IMO, The Best VE Companies Are…

2022  is the year of the virtual employee

The industry name for this workforce is VA, meaning virtual assistants. In my personal experience, they are more than assistants. They are employees and my agency could not operate as it does without them.

Therefore, in this article, we will refer to them as they are. We will refer to them as virtual employees (VE).

What is a VE?

Simple. They are employees that work remotely and are not licensed. The law mandates that you have to be a US citizen to have an insurance license.

Most are workers overseas from countries like India, the Philippines, Pakistan, and many others.

VE’s serve a vital role to the agency of today and tomorrow…but that’s another article.

This article is to expose you to the best VE companies out there.

I have used VE’s since 2014 and in that time I have used many VE companies and I have learned a lot!

While I am not here to share my experiences, I would like to tell you about four companies that I think you should look at when researching VE companies.

What is a VE Company?

A VE company is a company that leases VE’s to insurance agencies. Going this route gives the agency security and stability and the VE is compensated as if they are an employee in their country; able to secure benefits and resources their country provides.

As time goes on you will find more VE companies popping up in our industry and it only makes sense if you think about it…

There are 38,000 plus agencies in America.

If they all needed just one VE, that will be 40,000+ VE’s that will be needed in the next five years.

Many agencies like mine have multiple VE’s. We currently have four at The Insurance Alliance.

Here are the four best VE companies out there. They are in no specific order…

Virtual Intelligence

Virtual Intelligence (VI) was founded in 2021 by Jason Cass (CEO) and Travis Etheridge (CFO). In 2023, Mitch Gibson joined as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Then, in April 2024, VI acquired On Hand VA’s, a company founded by Michael Cruz. Michael now serves as Chief Operating Officer (COO).

This acquisition expanded VI’s footprint beyond the Philippines into Colombia, where the On Hand VA’s team is based. These Colombian Virtual Employees are bilingual, fluent in both Spanish and English, which allows agencies to better serve diverse markets and client bases.

What sets Virtual Intelligence apart is our belief that VE’s are employees, not assistants. We proudly use the term Virtual Employees (VEs) because they play a central role in agency operations and growth.

Our model is built on three core pillars:

• Intelligence: Processes and systems built specifically for insurance agencies
• Training: Industry-focused onboarding so VE’s understand insurance workflows and terminology
• Security: Strong compliance and IT protections to safeguard sensitive data

With talent in both the Philippines and Colombia, Virtual Intelligence gives agencies the flexibility to scale with highly trained, bilingual professionals who integrate seamlessly into their team. #cassapproved

CoverDesk

Cover Desk is the largest of VE companies in the insurance industry.

The company was founded by Andy Priesman who is an insurance industry veteran with deep operational experience. He knows what it takes to make an independent insurance agency run well because he’s done it in his own business.

Andy has run a multi-location agency Greenway Insurance and Risk Management Services out of Texas for 20 plus years. He personally trained many VE’s for his agency and he knows what agencies need.

If you ask Andy I am sure he will tell you, it’s the team he has built that has allowed Coverdesk to reach the heights it has.

Many agencies trust Coverdesk for their services and when I ask people about Coverdesk good words are always spoken. #cassapproved

Their workforce is from The Philippines.

“The industry name for this workforce is VA, meaning virtual assistants. In my personal experience, they are more than assistants. They are employees and my agency could not operate as it does without them.”

-Jason Cass

Lava Automation

Lava Automation is founded by Austin Moorhead. Lava is unique because they use VE’s as part of their overall automation process.

Austin and his team help insurance agencies build and maintain automation in the marketing, prospecting, sales, and servicing of an agency.

I personally know Austin and know many agencies who use his automation services, including my agency, The Insurance Alliance. #cassapproved

Their workforce is from The Philippines.

How to Choose the Right VE Company for Your Agency

When evaluating a VE partner, insurance agencies should focus on four key factors:

1. Proven agency experience – Choose a VE company run by leaders who understand how real agencies operate.
2. Security and compliance – Protect client data by working with a company that invests heavily in IT security.
3. Value over price – The cheapest option often sacrifices training and security. Focus on ROI, not short-term savings.
4. Recommendations from peers – Ask other agency owners about their experience with VE companies.

The End

I hope you found this article to be useful because IMO these are the best VE companies, but then again that’s just my opinion.

 PS. I only paid and accepted money from myself to write this.