Jessica Hendricks

Vice president of agency development, EMC Insurance Cos.

Age: 38

Husband: James Hendricks 

Children: Avery and Cole

Reasons she is a Forty: Jessica is one of the youngest vice presidents ever named at EMC and is very focused on executive development for other female leaders in the insurance industry and beyond. Jessica has been an active member with the steering and marketing committees for Women Lead Change – a two-day annual event centered around issues facing women in business. She is a champion of corporate giving and has been involved in several EMC giving initiatives including serving as the EMC United Way Campaign Chair. Jessica is passionate about the insurance industry and is extremely involved in several state and national insurance trade organizations.

What are your goals in your role at your company? My highest-priority goals in my role at EMC are to support and strengthen our nearly 2,000 agent relationships we have countrywide with our independent agency partners, to support profitable growth for our 17 EMC branch offices, and to support the development of our team members and territory management.

What are your goals for your community involvement? I really enjoy being involved with youth sports and having the opportunity to coach my kids in their various activities. My goal is to help kids find the confidence to do something they didn’t think they could achieve while instilling sportsmanship values like respect, teamwork and determination. 

What's your biggest passion, and why? My family is my biggest passion and what drives me every day to be better. I want to teach my kids not only the rewards of hard work, but also how you treat people truly matters and that your positive actions and words can really make a difference to someone.

What is it that drives you? Success has come when I follow my gut. My initial plan was to go to law school, but I dropped out in the first semester when I realized it wasn’t right for me. I think trusting your intuition and learning from past experience is critical in the pursuit of success.

What are your future aspirations? I want to continue to grow as a leader, as change is constant in our industry in addition to helping move my company and our processes forward – becoming better and more efficient in how we engage and support our agency partners to strengthen those relationships.

Three hobbies: I love to read (actual books, not audio books). I like to stay active and work out. I love to watch my kids do their thing and just be along for the ride.

Fun fact: Jessica was a lifeguard growing up and always around the water and still enjoys doing front and back flips off the diving board to impress her kids.

One word to describe you: Competitive.

What is your wish for the Central Iowa business community? I want all businesses to understand how they can use their influence for good. My wish is that every company mobilizes and pools their resources – there is so much more we can do to improve the lives of those struggling in our community if we all do it together. 

What's one piece of advice that you would give to a young professional? The best way to grow professionally and personally is to get involved and say yes to new opportunities, even if they seem scary and out of your comfort zone. You will learn new things, make important connections and start building a network that will support you throughout your career.  

What is one issue you would like to see Central Iowa leaders address? I think there is more opportunity for the business community to elevate and support women leaders. This is an area where we’ve come a long way, but there is still work to be done to see better gender equity in certain industries and roles. It takes awareness, it takes advocacy, it takes mentorship and development, and it takes supporting community organizations that make this their mission.