Embed your Mission Statement in your Recruitment Campaign

More than ever before when I attend market events about hiring in our sector (insurance and the wider financial services, that is) I witness keenness to make our sector “sexy” in order to attract “the best talent”. Cause-and-effect example du jour.

Wondering what this supreme level of attraction practically means in this context, reaction is instantaneous: “be(come) a place where people don’t fall in [with insurance referenced 99.9% of the time], but ACTUALLY want to work in, like Google [Alphabet]”.

Putting aside the fact that the quoted trailblazer is outside -strictly speaking- our space, I dash to look their mission up:

“Organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” A mission statement that strikes me as more purposeful and less “sexy”. And that’s of a company that people actually strive to work for.

Similarly, I think, each organisation knowingly operating in the insurance and financial services industry, draws upon its purpose and relevance to the core communities it is serving. Assuming that ‘our’ mission statements are as clear as Google’s, rather than a mashup of investor profitability, client centricity, commercial success, healthy capital base, resource optimisation, environmental responsibility […] promises.

For example:

• Enable access to the financial system.
• Educate people and business about risk management.
• Help people and business manage their risks. Save lives. Grow resilient communities.

Aspirational. Relatable. Relevant. [To the prospective employee]

Do such mission statements feature at the forefront of our recruitment campaigns? Next to the image of the awe-inspiring London skyline. Or that imposing HQ edifice (just don’t mention remote working, surely no-one is expecting another pandemic that soon) elsewhere in the world.

They don’t. They should. For these are the values that will attract individuals who actually want to work for the organisation and the sector. And if we recruit right, utilise and develop our workforce, then shareholder value creation, client satisfaction and sustainability will become the by-products.

Meanwhile, talent shortage is a fact. Also known as The Great Attrition. The Great Resignation.

Reasons are well documented: hiring failing to keep up with the accelerated change; conscious quitting/misalignment of values; lack of workplace flexibility and support; ambition gap; stifling hierarchies/uncaring leaders; employees feeling undervalued; greater mobility between industries to name a few.

In short, people are (re-)considering our options.

And similar to our lifestyle choices (consumer culture powered by technology), we seek to also customise our work life to our individual desires.

The The ABI (ABI) recently elaborated on a sector-wide blueprint that aspires to attract talent -and leadership- across all backgrounds. Through the humanistic trilogy of Attract-Grow-Advance, the ABI calls for workplaces that:

- acknowledge life events that impact employees and provide an ecosystem of support and flexibility

- build trust and create an environment of psychological safety and acceptance, in which the employee is part of the organisational decision-making process.

- transparently collect, monitor and evaluate data -in line with regulatory guidance and ethical governance- to foster a universal design

- collaborate across the sector to form communities that promote diverse recruitment, inclusive networking and apprenticeship opportunities

- work in partnership with local organisations that offer access to underrepresented talent pools, enable upskilling and raise visibility of our sector’s societal purpose

- are relatable, integrate employees from all backgrounds, embrace and showcase difference

- have the ability to match roles to attitudes, hire transferable skills and use inclusive language

- engage in tripartite dialogue with academics and the third sector to design and update ethical frameworks.

The sum of the parts is always greater than the individual pieces. I hope -for the sake of our sector’s future- that we work together and challenge each other to collectively close the say-do gap. As Daniel Kahneman observes “Intuition is nothing more and nothing else than recognition.”

Ultimately-

To attract, utilise and develop talent we need to mirror our values, so that our workforce is firstly aware and secondly proud of the stories and aspirations behind the organisation [sector] they work in.

About the author

With a doctorate in behavioural economics and 25 years' experience across the wider financial services, Vina is a passionate advocate for diversity of thought in the workplace. A polyglot who has led multi-disciplinary deal teams with focus on aligning deliverables with corporate values, she leads GAIN’s individual member stream. Vina aspires to an inclusive insurance and financial services industry that utilises talent, embraces neurodiversity and celebrates human potential. To start a dialogue, you may email her at [email protected] or contact her on?LinkedIn