How do you measure organic growth across acquired insurance agencies?
Abe Harbid, 26 October 2026
Write one definition and apply it to every agency: revenue growth from new business, retention and rate changes, excluding revenue that arrived through acquisitions in the past 12 months. Then record each acquired agency’s baseline at close, map its book into the platform’s standard so every agency is measured the same way, and reconcile commissions against carrier statements so the revenue being measured was actually received. Without those three steps, organic growth across a roll-up is a number nobody can defend in diligence.
Start with a written definition
Public brokers have long published theirs. HUB International, in a 2007 SEC filing, defined organic revenue growth as the net increase in revenue from new client accounts, retention and expansion of existing accounts, and premium rate changes, excluding the net increase attributable to acquisitions and dispositions during the preceding 12 months [1]. Whatever wording a platform uses, the definition should state:
- How long acquired revenue is excluded (12 months from close is common).
- How contingent and bonus commissions are treated.
- How divestitures and producer departures with their books are treated.
- Whether revenue moved between agencies inside the platform counts as growth at either one.
Why it matters
Organic growth is one of the measures the industry benchmarks agencies on. The Big "I" and Reagan Consulting 2025 Best Practices study reported organic growth at a record 10.7% [2]. A platform that grows mostly by buying revenue can show strong total growth with weak organic growth, and buyers at exit look at the split. Our article on what exit buyers ask for covers the rest of that request.
The data behind the number
| Step | Why |
|---|---|
| Baseline per agency at close: trailing 12 months of commission revenue, by producer and line | Growth is measured against it, and the earn-out often uses it |
| Every agency mapped to one layout: carrier codes, lines, producer roster | Otherwise "new business" means something different at each agency |
| New, renewal and lost business flagged by policy | Organic growth is built from these, not from totals |
| Commission reconciled to carrier statements | Revenue is counted when received, not when expected |
| Transfers between agencies tagged | A policy moved inside the platform is not new business |
| Acquisition date per agency, and the 12-month window | Tells the report when an agency’s revenue starts counting as organic |
Where it goes wrong
Rewrites counted as new business
When an acquired agency’s policies are rewritten into the platform’s carrier contracts, the new policy numbers can look like new business. Without a link from old policy to new, organic growth is overstated.
Baselines taken from the deal model
The deal model’s revenue is a forecast built from the seller’s data. A baseline built from the reconciled book is what growth should be measured against; where they differ, the difference is worth knowing early.
Agencies measured on different systems
If each agency reports from its own management system, each applies its own idea of a renewal, a line of business and a producer. The platform’s growth figure is then a sum of incompatible numbers.
How the engine helps
The acquisition-onboarding engine maps every acquired agency’s book into the platform’s layout, matches producers and carrier codes, reconciles commissions to statements and shows revenue, retention and new business by agency and producer on one dashboard. It records each agency’s baseline at intake. The definition of organic growth stays the platform’s; the engine applies it to data that is the same shape for every agency.
Questions
How do you measure organic growth across acquired insurance agencies?
Use one written definition that excludes revenue acquired in the past 12 months, record each agency’s baseline at close, map every agency into one layout, and count commission when it is reconciled to carrier statements.
How long should acquired revenue be excluded?
Twelve months from close is a common convention; HUB International’s 2007 definition used the preceding 12-month period [1]. Whatever you choose, write it down and apply it to every agency.
What is a normal organic growth rate for an agency?
It moves with rates and the economy. The Big "I" and Reagan Consulting 2025 Best Practices study reported a record 10.7% [2].
Do agencies need to be on one system to measure it?
No. They need to be in one layout. Mapping each agency’s export into the platform’s standard gives the same definitions without waiting for a conversion.
More answers on Insights. A two-week diagnostic builds the baseline for one recent acquisition.
Sources
- HUB International Ltd, Form DEFA14A exhibit 99.1, 2007, definition of organic revenue growth (accessed 26 October 2026). sec.gov
- Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, "Big I and Reagan Consulting release 2025 Best Practices Study", 12 August 2025 (accessed 26 October 2026). independentagent.com