NZbrokers chief executive Jo Mason (pictured), who has been in insurance for about four decades, remains as passionate as ever when it comes to why she’s part of the industry.
Speaking with Insurance Business, the IAG alumnus said: “I love our sector. Helping people when they need it the most is always what gets me out of bed in the morning, and this hasn’t changed. It will continue to be my ‘why’.
“I’m excited to see where we go next. I think [brokers’ efforts in] showing clients the value of being with a broker, as they certainly did after the events of last year, will really start to pay off this year. Together with new, innovative products, that’s exciting.”
Another thing Mason is excited about is the broker collective’s upcoming conference. Always a highly anticipated event, the NZbrokers gathering is among the opportunities that the CEO is looking forward to this year.
“We have our conference in Fiji in May,” she said. “This is an opportunity to relax and refresh after the tumultuous past few years for our members. We share this with our major insurers and other suppliers, so this is an opportunity to get together and have some fun. There are over 250 attending, so it will be great.”
As for the other opportunities to watch out for, Mason had this to say: “The ability to create new innovative products is there, given the pricing challenges. We are working with one of our preferred insurers on this, early this calendar year. As always, our brokers take the opportunity to show their clients how much value they add by continuing to provide great service.
“We at NZbrokers take any opportunity we can to prove our worth to members and build lasting relationships with insurers as well. Our broker system, the Lola platform, will deliver some innovation later this year, and that’s exciting.”
Read more: NZbrokers CEO on where to add value
One such broker whose importance has been highlighted following Cyclone Gabrielle is NZbrokers member Hurford Parker Insurance Brokers in Hawke’s Bay.
In a previous interview with Insurance Business, director and executive broker William Parker said: “Coming out of a natural disaster, I’ve learned communication is the biggest thing that a broker has in terms of their advantage. We’ve seen direct insurance providers really struggle with that communication piece.
“We’ve come across challenges – don’t get me wrong – we’ve had a lot of roadblocks, but we’ve been able to provide communication to customers to say, ‘There’s a process; we know what we’re doing; we’re going to work through it, and we’ll end up getting a result’.”
Read more: What’s the “biggest” advantage a broker has?
Mason went on to cite her priorities for 2024. Among them is ensuring that she has the right strategy and team in place at NZbrokers to deliver all the value they can for members, enabling broker businesses to grow and continue to see the collective as the best in class.
“We will continue to represent our members and their wants and needs to insurers, and to work with insurers to build mutually beneficial partnerships,” she said. “I see this as a key point – both the insurers and NZbrokers must benefit from partnerships to ensure that they are sustainable in the long term.
“I have always placed relationships at the heart of everything I do, and building relationships both with insurers and our NZbrokers advisory board (made up of members) is a critical priority for me.”
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