2021 Year in Review: Mark Leskanic, Surety Bond Professionals, Inc.

Name: Mark Leskanic

Job Title: President

Company Name: Surety Bond Professionals, Inc.

What are your predictions for your industry in 2022?
Industry wise, I anticipate further growth into 2022 and 2023, mostly fueled by the influx of monies and the government's “priming” of the economy. The infrastructure bill should help fund additional public construction on a federal, state and municipal basis and this should be beneficial to the surety bond industry and our firm.

What is the best advice you received in 2021, and who was it from?
The best advice I received came from within our management team. It was a reminder about trusting our people to act responsibly while working remote. They are the ones who have gotten us to the level of success we enjoy and only with their support and cooperation will this continue.

What was the biggest lesson you learned while working during the pandemic?
The biggest lesson we learned during the pandemic was how to successfully operate with our employees all working on a remote basis. This was challenging on many fronts but for us mainly in the areas of communications and corporate culture. Software program such as Zoom and Slack helped keep people connected and old fashioned creativity covered the rest.

How has your working environment changed over the last year?
During the last year our working environment has gone from one based almost entirely within a central office to one which is almost completely remote. Our team now has the choice of where they would like to perform their daily work functions, and this is something we never thought was possible before the pandemic mandated such. We are now happy to offer this flexibility to our employees in an effort to make their work and life environments more balanced and satisfying.

What was your greatest professional accomplishment or most notable project, deal, or transaction in 2021?
We witnessed continued growth during 2021 in both revenue and the number of relationships we enjoy. Each is important to us, and we are optimistic that this trend will continue into 2022 and beyond.