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Nicole Friesen (pictured) started her insurance career on the front lines – literally. She worked at the reception desk at Hoffmann Kool Insurance before she left for maternity leave. When she returned to work, she studied to get her Canadian Accredited Insurance Broker (CAIB) designation, and the rest is history.
Friesen is currently a personal lines manager at Hoffmann Kool and has also taken on HR leadership for the office. She was named one of the ‘Young Guns of 2017’ by Insurance Business Canada and lists her climb up the insurance ladder as a major achievement. In this Q&A, she reflects on that journey, the challenge that online brokers pose, and how coverages are developing to protect clients from every angle.
Tell us about your career trajectory. How did you end up in the insurance business and in your current position?
I actually started in our office at the reception desk. I applied for a reception job online, got it, and started here in 2007 doing reception work. I worked at the reception desk for two years, had a baby in the middle of all of that and, when I came back from my mat leave, I started taking my CAIB courses.
What is the most fulfilling aspect of your work?
Definitely dealing with people. I love when we can take a very stressful situation for our clients and turn them into a positive at the end of the day.
When you look back at your career, what would you say are your proudest accomplishments as a broker?
I think just starting from scratch and growing, and all of the different opportunities that the business offers to us. The greatest accomplishment I think would be knowing nothing about the industry to start and having the opportunity, and the drive, to go from the reception desk to managing the personal lines department in our office.
How does Hoffmann Kool Insurance differentiate itself from competitors?
I think we have a really great, positive energy in our office. We try to maintain a vibrant and welcoming atmosphere for our clients as well as our employees to be a part of. We have, of course, exceptional customer service. We do our best to make sure that every client is treated fairly and that they get what they need at the end of the day.
Do you have any tips for success, specifically for women entering this industry?
I think you’ve just got to go for it. You have to take every opportunity that’s been given and make the most of it. Luckily for us, it’s a very results-based industry so if you are very good at what you do, you can really prove yourself and the numbers speak.
What are the main challenges facing brokers today?
The direct writers and a lot of online business. I think that a big challenge for us is to show where our value is added. When people do call, when they do have a struggle in our industry, I think that’s our time to shine and say, you wouldn’t necessarily get this if you would’ve bought your policy online and never had talked to an individual.
What positive changes in the industry have you seen over the past few years?
Coverages are always developing. We’re seeing more and more things be covered that were never covered before – your overland water, your home systems protection, your service line, your cyber coverage, even on personal lines insurance. It’s giving us a good opportunity to make sure everyone’s got a really holistic approach to their policy instead of saying, water’s covered, but not that type of water.
If you weren’t working in the insurance space, what would you be doing right now?
I would assume I’d be an office manager somewhere. I really enjoy people, I enjoy efficiencies and figuring out how best things work, so I assume that would be the role that I would be in.
