarding stage.

“How do you speak to others through graphic design, or design in general, at a time when we’re more remote than ever?” said Steven Heller, author of “Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design.”

Heller compares graphic design to going into a showroom and picking out furniture or going to a clothing store and picking out what you want. “You start thinking ‘how am I presenting myself,’” said Heller. “It’s easy to call it branding now, only because the term is used so prevalently, but it’s really just creating a style for yourself and that’s been done for ages … You make it your own.” 

At Canva, a visual communications platform for designers and non-designers alike, all new hires, of which there were 700 this year alone, go through a design school, regardless of position, where they’re taught frameworks for creating slides with a narrative vs. information mindset. They’re also sent weekly design tips from the creative team. The design school also goes over how to prepare fonts, how to choose colors, and more. It concludes with the new hire presenting to their team.

“Design literacy is becoming more important as the world has become more visual,” said Canva’s chief marketing officer Zach Kitschke. “We’ve seen this massive transformation in the past few years and the way we all communicate and live our lives look completely different. The hybrid world has become one where visual forms of communication, whether it’s presentations or video content or graphics – different ways of communicating a message — have become vital.”

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What To Do If An Airline Loses Your Luggage

What To Do If An Airline Loses Your Luggage

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What To Do If An Airline Loses Your Luggage? Air travel experts share their advice for dealing with missing checked baggage — and minimizing the risk in the first place.

Huffpost.com | By Caroline Bologna | Jul 28, 2022, 05:45 AM EDT

For many years, people felt relatively secure about checking their luggage for a flight. But the chaos of air travel this summer has thrown cold water on that confidence.

The odds of airlines losing your luggage have reportedly “skyrocketed” this year, with massive increases in the numbers of “mishandled” ― i.e., lost, damaged, delayed or pilfered ― bags.

“During the pandemic, many airports and airlines were forced to reduce their workforce in reaction to the restrictions the world was facing,” Alex Miller, founder and CEO of Upgraded Points, told HuffPost. “Now, as these restrictions have been lifted, people are returning to their travels again, leaving airports and airlines struggling to cope with the surge of passengers. This combination of an increased demand, with a shortage of staff, as recruitment hasn’t been able to counterbalance the increase, is leaving many travelers to arrive at their destination without their luggage.”

The result is countless airport photos showing mounds of lost luggage and a lot of frustrated travelers.

Of course, the obvious solution is to pack less and avoid checking a bag, but sometimes that’s just not an option. So what should you do if you find yourself in this situation and end up separated from your bag? Below, experts share their advice.

File a missing bag report.

“The first thing you should do if you notice that your baggage did not arrive at your destination is to report it immediately,” Miller advised. “The airline that you flew on is responsible for ensuring your luggage is delivered to your destination.”

Go to the airline’s baggage desk and have the customer service representative see if they can locate your luggage. It’s possible it was delayed but will arrive on a later flight. Or perhaps it arrived early and was placed in a separate area.

You might also be able to determine your bag’s location on the airline’s mobile app. If the bag is still missing, however, it’s time to file a claim.

“Once you’ve informed airline staff about your missing baggage, it is essential that you file a missing baggage report,” Miller added. “You should provide a detailed description of your luggage, including size, color and material of the bag. The report should also include your current address and contact information so the airline can contact you. You should also keep a note of any reference or tracking number that you receive from the lost luggage desk.”

Find out what compensation you’re owed.

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What Types Of Businesses Need Commercial Insurance?

What Types Of Businesses Need Commercial Insurance?

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If you are a business owner, you know that there are many things to consider when it comes to protecting your company. One of the most important aspects of running a business is ensuring you have the right commercial insurance coverage.

But what types of businesses need commercial insurance?

Let’s take a look at some common examples:

Businesses That Have Employees

If you have even one employee working for your company, you’re required to carry workers’ compensation insurance. This type of insurance will protect your employees if they’re injured on the job. It’ll also help to cover their medical expenses and lost wages.

Also, if you have any type of business that involves customers coming into contact with your employees, you’ll need to carry liability insurance in case a customer is injured on your property.

Businesses That Own Property

If you own the property where your business is located, you will need to have property insurance. This type of coverage will protect your building and contents in the event of a fire, theft, or other types of damage. You’ll also need to carry liability insurance in case someone is injured on your property.

Businesses That Use Vehicles

If your business uses any type of vehicle, you’ll need to have commercial auto insurance. This will protect your vehicles in the event of an accident, damage, or theft. Note that personal auto insurance policies will not cover vehicles used for business purposes.

