INSURANCE ADVISER PROFILE

INSURANCE | ADVISER PROFILE

Reaching for the summit

Passion is what gets advisers in the financial services industry to the top, says Sumit Mong.

BY DAWN PICKENS

Sumit Monga’s career path has taken some surprising twists while spanning two continents. He moved from Kenya to study engineering at the University of Canterbury in 2003 - but engineering was his parents’ dream, not his.

“I was never going to be a great engineer, so I took a year off and decided to talk to people while working in sales and marketing. I always had the ability to relate to people and I was a natural at it.”

Marketing was so innate, he inadvertently broke a national company record his third day on the job while procuring new customers for a marketing firm contracted to American Express. He completed 17 enrolments in a single day.

“I was working in a Christchurch mall. I’d smile and tell shoppers about the promotion, which I thought was a great offer.”

Learning to listen

Growing up in Africa, Sumit honed his ability to listen - a skill he thinks most people lack. One formative communication experience happened in primary school, when he collected donations for an aged-care charity called HelpAge Kenya.

“I was just a little boy, but I went around and ended up raising a lot of money. Believing in what you’re doing

is important. If you don’t believe in your product, you won’t be passionate.”

After recognising Sumit’s talent for talk and passion for products, a friend recruited him into the insurance industry. A decade of working for Combined Insurance ended when the company stopped accepting new business in Australia and New Zealand – a change which provided Sumit the opportunity to start his own firm, EliteInsure.

“It meant I had more autonomy with what I could do. I could implement solutions without going through the red tape. I fully thanked them [Combined Insurance] for what they did. It was the best thing that ever happened to me.”

EliteInsure now employs the friend who recruited Sumit to the industry as the company’s South Island regional representative.

ASSET Magazine reached Sumit at his parents’ home in Kenya, where he was spending a working holiday in January. The Aucklander says he never looked back after starting EliteInsure in 2016, and today has 19 advisers on his team. He’s proud that he and his staff can help bridge the knowledge gap for consumers when it comes to financial products.

“The ability to simplify products and relate to a client in a straightforward way is my point of difference. You can complicate a simple concept because you don’t understand it or you can simplify it, and that makes it easy for clients to make decisions.” Sumit quotes one of Albert Einstein’s most famous phrases: “If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it yourself.”

Education and outcomes

Creating satisfying outcomes is paramount. Instead of merely offering advice, EliteInsure provides solutions tailored to clients’ situations and goals. In addition to insurance queries, advisers also handle KiwiSaver questions, which have taken on a new urgency the past couple years.

“When the pandemic hit in March 2020, I read a few stories where advisers had switched clients to conservative funds. It’s important to educate clients and know the fundamentals when it comes to KiwiSaver.” Sumit says the savings scheme is designed as a long-term investment, not something you can grow in two or three years.

“You need to be very mindful and aware of the client’s needs. We say volatility is part of any investment, and if your investor profile means you can handle the volatility, you must understand it as a strategy.”

He likens KiwiSaver to owning a home whose value may fluctuate over time. “You don’t cash out of a house when its value has dropped. If you wait, you would expect it to have capital growth.”

Another part of an adviser’s role is explaining insurance products, not only at the point of sale but also when life happens and the policy is tested. Sumit recalls a customer who was upset with an insurer and wanted to talk through a claim. It took four or five visits, but the man’s income protection claim was resolved in the end.

“It was a matter of letting him vent his anger, explaining the process and working through his lack of understanding. In the end, he was paid out and was very satisfied.”

Growing a new crop of advisers

Training the next generation of advisers is one of the hurdles the industry is facing, says Sumit. Gaining a Level 5 Certificate in Financial Services is a good first step for new advisers, but it only scratches the surface of what’s needed for success.

Fortunately for his team, Sumit is passionate about training and development. He says recent recruits require nurturing throughout the early phase of their careers.

“New advisers are like babies; they need constant care and attention. I think it’s like any learning process. You have to be very patient with them, very understanding.

“We all make mistakes. Patience, and leading them to the right source for information, is very important.”

A limited talent pool of advisers is another pressing concern. Sumit says the financial services industry in New Zealand needs more leaders who can inspire up-and-coming advisers.

“I think if every qualified, experienced adviser gave back a bit by teaching an entry-level adviser, it would really help the industry.”

His own rookie advisers have come mostly from referrals.

“The growth we have had was quite accidental. I have never advertised for advisers.”

When screening potential associates, he looks for character, capacity and attitude, and says passion is paramount.

“If they’re not passionate about being an adviser, often they will not succeed. They also must have integrity, ethics, and the capacity to learn and implement solutions while educating clients.” Sumit says while these traits can be strengthened, an adviser-in-training must have aptitude and desire from the start.

“You can’t make Usain Bolt sing. Usain Bolt runs.”

‘Believing in what you’re doing is important. If you don’t believe in your product, you won’t be passionate’

Navigating in the Covid-19 climate

The pandemic environment has posed challenges, too. Sumit says business owners are constantly weighing the economic impact of restrictions and lockdowns, so they are fearful about being audacious with insurance. “They’re quite watchful of expenses, and, as advisers, we have less time with them. It’s reduced productivity quite a lot.”

Digital solutions such as online video communication help, but Sumit believes in-person meetings are much more efficient.

“It’s a different environment when you’re sitting with a client face-to-face. When you’re at someone’s house, a coffee shop or the office, you get a better feel for the situation.

“Zoom is great, but I would prefer in many instances to see the client in a face-to-face capacity. You can read the body language more effectively to provide a better solution.”

When he’s not problem-solving with his team or his clients, Sumit shoots a lot of eight-ball as a league pool player. He keeps fit by taking long walks in the bush, aiming for at least 10,000 steps each day, and also likes to read anything business-related.

He recommends an audiobook he recently downloaded called, The Simple Path to Wealth, by JL Collins. It offers a basic map to financial freedom, including tips about saving, spending and investing.

Sumit says this is an interesting time to be working in the financial services industry. Things are changing fast, thanks to licensing pressure, regulatory revisions and the pandemic.

“Being able to adapt is one of the finest qualities of any business person. Sometimes hanging in there and seeing things evolve is a strong trait.

“Don’t change too much at one time. Adapt slowly and hang in there. Things will work out.” A