WebCE Weekly Wrap-Up: Top News from March 3-7, 2025
WebCE Staff
By
March 7, 2025
This week’s top stories cover the critical shifts, cautionary tales, and strategic insights shaping industries across finance, insurance, and business leadership. From a financial advisor sentenced for defrauding an elderly client to shifting market trends in commercial insurance and federal rate cuts looming on the horizon, the landscape is evolving—and fast.
In the world of finance, a new study highlights key gaps in retirement planning conversations, the NAIC releases fresh market share data, and more insurers in California are waiving itemized lists for wildfire victims. Meanwhile, job numbers show slow growth, and a major court ruling underscores the fine print that defines insurance coverage.
For professionals sharpening their skills, this week’s thought leadership features six standout strategies for thinking more strategically and a deep dive into how one company built a single KPI to guide business decisions. And in our top podcast, real estate leaders share expert tips on navigating the unpredictable highs and lows of the market.
And for those who love a weekend wind-down with a touch of the bizarre, Texas authorities responded to reports of human remains in a ditch—only to uncover an urn, a few dollars, and an unexpected twist in cemetery economics.
Let’s dive in.
Top Stories of the Week
Ex-Morgan Stanley Advisor Sentenced to 22 Months for Swindling Older Client (ThinkAdvisor)
“Ronald Diaz, 41, a former Morgan Stanley financial advisor, was sentenced last week to 22 months in prison for defrauding an elderly client, whose money he used for his own personal expenses, including casino gambling, remodeling his family's pool, a down payment on a Range Rover and mortgage and credit card payments, the Justice Department announced.”
Ivans Insurance Premium Renewal Rate Index February 2025 Results Released (Ivans)
“Year over year, Commercial Auto, BOP, General Liability, Commercial Property and Umbrella experienced increasing average premium renewal rates, while premium renewal rates decreased for Workers’ Compensation. All major commercial lines premium renewal rates were lower month over month, except Commercial Auto which saw a slight increase.”
U.S. Added 151,000 Jobs As Unemployment Rose To 4.1% In February (Forbes)
“The U.S. added 151,000 non-farm jobs from January to February, according to the Labor Department’s seasonally adjusted data, the weakest February growth since 2019.”
State Farm Wins Uninsured Motorist Case Over Passenger Trying to Flag Down Passing Traffic (Insurance Business Magazine)
“The decision in Mazur v. State Farm underscores the importance of precise policy language and reinforces the principle that insurance coverage is bound by its contractual definitions rather than broader notions of fairness or need.”
Report: More Insurers in California Paying Wildfire Victims Without Itemized List (Insurance Journal)
“According to the CDI [California Department of Insurance], the majority of homeowners insurance companies agreed to provide at least 75% of contents coverage without a detailed inventory, including some who agreed to provide 100% of coverage limits.”
Study: Key Gaps Advisors Miss in Retirement Planning Conversations (InsuranceNewsNet)
“Key findings from the third chapter of the PRIP study highlight several critical gaps in how investors and financial professionals approach, communicate, and consider protected income and annuities in retirement planning conversations, specifically: [retirement income planning, social security awareness, and employer-sponsored retirement plans (401K or 403B)].”
NAIC Releases 2024 Market Share Data (NAIC)
“The 2024 market share data include countrywide direct written premiums for the top 25 groups and companies as reported on the state page of the annual financial statement for insurers that report to the NAIC.”
Fed Says Rate Cuts, Economic Clarity to Come, but Not Yet (Investment News)
“Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said it could be several months before there’s clarity on how President Donald Trump’s policies and other factors will affect the economy, suggesting officials could hold rates steady until at least late spring... Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he still expects the Fed to lower rates two to three more times this year.”
Our Favorite Management Tips on Strategic Thinking (Harvard Business Review)
Get six favorite tips on strategic thinking from the editors at Harvard Business Review, covering topics like how to demonstrate your strategic-thinking skills, the art of asking smarter strategic questions, and when to pivot your strategy.
Building One KPI to Rule Them All (MIT Sloan Management Review)
“Here’s how an online travel company set out to develop a complex metric to keep decisions made by the business development team aligned with strategy.”
Top Podcast of the Week
Preparing for Unexpected Surges, Dips in Your Business (Drive with NAR)
19 Minutes
This episode of from the National Association of REALTORS® podcast, host Marki Lemons Ryhal talks to Chicago real estate leaders Kat Barry and Lateefa Neal about managing the unpredictability of the market and sticking to your individual formula for success. They share their tips to prepare and manage the ebbs and flows of the real estate business cycle and discuss how smart preparation and great systems can help you and your clients stay ready, so you don’t have to get ready.
Weekend Wind-Down
This week’s slide into the weekend involves an odd little story out of Wichita County, Texas, where deputies received reports of human remains found in a ditch along a busy highway.
“They were in an urn,” Sheriff David Duke said. “It turned out it was actually left on one of the tables underneath the covered area at the county cemetery. It had a little envelope that had a little bit of money in it sitting on top of the table. Somebody wanted someone buried, and they didn’t have enough money. So they put some in the envelope, thinking it was like a drive-thru.”