Insurance firms and their peak bodies are devoting renewed efforts towards attracting young people into the industry. The National Insurance Brokers Association’s (NIBA’s) Insure Your Future initiative is just one example. For NSW alone, this website lists contact details for more than 30 brokerages willing to discuss potential career opportunities with school leavers.
The upcoming Insurance Business Awards provides an opportunity to contribute to these endeavours by showcasing the industry’s high achievers. Nominations are open for two more weeks.
Matthew Bates (pictured above) has won numerous industry awards. At the NIBA Convention he won the peak body’s 2024 National Broker of the Year. This year, he also won a place on two Insurance Business listings: Elite Brokers and the Hot List of insurance industry leaders.
For his firm, Bell Partners Insurance, Bates said nurturing young talent is a priority.
IB asked the managing director what he’d say to a bunch of 18-year-olds at a careers festival about working in the insurance industry?
“Do it, is my short answer,” he said. “It's such a cool industry.”
He said his business has four people that are school leavers or in the middle of a university degree.
“I'm proud to see in our business that we've had people that have joined as school leavers,” he said. “I've got one of them running a smaller portfolio of a mix of domestic and business insurances.”
Bates said his firm tries to foster an environment that will attract young talent.
“What would I say to a bunch of 18-year-olds?” he said. “I’d highly recommend it and provide a bit more about the why, put meat on the bone around it.”
Bates said he would explain how surprisingly diverse the industry is. He encouraged school leavers to understand that the industry is so much more than the TV and social media adverts that tend to focus on car and home insurance.
“It's bigger than we think it is and there are so many different disciplines in it,” he said.
The brokerage leader included broking, underwriting, claims, loss adjusting and premium funding. There are also the opportunities to travel and meet people.
“I look at some of my insurer partners and we've just wrapped up conferences - obviously coming out of NIBA last week - but many of the other network and cluster groups I know, Insurance Advisernet, for example, have just had their conferences this week,” said Bates.
The sheer diversity of people and industries, he said, presents so many opportunities for interesting work.
“I think it's a wonderful industry to grow a career - you just don't know where you're going to end up,” said Bates.
There are also ongoing opportunities for career growth and change.
“It's a great industry to stimulate one's mind,” he said.
There’s also a caring side to the industry that can be lost in marketing hype.
“Some school leavers might think they have to have qualifications like a medical doctor’s in front of their name [to care for people],” said Bates. “What we do every day can be life changing as well for people.”
Perhaps more than some other professions, much industry expertise can be taught on the job.
In a previous interview with IB, Kye Brown, Gallagher Bassett’s branch manager for the NT discussed how her Darwin office is dealing with the talent crunch.
Brown said when they need staff, GB’s preference is to focus on finding someone who is a “cultural fit.”
“We can always teach a person with the right drive the technical skills, the injury and case management skills, and the legislation is what it is,” she said. “We pretty much only focus on that culture fit and making sure we’re bringing the right people into the business that are actually going to help people during their recovery – and we teach them the rest of it.”
The Insurance Business Awards is taking place at Sydney’s Hilton Hotel on May 2.
“This is an opportunity to highlight the many dedicated professionals in this sector who are doing their best, often feeling as though they have one hand tied behind their back due to outdated systems and technology,” said Daniel Lukich, sales and strategic relationship manager for motor AAMC. The motor accident management services provider is the Event Partner.
The full gamut of industry professionals will be honoured on the night. Nominations for awards are open until November 22.
