INSURANCE JOURNEY / Jeff Booth
FROM UNDERWRITING TO BROKING: THE BIG SWITCH OVER
The 2021 WA Broker of the Year, Jeff Booth from GSK Insurance Brokers talks about his journey across the world – from the London market to the shores of Australia – and from underwriting triumphs to finding success in insurance broking.
“I
joined the insurance industry in the early 1990s back in the United Kingdom. Having spent 12 months backpacking around Australia post-university, I needed a job. Luckily, my father was in the industry and lined up a ‘temporary’ job for me at National Vulcan, which was then part of Sun Alliance. My time there gave me great opportunities to learn from and work with many people who were prepared to spend the time to help develop my skills. I held several different roles, including five years in the London market. It also gave me the chance to deal with some major companies and different markets with clients in Europe and North America. I moved to Perth in 2005 and landed a business development manager role at CGU, after a few months in the country. I was with CGU for seven years, but I needed a new challenge and thought insurance broking would offer that. Working for an insurer for all those years had given me the opportunity to see some great insurance brokers in action, and I had picked up some good practices when I moved to GSK. As a risk management professional, I have always enjoyed the interactions with clients. Many of them are passionate about their business. It is great to spend time with these people, to get to know them, build a relationship, understand their business, and how we can help and advise them on their risks. I have clients in a wide variety of industries and every day provides different challenges. Their businesses are often transforming while the risks they are exposed to are constantly evolving. At the same time, the approach of many insurers
PROUDLY SUPPORTING
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has significantly changed in the last few years. The combination makes our work continually challenging. The biggest lesson I’ve learnt in my career so far is: one must work hard to progress and develop oneself, but balance it with one’s life outside of work. For me, exercise plays a significant part in this. Not only does it help physically, but it also provides a mental break and links in with social activities with the people I train with. When I am back at work, there is then the additional benefit of better focus when my mind is refreshed from a break. I believe that the insurance industry provides fantastic opportunities for all types of people and skill sets – once in, not many people leave. We interact with great people, and operating in a global industry means there are opportunities overseas, if you want to look beyond Australia. I’ve really enjoyed my career journey so far. There have obviously been ups and downs, but many more ups than
downs, and plenty of things to learn along the way to where I am now. I don’t think I would change any of it. Mentorship has been incredibly important throughout my career. Having people from within the industry be there to bounce things off, guide, and advise has helped in my development. I’m sure most people who have had a mentor will have had similar benefits. I think mentees not only benefit from the experience of the mentor, but also having someone removed from their day-to-day can provide a more objective and less emotional approach when sometimes we can be too close to the issues in our own work. As an insurance broker, professionalism is the key component of our success and this encompasses all aspects of our role. In being the trusted adviser to our clients, we must have the knowledge and continually develop our skills to maintain a professional approach. If we fail to do this, we cannot expect to develop trust and fall back to becoming the ‘insurance salesman’.
FIVE QUICK QUESTIONS Favourite film? Casino Royale Favourite book? The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown Favourite tipple? A nice glass of shiraz Favourite pastime? I do an open water swim in the Swan River a few times a week and also play water polo Favourite food? I love Indian food and usually go for a Lamb Saagwala
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