This brief captures the 2022 Best Practices Study profile for the largest tier — the regional and super-regional brokers that anchor the top of the independent market. Every figure here is a segment benchmark; the companion 2022 BPS tier reference explains how the tiers compare, and the year's strategic story is the 2022 context.
§ 01 · ProfitabilityProfitability & the Rule of 20.
The lowest reported margin of the bands — a 23.0% Pro Forma EBITDA on the heaviest 63.6% compensation load — but a Rule of 20 of 21.1 still clears the threshold, carried by the strongest organic growth in the study.
| Metric | Average | Top quartile |
|---|---|---|
| Pro Forma EBITDA margin | 23.0% | 32.0% |
| Pre-tax profit | 16.6% | 27.5% |
| Rule of 20 score | 21.1 | 31.8 |
| Total Pro Forma compensation | 63.6% | — |
§ 02 · Revenue mixRevenue mix.
The most diversified book of any tier — commercial leads at 55.2%, personal lines fall to just 9.3%, and the benefits practice (group medical plus other group) becomes a major contributor at over a fifth of revenue.
| Line | % of revenue |
|---|---|
| Commercial lines | 55.2% |
| Group medical | 15.1% |
| Personal lines | 9.3% |
| Contingent / bonus | 6.9% |
| All other group | 6.3% |
Revenue mix, at a glance.
Commercial-dominant with a major benefits practice; personal lines a thin tail. Bar widths are exact percentages of revenue.
§ 03 · Growth & concentrationGrowth & account concentration.
The fastest average organic growth in the study (10.8% — the only band in double digits) and the lowest account concentration of any tier (10.0%). This is also the most acquisitive band: nearly half completed an acquisition in the year.
| Metric | Average | Top quartile |
|---|---|---|
| Net-revenue organic growth | 10.8% | 26.7% |
| Net-revenue total growth | 10.6% | 24.9% |
| Top-10 accounts (% of commissions) | 10.0% | — |
| Agencies completing an acquisition | 46.7% | — |
§ 04 · ProductivityProductivity per person.
About 286.6 staff, with the highest revenue-per-employee of any band ($256,811) — the productivity ceiling of the independent channel, on a deep specialty-and-management organization.
| Metric | Average | Top quartile |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue per employee | $256,811 | $360,214 |
| Spread per employee | $94,929 | $149,138 |
| Total staff (average) | 286.6 | — |
§ 05 · Producer pipeline & stabilityThe pipeline read.
The highest NUPP investment of any band (1.5%) funds the largest producer hiring program — but at scale the five-year success rate eases to 50.4%, and a 50.4 weighted-average producer age keeps perpetuation and recruiting central to the model.
| Metric | Average | Top quartile |
|---|---|---|
| Weighted-average producer age | 50.4 | — |
| 5-year producer success rate | 50.4% | 73.7% |
| NUPP (% of net revenue) | 1.5% | 3.2% |
| Current ratio | 1.60 | 2.60 |
| Tangible net worth (% of revenue) | 11.0% | 29.6% |
- Most diversified book. CL at 55.2%, a benefits practice over a fifth of revenue, and personal lines a thin 9.3% tail.
- Fastest organic growth. 10.8% average — the only band in double digits.
- Most acquisitive. Nearly half (46.7%) completed an acquisition in the year.
- Lowest concentration. Top-10 accounts at just 10.0% of commissions — the most defensible book.
- Highest productivity. Revenue per employee of $256,811 — the channel's ceiling.
- Heaviest cost base, lowest margin. A 23.0% Pro Forma EBITDA on a 63.6% compensation load.
The benchmark is the baseline, not the price.
Best Practices benchmarks don't value an agency — they're the operating baseline a valuation is built on. This tier is as much an acquirer as a target: nearly half bought a book in the year. For a seller at this scale, the figures that move a multiple are organic growth (10.8%), book diversification, and low concentration (10.0%) — a profile institutional and strategic buyers pay up for.
The largest single normalization in this band is executive compensation across a full management team — the gap between reported pay and market-rate replacement is the core of the Pro Forma bridge that lifts a 16.6% reported margin to a 23.0% normalized one. The companion financial & transactional mechanics reference walks it.
What BPS measures. The Best Practices Study tracks the operating and financial results of top-performing agencies nominated and designated through the study, segmented by revenue tier. This brief reflects the over-$25M band in the 2022 edition (calendar 2021 results).
Percentages of net revenue. Expense, compensation, and revenue-mix lines are expressed as a percentage of net revenue unless a dollar figure is shown.
Average and top quartile. The average is the segment standard; the top quartile is the aspirational stretch the study reports alongside it.
Frequency. The study publishes annually. Milly Books refreshes this brief with each new edition.