In a rapidly developing business world, the insurance industry is often accused of being slow to adapt. But why is change really so difficult for the industry?
“I’d actually say the industry finds [change] a real challenge,” Mary Trussell, global insurance change lead partner, KPMG Canada, told
Insurance Business.
A survey conducted by KPMG earlier this year found that two-thirds of the industry are either very dissatisfied with their ability to change, or at best are somewhat dissatisfied with their ability to achieve their objectives.
In the insurance industry specifically, with many professionals coming from a background of technical training, “we end up with lots of ‘insider thinking’ and it’s difficult to challenge,” Trussell explained.
Insurers historically have oriented themselves in a way that has resulted in deep silos, and typically don’t do a good job of communicating well with customers, she said.
“They’re not very good at thinking about the customer experience end to end. Even if you think about insurers, and about what they need to do to be more digital, a lot of its focused on attracting more customers.
“And actually, they need to think about what they’re doing to support their customers at the point of need,” Trussell said.
The Canadian industry in particular has a fundamental role in helping customers de-risk their lives – demonstrated this year by the huge cost of pay-outs following the Fort McMurray wildfire – but the industry still isn’t getting this across.
“The more that insurers can really focus on communicating in a clear way the value that they provide, the more that will resonate with customers,” Trussell commented, adding that insurers need to put out a simple, powerful message.
Parts of the industry that don’t respond to change risk making themselves less and less relevant, according to Trussell, and gradually, those that refuse to change will end up with a “less attractive” pool of risks.
“For an organisation that’s really built on financial stability, that’s why the need to adapt to change is so important,” she explained.
“You have to adapt to change, otherwise you’re not going to be there for the future.”
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