Businesses That Sell Products

If you sell products, you’ll need to have product liability insurance. It’ll protect your business in the event that a customer is injured by one of your products. If you have a business in Michigan, it could be prudent to talk to an agent from Shield Insurance Agency to get a product liability cover for your business.

Contact Us Today

There are many different types of businesses that need commercial insurance. The four examples we’ve listed above are just a few of the most common ones.

Shield Insurance Agency in Michigan can help you find the right coverage for your business, no matter what type of company you have. Give us a call today to get started.

 

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Employers Needed to Support a Child Care Innovation

Employers Needed to Support a Child Care Innovation

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Your Grand Rapids Chamber will be co-hosting an online webinar on child care and the Tri-Share Pilot Program in Michigan. This is a no-cost event and all are welcome to join to hear about this incredible opportunity to support child care access and affordability for employees.  

During this live webinar, interested employers can learn how to participate in the program and offer child care support to their employees. In a critical time for talent attraction and retention, Tri-Share is one solution to attracting and retaining talent and addresses one of the largest barriers to employment.  

A Grand Rapids Chamber-led priority, Tri-Share is an innovative public/private partnership that equally shares the cost of childcare between employers, employees, and the State of Michigan. This initiative is the first-of-its-kind childcare support program in the country and is now in 57 counties across Michigan. This pilot runs through the end of this year, but with the support of the legislature and Governor, we are on track to secure funding to continue the pilot through the end of next year.  


View the list of participating regions/facilitator hubs HERE.
View frequently asked questions HERE.


We will be joined by Cheryl Bergman, Executive Director of the Michigan Women’s Commission, and Michelle Richard, Senior Advisor on Education to Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who are tasked with overseeing the pilot from the state. We’ll also be joined by a facilitator hub and a current participating employer. Register now!

Chamber-led Child Care Package Moves Closer to Governor’s Desk  

After more than three years at the design table, the Senate passed legislation to allow child care providers to accept a few more kids, give them 90-day grace periods for implementing new mandates and create an electronic option for sharing safety records.  

Providers overseeing non-toddler and non-infant youths would see their staff-to-child ratio expand, making a difference in profitability. The package also combats over-regulation and is hopefully a step forward in removing some of the barriers faced by providers.  

Check out the full story here!

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DIFS Alerts Consumers to Recurring Scam and How to Avoid It

Tips Following Northern Michigan Tornado

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FROM: Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services Offers Insurance Tips Following Northern Michigan Tornado

Media Contact: Laura Hall, (517) 290-3779, DIFS-press@michigan.gov 
Consumer Hotline: 877-999-6442, Michigan.gov/DIFScomplaints

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 23, 2022

(LANSING, MICH) As residents across northern Michigan assess the damage and begin to recover from Friday afternoon’s tornado, the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (DIFS) is providing tips to assist residents when working with insurance companies to file claims and repair damages.

“DIFS stands ready to assist the residents of northern Michigan as they begin to recover from the incredible devastation wrought by Friday’s tornado, hailstorm, and power outages,” said DIFS Director Anita Fox. “It is important that those who have experienced damage understand their rights and responsibilities when filing insurance claims. They should carefully review their policies and work with their agents and insurers to see what coverage is available to them. DIFS is available to answer questions and assist consumers 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 877-999-6442.”

Anyone impacted by storm damage should:

  • Contact their insurance company’s claims hotline and/or agent to report the claim. Have the policy number and other relevant information readily available. DIFS has prepared an Insurance Claims Tracking Sheet to make this process easier.
  • Take steps to protect the property and prevent further loss. Be sure to keep receipts for any purchases of supplies that are needed to protect the property.
  • Document the loss. Take pictures or videos of the damaged items and do not get rid of the items until instructed to do so by the insurance company.
  • Review insurance policies to understand their coverage and discuss with their agent or insurer if there are any questions.
  • If there is water damage to a home or other structure, consumers should tell their insurance company that there is water damage and they are looking to determine what coverage is available. Consumers should not simply state that the damage is due to a flood as there may be additional causes for water damage, such as storm-related rainwater intrusion, sewer backup, or failing sump pump, that may be covered under the policy.
  • If there is damage to a vehicle, consumers should contact their auto insurance company. They may have coverage for the damage if they carry comprehensive coverage on their auto policy.

More Information

Additional disaster recovery information is available on the DIFS website.

DIFS encourages consumers to first attempt to resolve any claim disputes directly with their insurance company. If a resolution cannot be reached, DIFS will help try to resolve disputes. To learn more and file a complaint, visit Michigan.gov/DIFScomplaints. Anyone with questions or concerns about their insurance coverage is asked to call the DIFS toll-free hotline 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 877-999-6442.

