Florida Surplus Lines Service Office Launches Online Education and Training Center
Nov 20, 2013
“Class is in session 24/7” at the Florida Surplus Lines Service Office (“FSLSO”) with the release of its newly developed online education portal, the organization announced yesterday, November 19, 2013.
The “FSLSO Education Center” is designed to serve as the “premier resource for education and training on Florida’s surplus lines market,” with numerous classroom offerings, online education opportunities, tutorials, manuals and brochures.
“Education is a key component to marketplace credibility and we strive to provide our customers with a quality education program that is comprehensive, informative and accessible, “stated FSLSO Executive Director, Gary Pullen. “FSLSO’s Education Center provides our customers with a full-service experience that delivers training not only for our market, but in professional areas that will better serve their business.”
According to the FSLSO, the Education Center will serve as a “robust learning management system that houses all of FSLSO’s available training and education offerings” at www.fslsoeducationcenter.com. A one-stop-shop, the Web site houses all of FSLSO’s education and training materials, including access to classroom-based course schedules, online classes, video tutorials, training manuals, brochures and archived Webinar programs.
To use the site, students must register a new account, which will enable them to immediately peruse FSLSO’s extensive resource library. Additionally, www.fslsoeducationcenter.com tracks all completed courses and training materials, providing registrants with a learning history and printable transcript.
The Education Center also supports FSLSO’s newly revised “60-Hour Surplus Lines Pre-Licensing Qualification Course,” which has remained a staple in FSLSO’s education curriculum since 2004. This course serves as a general lines agent’s only available online option to satisfy Florida’s 60-hour education-based qualification requirement in preparation for the Florida surplus lines licensing exam.
“The Surplus Lines Pre-Licensing Course has undergone a much needed facelift,” commented Public Information Specialist, Jessica VanDenBogaert. “In addition to completely revising the material, the course features an updated look and feel designed to aid in site navigation, ease-of-use and overall course experience. It supports a full audio component that accompanies the course material along with case studies and interactive activities which are focused on increasing student understanding and retention.”
A second online continuing education offering includes an overhauled version of FSLSO’s “Retail Agents Role in the Surplus Lines Marketplace,” a two-hour intermediate continuing education course on the compliance regulations and requirements of the retail agent when placing business with a surplus lines wholesaler. Like all FSLSO continuing education courses, this course is free for licensed surplus lines agents. All others pay a nominal fee.
A key feature in FSLSO’s new Education Center is the availability for students to take professional business courses that go outside of the realm of insurance. FSLSO’s course catalog contains numerous training modules from third-party education content providers including Skillsoft, QuicKnowledge and BLR. Through its broad curriculum offerings, students make take online learning courses on Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook as well as “soft skills” classes on sales, time management and entrepreneurship. While all third-party courses incur a fee per purchase, they provide an inexpensive option for FSLSO customers to access a wide variety of training from a single education point.
“We want to give our customers education opportunities that transcend understanding just their compliance requirements,” commented FSLSO Assistant Director, Tom Terfinko. “Giving them the tools they need to strengthen their workforce and their business is what creates and sustains a viable marketplace.”
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