The Insurance Institute of Canada’s new initiative to glean knowledge from departing baby boomers is a crucial step toward the mentoring process, say brokers.
To encourage more effective mentoring in the industry, the CIP Society has launched its latest resource, ‘mentoring ADVANTAGE,’ developed specifically for the insurance industry – and obtaining and sharing that knowledge is vital to ensuring brokers have an edge in the marketplace.
For broker Roxanne McKenzie, of J.W. Davis Insurance Brokers Ltd., mentoring is crucial to the success of any business.
“That is why I want to be available to my staff. Mentoring is absolutely vital. It is vital in any industry,” says McKenzie, who is expected to take on the duties of principle broker by the end of the month. “The longer you are in the industry, the more exposed you are to knowledge. Anyone in the industry who has a passion for it, and recognizes the importance of mentoring, can talk about it all day. It is a passion and a joy.”
Now more than ever, given the industry’s current and future workforce dynamics, says Drew Collins, CIP Society national leader and contributor to ‘mentoring ADVANTAGE,’ we can really “ramp up the industry learning curve by sharing other people’s experiences through mentoring.”
The Insurance Institute’s 2012 demographic research study shows that significant numbers of boomers (22 per cent) will retire between now and 2022; however, there is significant churn happening in the echo (age 17-32 in 2012) and bust (age 33-45 in 2012) cohorts.
“It is hands-down fantastic, the program they’ve put togethe," says Kevin Sigouin, president of the Credit Union Insurance Services Association, and VP of insurance operations for First Credit Union in Powell River, B.C. "We need good people in the insurance industry, and we need to keep young people in the insurance industry.”
For Sigouin, who has been both a mentor and a mentee in his lifetime, a program like 'mentoring ADVANTAGE' is something every brokerage and insurer should take advantage of. (continued.)
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"You look at the best companies in Canada," Sigouin told Insurance Business, "a mentor/mentee program is the next step to bringing it to the next level. For those of us who have had a mentor, and have had the opportunity to be a mentor, we would never look back; and we would do it again in heartbeat."
Based on these findings, the study recommends enhancing retention strategies and succession planning – including mentoring – as critical to maintaining a viable workforce.
“Our mission is to enable people employed in the financial services business to achieve their performance potential and to maximize their intellectual development,” says Peter Hohman, president and CEO of the Insurance Institute. “Mentoring is a strategy to achieving this outcome. Therefore, it is fitting to offer our stakeholders and members the tools and resources to enable and encourage effective mentoring.”
One millennial broker, Filip Ambroziak, of Ambroziak & Rao Insurance Brokers Inc., says that his age group has a need to succeed – but it is crucial for those in a mentor position to educate and show how to achieve it.
“Our generation is extremely ambitious. Everyone I met in college, through work and in my circle of influence, all want to be successful in their own way,” says Ambroziak. “Whether its status, affluence, knowledge or popularity, we all have some form of success that we want to achieve. Your job as the lead broker is to find which of these makes you tick.”
The CIP's 'mentoring ADVANTAGE' ffers education and information, tools and resources to increase the quality and success of mentoring relationships in the industry, and is organized for three specific audiences: mentees, mentors and organizations.
For mentees: there is advice on setting goals, identifying a potential mentor and how to approach, as well as managing the relationship, addressing typical problems, and when appropriate, ending the relationship.
For mentors: there is advice on getting started, helping your mentee set goals, managing the relationship, honing your mentoring skills and addressing typical problems. (continued.)
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There are also tools for defining the parameters of the relationship (terms of engagement, if you will), addressing confidentiality and other aspects related to industry dynamics (in cases where the mentee and mentor are from different organizations or sectors within the industry or outside of the industry).
“We have also created an ‘Experience Speaks’ section on the website,” says Julie Pingree, chair of the CIP Society National Council, which created a national task force of members and industry human resources representatives to spearhead the initiative, “where we encourage mentors, mentees and organizations to tell us their stories and experiences in mentoring in the insurance industry.”
For organizations: there is information and tools to set organizational goals, determine the best mentoring model for your purposes and parameters, and resources on how to establish and garner support for a mentoring program in-house (including ROI), enabling participation as well as administering, training, monitoring and evaluating a mentoring program.
