The insurance industry, from big insurers to small brokerages, continues to grapple with recruitment issues. The challenges range from an aging workforce to the industry’s persistent image problem with younger job seekers. Talent and recruitment issues are a focus of the upcoming Women in Insurance Summit in Sydney on August 21.
Many industry stakeholders agree that one answer to some of these problems is more mentorship programs.
“One of the most effective steps the insurance industry and its stakeholders can take to address the growing skills gap is to invest in structured, cross-generational talent development that combines mentorship with modern capability building,” said Ricarda Simon (pictured). Simon is a senior partner with global insurance recruitment firm, Eliot Partnership. Her work includes talent advisory projects.
Simon said the industry faces “a dual challenge”. “The retirement of experienced professionals is accelerating, while demand for digital, analytical, and customer-focused skills continues to rise,” she said.
According to figures cited in the Insurance Council of Australia’s (ICA’s) Talent Roadmap, 30% of the insurance workforce is set to reach or exceed retirement age by 2030. Meanwhile, a range of industry sources report growing demands from customers and rapid technological changes. “Companies face unique recruitment as well as retention challenges to ensure continuity of expertise and future readiness,” said Simon.
The recruitment expert strongly supports mentorship programs. “Establishing formal mentorship and reverse mentoring programs allows for the transfer of institutional knowledge while simultaneously equipping senior leaders with emerging digital competencies,” she said.
Mentorships are in place at some of the country’s big insurance firms. For example, Gallagher Bassett (GB) fosters an internal program. “Personally, as a leader I place a lot of importance on development plans and mentoring relationships,” said Lisa Odgers, GB’s claims operations manager in an interview last year with Insurance Business.
Sydney-based Odgers said GB sees mentoring as a way to build future executives.
Canopius Group, a sponsor of this year’s Summit, also has a well-established mentorship scheme. “Canopius believes mentoring is essential to developing and training staff so we can create more rounded and high-performing employees,” said Sydney-based Claudio Saita, the firm’s head of Australia and Pacific.
At last year’s Women in Insurance Summit, Canopius partnered with Key Media to help launch a new industry mentorship program. This year’s Summit will feature a Mentorship speed networking event. “Mentorship programs are one of many levers that a business can use to help lift our female talent,” said Saita.
Simon suggested that more insurers need to adopt a holistic approach to their talent and recruitment challenges.
“Targeted investment in early-career development, reskilling initiatives and robust succession planning can help cultivate a pipeline of adaptable, high-potential talent,” she said. “This integrated approach transforms the skills gap into a platform for sustainable growth and innovation.”
However, many stakeholders say recruitment issues will be difficult to resolve, especially for smaller firms.
“Based on my conversations with insurance brokers, it's clear that talent acquisition remains a persistent challenge that won't be resolved anytime soon,” said Rod Fitzgerald, managing principal of LimeBox Consulting. “While training and developing new employees is ideal, many small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) struggle to allocate the necessary resources for this.”
Fitzgerald suggested that the relatively small size of many brokerage firms contributes to making attracting the right staff a challenge.
A white paper published last month by Gallagher Bassett (GB) found that Australia’s insurance firms are experiencing more serious talent and recruitment challenges than other industry sectors. “The Carrier Perspective: 2025 Claims Insights,” cited growing concerns about the insurance industry’s ability to attract and retain skilled professionals.
Simon is taking part in a Summit panel, “Level Up – Closing Insurance’s Growing Skills Gap.” Her co-panellists are Lori Spoon from Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance and Tracey Bryan from Lloyd’s Australia. The session is being moderated by Sophie Krynauw from Canopius Australia.
