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insurance
The insurance industry wants you Professionals looking to make a career change need not necessarily go back to school to enter the insurance field By Noa Glouberman
T
he insurance sector, like many other industries in Canada, is facing a real recruitment challenge. The pending retirement of the baby boomers – men and women born after the Second World War, between 1946 and 1964 – indicates that there will be many jobs opening in the field of insurance in the coming years. In a study entitled “A Demographic Analysis of the Property & Casualty Insurance Industry in Canada, 2007 to 2017,” the Insurance Institute of Can-
ada (IIC) found that: ■ nearly half of all insurance employees are between the ages of 41 and 60; ■ insurance employees tend to retire two to three years earlier than workers in all other Canadian sectors; and ■ 25% of the current labour force will likely retire between 2012 and 2017. “Most companies in our industry … comment on the difficulty of sourcing enough talent to fill the vacant positions they have,” reports Patrick Belton, former president of Clover Insurance Brokers Inc., in an October 2010 article written for Canadian Insurance
World. “We hear this mentioned at almost every insurance gathering.” Canada, he says, faces “an economic and societal reality that we do not possess enough workers to fill our job vacancies”; he goes on to suggest that insurance companies across the country “need to get creative in attracting and retaining new talent and workers. One practical thing that we can do is to pay hiring bonuses to new employees to win the fight with other industries for that worker.” Another suggestion: “Look in the mirror. What are you offering new poten-
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tial hires? When I walk into tired-looking offices … that are lucklustre and lacking energy, is it any wonder that insurance firms are having trouble with recruitment? Once you look in the mirror – you will not like what you see. Change, be dynamic, be creative, be fun, be high energy.” One individual who is working hard to change the industry’s image in the eyes of potential recruits is Margaret Parent, director of the professionals’ division at the IIC. Parent, who heads up the institute’s Career Connections programs, believes that “a career in insurance is not typically on most people’s radar … but it should be.” “Recruitment issues have become an industry-wide concern,” she says from her Toronto office. “Above-average growth for property and casualty insurance products and a poor industry image among consumers mean that we face a bigger challenge than most other industry sectors as we try to recruit from a common pool of candidates.” Beyond educating students in high schools, colleges and universities about career opportunities within the insurance industry, Career Connections focuses on creating greater awareness among people already in the workforce who may be considering a career change. “The nice thing and interesting sell about insurance is that a lot of what you’ve done, your past work experience and knowledge often translates into transferable skills to our industry,” Parent explains. “Say you’re a nurse and you’re tired of being on your feet all day or just looking for a change. There’s lots you can bring to the table if you’re considering a career in insurance. A lot of the medical knowledge you already possess is really useful
What’s nursing got to do with it? The insurance industry welcomes health and other professionals seeking a career change who possess transferable knowledge and skills
in helping people to get the right kind of health coverage, for instance.” In fact, she says, many professions enable similar knowledge transfer to the insurance field, including
“The nice thing … about insurance is that … your past work experience and knowledge often translates into transferable skills” – Margaret Parent, director, professionals’ division, Insurance Institute of Canada
police officers, construction workers, auto mechanics, civil and mechanical engineers, salespeople, farm operators, health and environmental scientists and marketing and communication reps. “Though we certain-
ly value college and university students, sometimes it’s not necessarily the recent grads that have enough experience to be a broker or an adjuster,” says Parent. “[Those types of jobs] often come with a bit of experience, so anyone interested in a career change is considered a real asset.” Of course, some education and certification must be achieved before one can enter the industry. Study materials can be obtained from the Insurance Institute of BC, while licensing for insurance professionals is controlled by the Insurance Council of BC. “Essentially you can take something you’ve already been doing and, if we can teach you the insurance and risk-management aspects around that, you can make the switch to insurance,” Parent adds. “It’s not as onerous a process as having to go back to school for two years in order to make a career change to insurance.” • nglouberman@biv.com