This year’s winning companies at the Insurance Business Canada awards are wasting no time building momentum for 2024.
Held November 16 at the Liberty Grand in Toronto, the 2023 IBC Awards celebrated the best of Canada’s insurance industry.
Some of the country’s brightest brokerages, insurers, and insurtechs took home prizes on awards night.
Here are the ways these top organizations plan to grow next year:
Ecclesiastical Insurance, which took home the Westland Insurance Group Award for P&C Insurer of the Year and the CNA Award for Excellence in Philanthropy and Community Service, has put talent attraction at the top of its priority list.
“We’re a small company, but we have big ambitions, and we give a lot back to the community,” said Rob Jordan, vice president of central region and national accounts at Ecclesiastical Insurance, of their double win. “Giving back is in our DNA, so it’s nice to be honoured and appreciated.”
“Attracting talent to our organization is important, as it is for many companies, and we feel that an award like this will raise the bar and make people notice who we are and want to come and join our team.”
With its strong team, Desjardins is ready to face the challenges of the year ahead. The company was crowned Life & Health Insurer of the Year.
“We do the right thing for our clients and members, and I'm thrilled that we're receiving this award that is a recognition of that,” said Yves Giroux, vice president of business development for Desjardins.
“What we want to do with advisors is create a community where they share their best practices. The bar is just higher, but I'm confident that we can improve every day with the team and talent we have.”
Another organization that is exceedingly proud of its team is APRIL Marine, winner of this year’s Outstanding Customer Experience Award.
“It’s a big honour as we’ve worked for 10 0 years now to put the customer experience at the heart of what we do,” said Marie-Eve Paquette, director of APRIL Marine Canada.
“Every time we hit a wall, we’re able to stand up as a team and achieve whatever we want. We're going to continue to build on this. Customer experience is one of the main axes of our 2024 strategy.”
One of this year’s Insurtech winners, FRISS, has set its sights on further growth in Canada. Sindy Houle, head of sales for FRISS in Canada, said being awarded Best Service Provider (Insurtech) will boost the company's profile.
“We operate in the dark. We're not well known, but we're enabling digital transformation, and this is an incredible honour,” Houle told Insurance Business.
“We've got incredible momentum. Insurers are at that phase of their transformation where they are trying to push things forward and deliver more. We have been in this market for six years and will continue growing.”
Fuse Insurance is back in the winner’s circle, winning the Travelers Canada Award for Brokerage of the Year (Fewer Than 10 Staff). The brokerage has expanded its presence across Canada this year, forging more partnerships with insurers and supporters, and is looking to continue growing its staff.
“This win feels like continuing validation,” said Kevin Lea, president of Fuse Insurance. “Fuse has been on a great growth trajectory. It shows the power of the small broker.”
Further growth is also on the cards for Agile Underwriting Solutions, which took home the Beneva Award of MGA of the Year.
“We worked so hard over the past few years to present the MGA as a strong option in the marketplace, and to win this as a coast-to-coast MGA that came from the Maritimes is important,” said Brett Graham, president of Agile Underwriting Solutions.
“Our biggest achievement this year is growing the company to a full-scale, national MGA, growing it 30% over last year, and being proud of our team. We want to continue expanding our product lines and ensuring the MGA space is recognized in the marketplace.”
Boardwalk Insurance, winner of the Digital Innovation in a Brokerage award, is keen to showcase its technology.
For Michael Malfa, CEO and co-founder of the Ontario-based insurance agency, the win is special because behind-the-scenes work often goes unacknowledged.
“It's a real honour to win because we've been pushing so hard on the technology. A lot of times, it's a thankless job; you don't get a lot of recognition on the tech side,” Malfa said. “So, it's nice to be recognized for the technological advancements we’ve been pushing.
“We want to carry this momentum forward. A lot of this development happens in the back end, and no one sees it, so we want to showcase the technology and let everyone know what we're doing.”
Having a hard-working team that enjoys what they do has been vital to Specialty Claims Canada’s success, according to claims manager Em Kemshaw. Specialty Claims Canada was awarded Best Service Provider – Claims.
“The award is a big deal, and we are very proud of our team,” Kemshaw said.
Estelita Vas, senior claims examiner at Specialty Claims Canada, added: “We will continue to do what we do, which is to provide excellent service.”
Newfoundland-headquartered Munn Insurance won the XN Worldwide Insurance Award for Brokerage of the Year (10-100 Staff) for the second year.
Adam Nolan, COO and vice president of Munn Insurance, expressed pride in his team and their accomplishments.
“Coming from a third-generation, small-town broker, it's overwhelming to be recognized by such a distinguished group,” Nolan told Insurance Business.
“Like a lot of businesses, we're trying to reinvent ourselves. Moving from the traditional environment to a digitized enterprise has been our goal. Awards like this recognize that we're doing something right.”
The Burns & Wilcox Award for Big Brokerage of the Year (100 Staff or More) went to Westland Insurance.
“It's a tremendous honour and quite a surprise, to be honest with you,” said Tim Mackey, executive vice president of distribution at Westland Insurance.
“There's such a great group of brokerages that were nominated, and for Westland to win is just a testament to our team.”
For Mackey, one of his proudest accomplishments this year is working with a “humble, extremely approachable” team. Westland plans to continue with its winning success formula next year.
“We’ve got a story that we're writing in the Canadian marketplace that is a little bit unique, and we're excited about the journey ahead,” Mackey said.
“We're looking to build Canada's favourite insurance broker, and we're excited about our potential to do that.”
Finally, CNA Canada was again recognized for Excellence in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
Erin Gattoni, head of human resources at CNA Canada, said the back-to-back award reflects the company’s journey “to create a diverse, inclusive culture where its talent, communities, and clients thrive.”
“The Canadian marketplace continues to be more diverse, and our industry must reflect that,” said Gattoni.
She said the company plans to build on success by reaffirming its commitment to equity.
“It’s about being comfortable in the uncomfortable and making sure that we're having those very transparent conversations and bringing it to the forefront,” Gattoni continued. “[DEI] is truly a business imperative, and it's the right thing to do.”
Learn more about the 2023 Insurance Business Canada Awards on the website.
