Focused on Leadership— Theresa Royster Agency Vice President, State Farm Insurance

By Susan Gemmill

There weren’t many female State Farm agents in the mid-1980s. Yet newcomer Theresa Royster never lacked for people willing to show her the ropes. Many of her mentors were men, and many were seasoned agents willing to share the knowledge. “The support was incredible,” she remembers. “My agency manager, Bill Bailey, taught me the business. There was honesty and integrity within the company, values that were important to me.”

That genuine integrity changed her perspective on the insurance industry, Royster points out. With her first claim—clients who lost everything in a house fire—she realized that “this business is about helping people manage risks more than it is about selling insurance.”

Today, Theresa Royster is Agency Vice President for State Farm Insurance, Southern Zone. She didn’t grow up wanting to be in insurance. But she did grow up under the influence of a successful entrepreneurial spirit—her father. “He’s probably my ultimate mentor,” she says. “I learned a lot from him about business and—probably more importantly—about life and what kind of person I wanted to be.”

After Royster earned her business degree she worked in marketing, first at Pillsbury Company and then Shulton. During those first years she cut her teeth in sales and running the corporate fast track. In 1984, as she was preparing to move from Virginia to Pennsylvania, she and her newlywed husband, Steve, went looking for a new insurance company. The winds of fate blew a State Farm agent their way — a female agent. “She talked to me about the industry, being an entrepreneur and owning an agency,” says Royster. The conversation resurrected notions of owning a business of her own and — with Steve’s encouragement — she launched an agency in York, Pennsylvania.

After 4 ½ years as an agent, Royster was awarded an agency manager position. Here was her opportunity to give back to the organization that once provided her so much guidance and support. “It was a way to make a difference to people who were just getting into this business. I could help them experience the same rewards and help people in the same way I did.”

“I don’t mind living in a man’s world as long as I can be a woman in it!”

--Marilyn Monroe

“There are a lot of women in upper echelon corporate positions who have had to learn that they’re powerful enough just being a woman,” Royster says. Her own corporate self-confidence didn’t happen overnight. In the beginning, like many women before her, Royster thought she had to think more like a man to succeed in business. “Then I started making some of the rules instead of playing by the old ones. Over time, I learned to be comfortable in my own shoes. Women have to trust that they belong in a corporate environment.”

Royster likens it to caregivers who just naturally have to give care. “Managing a household, raising children, negotiating relationships, problem solving and listening with empathy are important leadership traits. They are characteristics to build on rather than dismiss as irrelevant or unimportant because you are a woman,” she says. “I recognize the value of my natural skills. It is unreasonable to expect me to be anything else. Once I finally realized that, the benefits came quicker.”

Royster firmly believes that women need to be more supportive of one another in the workplace. She advises, “Don’t be so independent that you think you don’t need people. Balancing the life of an executive with a personal life is a difficult thing to do. We must find ways to share experiences so that others can learn. Supporting and providing counsel to one another is crucial to the ongoing success of women in the workplace. A powerful way for women to support one another is by getting involved in women’s organizations.”

As an organization, State Farm Southern Zone is involved in a number of key initiatives including100 Black Women of Atlanta, Possible Women Leadership Conference, and the Women & Financial Services educational programs and Women’s Network (WNET). State Farm is also a long-time sponsor of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships which were held in Atlanta this year.

Royster also believes that support can begin at home. The mother of a 20-year old daughter and 17-year old son, she knows firsthand that “one of the best gifts we can give our children — especially our girls — are the gifts of self-esteem and confidence. And it’s not just a mother’s role. Dads need to tell their young girls, ‘I believe in you’; you can do anything; give them that sense of independence and self-esteem.”

Frequently, a woman today may be reentering the workforce after a hiatus. She may be looking to move ahead or even switch companies. To any woman considering her options, Royster advises that she exercise her due diligence. “Does the CEO have integrity?” Look into the leadership of the company you are interested in: Do they promote women, and offer growth and development for them? Do they really support women in the way they say they are and is that modeled from the top?

“Like a good neighbor is not just a slogan for State Farm, it is the company’s credo,” says Royster. “We sell car insurance, we sell home insurance and we sell 529 plans, but at the end of the day — we grow relationships. The most significant piece of your marketplace is your customer. A company can continue to reinvent itself but the ultimate value is in the relationship. And this company is willing to make changes that will encourage and nurture those relationships.

“We help people define their own reality and help them realize their dreams. We talk to them about the hard topics like death and disability; we listen to what’s important to them. And with State Farm financial services, customers can create a vision for retirement, educating their children or grandchildren and the kind of legacy they want to leave. That’s when you start to realize that you have an opportunity to make a big difference in peoples’ lives.”

Making a difference is what Royster is all about. She’s matter-of-fact in her belief in the potential of people. That confidence in others is the motivation behind the woman and highlights her skills as a leader. Whether she’s engaging a team of people in the decision-making process or challenging them to be better, Royster tries to inspire.

“In the end, a leader can’t do it alone,” she says. “You have to keep capturing your experiences. Learning and focus are critical factors to success today. Just keep learning, and not just from books and seminars – but from events and situations. You should never get to the place where you know everything. I like to think that my ego is not so big that I can’t listen or that I have to know everything.”

Royster believes that the power of focus moves people forward. And she believes that how you handle the balance between work and home can be either a huge asset or a giant liability. “Cultivating an ability to hold that focus is a valuable asset regardless of profession or gender,” says Royster. “Focus is a key to the balance required when melding work and family. Whether I’m with one of my VPs, on the phone, or with my kids, my presence is expected. I work hard at being in the moment, whatever role I’m in at the time.”

As a company, State Farm has raised the bar for employee support. It offers alternative work arrangements such as: staggered hours, childcare assistance, job-sharing, compressed workweeks, job sharing and telecommuting. The company is committed to diversity and, for the fifth consecutive year, Latina Style Magazine selected State Farm as one of the top 50 companies for Latinas to work in the United States.

As an agency vice president, Royster is raising the bar for leadership. “My style is to create an environment where the people I am working with feel comfortable enough to talk about everything; even the elephant in the room.” It’s a style that is more fair process—engaging people in the decision-making process. Royster is honest and candid and is truly passionate about her role as a leader. Future leaders take note: By helping others to excel, Theresa Royster is paving the way for you.