This article was produced in partnership with Crawford & Co
Mia Wallace, of Insurance Business, sat down with Lisa Bartlett, president, UK & Ireland of Crawford & Company, to discuss the reminder the insurance profession has had that nothing can beat face-to-face interactions.
BIBA’s 2022 conference might feel like 100 years ago now but its takeaways are continuing to reverberate across the insurance profession. It was, reflected Lisa Bartlett (pictured), whose 2022 BIBA experience was her first as president of Crawford, exactly what the industry needed – an affirmation that nothing can replace face-to-face interactions and a reminder of the energy that exists across the insurance market.
From an internal perspective, she said, Crawford’s BIBA was a significant success, not only leading to some great new opportunities but also the strong sense that the business is now recognised for what it is – a technology and claims company poised to do things differently. Whether that’s from a data analytics perspective or finding ways to improve the customer journey, Bartlett believes that people saw a practical demonstration of how the business has evolved.
“The bit that we're all wrestling with now is that BIBA is a reminder that nothing can replace face-to-face so how can we integrate all this really great technology and have the best of both worlds?” she asked. “And that’s about having a multi-channel approach to all the services that we offer [without forgetting] that we are, at our heart, a people business.
“Our people make the biggest difference when times are tough for our clients or policyholders. We can shape a great experience when people or organisations are at their worst and that’s a big responsibility. So, while technology helped us through the pandemic, and it's kept us trading and supporting our clients, and all that good stuff, nothing can replace [our people].”
With that in mind, at the core of Bartlett’s leadership strategy is an emphasis on understanding changing expectations – from Crawford’s people and clients alike – and investing in solutions to match them. She feels strongly that the company’s investments in the well-being of its people during the pandemic have left the team in a much stronger position for 2022 and beyond.
Coming out of the pandemic, she said, employee expectations have changed. And now as the country moves into a high-inflation environment, employers need to have more of a value proposition in order to retain their people. This is being reflected in attitude shifts across the industry as there is more emphasis on creating a strong work-life balance and more focus on output rather than presenteeism.
“If you do not make those shifts as an employer, you will be left behind,” Bartlett warned. “And you see some people who’ve fully grasped that we’re in a different environment but you also see other companies talking of a more mandatory approach to how things will be done. I’m a firm believer that if you’re going to try and offer a flexible working approach but mandate that it needs to be done in a certain way, then you’re just negating the intention. And, for me, there are too many employers seeking to do that.”
The firm’s focus is centred on retaining its great talent and it is taking an enterprise-wide approach to succeeding in that ambition. Crawford can offer roles at every level, she said, right from first-doors all the way up to senior leadership positions. The business is actively engaged in taking a more rigorous, considered approach to its talent pathways by allowing its people to move internally and try out a range of opportunities to broaden their horizons.
“We’ve got an ageing population and super high wage inflation for certain roles,” Bartlett said. “It is my firm belief that you’ve got to create a sense of loyalty early on and move your people around the organisation so they have no need to leave. Because if they keep progressing then they won’t. I think you can’t ignore the manager's responsibilities either. I’m a big believer that people leave managers not organisations so we have a responsibility as managers to make sure we are treating our people well.”
Understanding how people’s expectations have changed is essential, and part of that is recognising that different generations, broadly speaking, have different requirements. Crawford has five generations of people in its workplace, she said, and so when targeting initiatives such as flexible working, training or D&I - it needs to recognise it is communicating to a significant age range and ensure it is doing so inclusively and accessibly.
Crawford prides itself on not taking a once-and-done approach to its talent retention but rather exploring every opportunity to support its people at every juncture of their careers. This has been put to great use recently with the firm taking on a first intake of apprentices into its major loss business. That might not seem like a natural fit for apprentices, she said, but almost two months in, it is proving a real success.
“Our major loss team have done really well in designing the programme, putting it in place and getting the right support,” she said. “It’s early days but I’m so confident that we’ve done well on this that it’s going to be the template for the wider organisation. So, we are already looking at what intake two and three will look like, which is much more of a whole organisation approach. We start in one part of Crawford, make it work and then we’re going to look to this as a route to success in the future.”
The company’s work on employee retention and empowerment is by no means finished yet, Bartlett noted, and she doesn’t believe the firm has yet reached its full potential or strength on this piece. However, the early signs are very strong. Talent is moving around the business. Over the last 12 months, it has doubled its internal promotion rate and will be doubling so again within the next six-to-nine months.
“Our employee retention is the highest it has ever been and our internal promotion rate is so high, so I have to say that it's working,” she said. “And people are noticing.”
In addition to this internal emphasis, over 2022 and beyond Crawford will also be continuing exploring how to integrate technology into everything it does, she said, as that technology piece is critical at every step of the claims process. And it has only become more critical as, just the same way that employee expectations have changed, so too have customer expectations.
During the pandemic, people became much more comfortable going online, she said, and so companies need to embrace a multi-channel approach to delivering their products or services in order to meet the demands of this expected accessibility. Companies across the insurance industry now have to focus much more on the customer journey and integrating the right technology is integral to that – and so, Crawford is embracing every chance to support its clients on that journey.
“Our journey is ongoing,” Bartlett said. “I’ve got a plan for where I want to take the business. And I’ve just ruthlessly followed that plan to keep making a difference, keep driving the change and create an environment where our people can come and say ‘these are the changes, this is a good idea’. That’s how you create momentum and pace around change that ultimately benefits our clients – because the more engaged our people are, the better we will do for them.”
Lisa Bartlett was appointed as President, UK & Ireland of Crawford & Company in August 2019. Having worked in both the insurance and broking sectors in an array of senior management roles, she possesses a deep knowledge of the claims sector and the markets in which Crawford & Company operates. She was also awarded in Elite Women 2023. See the full list of winners in Female Leaders in Insurance's special report.