The mission of the Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services is to ensure access to safe and secure insurance and financial services fundamental for the opportunity, security, and success of Michigan residents while fostering economic growth and sustainability in both industries. In addition, the Department provides consumer protection, outreach, and financial literacy and education services to Michigan residents. For more information, visit Michigan.gov/DIFS or follow the Department on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

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5 Key Commercial Insurance Considerations for 2022 - Shield Insurance Agency Blog

5 Key Commercial Insurance Considerations for 2022

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Standard and Poor’s 2022 Commercial Insurance Industry Outlook is now available. Here are 5 takeaways.

RiskAndInsurance.com | By: Abi Potter Clough | December 13, 2021 | Commercial Insurance

2021 was a pivotal year in the risk and insurance industry, and 2022 will no doubt bring new risks to light.

The pandemic created supply chain issues that restricted the ability of many businesses to operate, and spurred the need for innovative technology solutions to allow workers to do their jobs from home. New concerns arose to accompany these changes — like the increased cybersecurity concerns from a newly minted work-from-home workforce.

Ransomware and phishing attacks struck companies and organizations from every industry, even insurance companies.

But opportunities also emerged for companies to work differently.

Innovations in technology allowed work to continue from home as people found new ways to collaborate. Virtual tools made it easier for claims adjusters to view damaged property remotely and to settle claims virtually. Telehealth visits allowed injured workers to see their providers safely without risking leaving their homes during the pandemic.

There is no going back to the way things used to be — the new normal following the pandemic means technological innovations are here to stay. Insurance companies are working differently, and the trend is expected to continue.

To better understand how this flurry of changes will affect the commercial insurance industry, S&P Global Market Intelligence released its report, “The Big Picture – 2022 Insurance Industry Outlook.”

The company’s short take on the industry outlook for 2022 is that insurers will continue to need to respond swiftly to changing market conditions and be willing to “shatter their status quo” to manage the challenges that arise from new and evolving risks in many areas.

In the report, S&P Global Market Intelligence identified five significant areas of focus for the risk and insurance industry next year.

1) Technology Continues to be Key for Commercial Insurance

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U.S. saw its 4th-warmest year on record, fueled by a record-warm December - Shield Insurance Agency Blog

U.S. saw its 4th-warmest year on record, fueled by a record-warm December

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Nation struck with 20 separate billion-dollar disasters in 2021

NOAA.gov | January 10, 2022 | Warmest year on record | Shield Insurance | Start a quote today!

On September 4, 2021, the Joint Base Lewis-McChord Soldiers and the Bureau of Land Management-California’s Folsom Lake Veterans Hand Crew constructed a handline, cleared brush, and dealt with hot spots north of Lake Davis and Portola during the largest wildfire of 2021–California’s Dixie Fire. The western wildfires of 2021 were one of 20 separate billion-dollar disasters that struck the United States last year. (Joe Bradshaw/Bureau of Land Management)

The year 2021 was marked by extremes across the U.S., including exceptional warmth, devastating severe weather and the second-highest number of billion-dollar weather and climate disasters on record.  

The nation also saw an active wildfire year across the West as the north Atlantic Basin stayed busy with its third most-active Atlantic hurricane season on record, according to scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information.

Here’s a recap of the climate and extreme weather events across the U.S. in 2021:

Climate by the numbers

December 2021 | Full year 2021 | 4th-warmest year on record

The December contiguous U.S. temperature was 39.3 degrees F, 6.7 degrees above average, making it the warmest December on record and exceeding the previous warmest December in 2015.

Ten states — Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas — also had their warmest Decembers on record.

For 2021, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 54.5 degrees F, 2.5 degrees above the 20th-century average and ranked as the fourth-warmest year in the 127-year period of record. The six warmest years on record have all occurred since 2012.

Maine and New Hampshire had their second-warmest year on record with 19 additional states across the Northeast, Great Lakes, Plains and West experiencing a top-five warmest year. Meanwhile, Alaska’s average annual temperature was 26.4 degrees F, 0.4 of a degree above the long-term average and the coldest year since 2012.

Precipitation across the contiguous U.S. totaled 30.48 inches (0.54 of an inch above average), which placed 2021 in the middle third of the climate record. Massachusetts had its ninth-wettest year on record, while Montana ranked ninth driest on record for 2021.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, drought coverage remained fairly significant and steady throughout much of 2021, with a minimum extent of 43.4% occurring on May 25 and maximum coverage of 55.5% on December 7.

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