Ashley Hodgson
Senior National Accounts Manager
Marketing
“I’m not out to compete with everyone internally that I come across,” Ashley Hodgson said on a recent Tuesday morning in March, from her home base Georgia. “It’s not how I’m wired. But externally? Yes, I want us to be the best.”
For Ashley, Donegal’s National Accounts Manager, building relationships is the framework of her DNA.
“I’m much more focused on how we can help each other achieve our goals,” she said. “Being genuine and really getting to know someone… that exemplifies what you can offer and what you can achieve on the business side when you get to know someone on a deep, personal level.”
An integral member of Donegal’s National Accounts team, Ashley spends an average of two weeks on the road each month – traveling everywhere from Ohio to Arizona, coastal Georgia, and to Donegal’s Marietta, Pa. Home Office – meeting with Donegal’s National Accounts partners to strengthen our relationships.
“In our role, I feel like we have to be chameleons,” she said. “We’re dealing with all kinds of people and personalities. You really have to know how to handle each one differently and in an appropriate way.”
‘Something different. Something new.’
A Suwanee, Ga. native who still calls the Atlanta metro area home, Ashley Hodgson joined the Donegal team in 2014 – a career shift after spending a few years in marketing and public relations for a visitors center, and convention and visitors bureau.
“I got into insurance because my dad was in insurance,” she said. “He was actually a marketing representative for another company down here in Georgia. I got in on the non-standard auto marketing side, which was an interesting world.”
Here at Donegal, Ashley spent a decade as a Business Relationship Manager, covering a territory of 75 to 80 agents across the entire northern half of Georgia. In 2024, she made the move to National Accounts.
“It’s been a lot to get used to, but I love the change of pace every week,” she said of the evolution of her job role. “It’s something different, something new.”
As a BRM, Ashley traveled Tuesday through Friday, visiting agents up to two and a half hours away. “With National Accounts, I’m going further,” she said. “But what’s great is that when I’m home, I’m home. I have time to catch up.”
A boy mom to two with a 5-year-old and a 7-year-old, “The key is having support at home,” Ashley said. “My husband supports me fully. We also live near my parents, so having grandparent help is very key, too!”
“We are very blessed that my husband works from home and has a very flexible schedule to be available for the kids,” Ashley added. “Our boys are into all kinds of sports, and my husband is always willing and able to get them where they need to be.”
When she started her career in insurance 15 years ago, “I didn’t even know about my own insurance policy!” Ashley recalled with a laugh. “I didn’t pay for it. I didn’t know who my agent was. That’s why the non-standard auto world was such a great place to start in the industry. You really learn insurance there.”
Being on the sales and marketing side, she added, “I’m out here selling a product, and it’s important that I know it!”
These days, Ashley is confident in her knowledge and the perspective that she brings to the table – both here at Donegal, and within the conference rooms of the National Accounts partners that she visits.
“In the last 5 years, I’ve really found my voice and learned to speak up in meetings,” she said, though fully admitting, “I still don’t love presenting.”
“It sounds cliché, but show what you know!” Ashley said. “Showcase yourself.”
Ashley encouraged other emerging female leaders to get involved, and to lean in for support.
“I think men and women see things very differently, so having a female counterpart that you can trust is key,” she said. “Go to conferences. Get involved in professional associations. Network and spend time together.”
And above all, she added, “be confident in what you know, and your skills.”