Securing the Future of Insurance: Retaining and Attracting Talent - 2023 & beyond ??
We live in a pivotal moment in time where the requirement for insurance talent - both hiring and retention - is growing rapidly. Over the past decade, the insurance industry has seen a monumental surge in growth due to the challenges around rapid innovation, and with it, a greater demand for exciting and talented personnel.
The sector is not only actively hunting for more knowledgeable and highly skilled employees to take on the challenging roles that come with the industry, but also fresh graduates that want to grow vast experience and go on to do amazing things within the sector. With the increasing demand for talent across multiple sectors, it is essential that companies invest in attracting and retaining the right people to keep up with the industry’s demands. It is also important for insurance businesses to remain competitive and be able to attract the best talent!
I have spoken to many industry experts, and they all agree that people do not usually aspire to work in insurance, rather they tend to 'fall into' the industry. So, what is the industry doing to remove this stigma - and ensure that as the need for technology and innovation increases, we have both the right people now, and actively developing future talent to address future challenges.
For this article, I wanted to speak to 3 industry leaders that are actively addressing these challenges, for both their businesses and the industry itself. I asked all 3 to provide a short summary of their perspectives on this topic, no direction, just an open platform to talk on the topic! Let's see what they think...
Many thanks to:
First up, Tobias Wann , CEO at Xempus ??
"Our ageing society has a growing problem: We are running out of workers! Today it already takes more than four months to fill a job. For doctors, nurses, IT specialists, truck drivers and many other professions it can take even longer. By the end of this century, the workforce in Germany alone will be one third smaller. If there are still three waiters in a restaurant today, there will only be two in the future. And every third chair in an office will be empty.
What does that mean? It will become increasingly difficult for employers to remain attractive to the coveted and few talents. Fruit baskets and table football are no longer enough (if they have ever been). Companies should explore other avenues. Ones that really help employees. For example, they can increasingly try to provide employees with the best possible health support during their working lives and also afterwards in retirement.
Corporate insurance wrappers such as pension, life and health insurance are currently among the most valued benefits. They make sense economically for employees and hence can decide the race for the most sought-after talents. This opens up a huge market for insurance companies and brokers. Independent platforms like Xempus are the bridge that connect them all through technology and digitise and simplify all processes."
Next up, Rob Schimek , Group CEO at bolttech ??
"At bolttech, the way we manage our talent is core to our strategy of pursuing sustainable growth. As a young and fast-growing insurtech, the size of our business and global workforce has expanded rapidly in 2021 and 2022. We’ve set out to strike the right balance between maintaining our financial discipline and attracting and retaining the right talent to grow the business, regardless of external market conditions.??
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Our observation is that most of our employees chose to join bolttech for the same reasons: to gain the experience of working for a forward-thinking company in the exciting insurtech space; to have the opportunity of a stake in a business enabling the digital transformation of a traditional industry; and work in a team with a high-growth mindset with the flexibility to carve their path and make an impact.
An integral part of our talent strategy is creating a flexible and inclusive employee experience — bringing together varied backgrounds to support our culture of innovation, as we look to embed insurance into our partners’ customer journey. These factors provide a strong foundation to build a resilient and future-ready workforce that adapts to the fast-changing external environment.?
We’ve been working to build our 1,500-strong team with people that embrace our core values (be the pioneer, own it, link together, think outside-in) and our ways of working. This approach has single-handedly got us to where we are today in a short span of time, as we continue to empower our team to achieve their full potential and ensure a resilient business."
"Why are some businesses more successful than others? Why do some innovate better?than others? Why are some companies winning the innovation race? These are all?questions we ask when looking to the future of insurance and plotting what talented?individuals will be needed to drive that change. If we accept that talent is the differentiator?in winning the innovation race, why are we still positioning ourselves as the customer?when acquiring talent??
When we think about attracting talent, we see ourselves as the customer. We tend to talk? about what we want and what we need, but the reality is there is a talent shortage in?almost every significant area of the insurance industry - from tech to technicians. The truth?is most Insurance businesses are not distinctly different enough to attract better talent by?virtue of simply needing that talent. We need to treat talent as the customer and think?about the hiring process as a customer journey. We don't have that. We inhibit job mobility.?Insurance has long overused the phrase “I just fell into it” what we don't acknowledge is?often where you fall into the insurance value change means you may well stay there - I?started in claims, it would likely have meant I stayed there. Talented people want?challenges. We need to offer that job mobility - our role is to keep the best and brightest in?the industry and if that involves re-training them every few years for their latest challenge?then that is on us - it's what talent as a customer wants.?
Tom Peters once said “There’s no sports team in the world that says, you’ve had a great? season, why don’t you come into the back office and manage?”?
We are guilty of doing this in the insurance industry. How often do we see the best? underwriting talent promoted to leadership roles that they may or may not be suitable for?? Pushing the sports analogy further, no sports team in the world gets the youngest?superstar talent and doesn’t let them play. We have to give people the opportunity to rise?to the occasion (and potentially fail).?
I believe the best, most talented people want the privilege of failing. Giving someone the? opportunity to try and succeed, to challenge themselves is a culture we have been too? selective about. A culture of elitism still exists in insurance. The anointed masters of the? industry tend to be very impressive, they also tend to be white, male and attend a small?clutch of schools. If we are to really innovate we need diversity and we need to allow those?diverse pools of talent to flourish. A challenging career should be a right not a privilege."
So, what are you doing to make the Insurance industry a better place to both attract and nurture talent? Let's hope that in 2023 we continue on this journey to a more innovative and forward-thinking industry ??
On behalf of the entire Insurtech Insights team, we would like to wish all of our community a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year ??
Great insights from all Rory ??