Insurers must do more to attract talent: EAIC panel

Insurance recruitment remains a worldwide problem. Many insurers in Asia-Pacific countries are facing a staff shortfall in coming years—but industry professionals are working to make the sector more attractive as a workplace choice, offering some light at the end of the tunnel.

Those were some of the findings of a panel discussion at this week’s East Asian Insurance Congress (EAIC) in Hong Kong this week, titled “Changing perceptions: reshaping insurance as a career”. The session looked at the state of recruitment and what can be done to enhance the sector’s appeal.

Shahrildin Jaya, managing director and chief executive of Syarikat Takaful Brunei Darussalam, suggested the social upside and career prospects of insurance should be stressed. He said he entered the industry as a general underwriter and was lucky to have a supportive general manager who “showed me the ropes and exposed me to facets such as risk and how to win accounts”.

But it was the discovery that working on customers’ claims was a “noble responsibility” that excited him. “If you look to the sincere intentions about insurance, it’s helping people,” Jaya said. “We can be not just transactional but also relationship-building.”

Ronak Shah, president of the General Insurance Association of Singapore, added: “Once you get into insurance you can see the lives you’re helping, the companies you support, the communities, and the social causes.”

Building a nation

For Sythan Prou, chief executive at Forte Life Assurance (Cambodia), insurance has never been perceived in Cambodia as “boring and old-fashioned”, he said. “It’s hard to relate to the Cambodian context because insurance is new. My parents were not born with insurance. It’s perceived as something they never experienced.”

“The increasing reliance on data scientists has made the field more attractive.”

The sector can be seen as nation-building, he added. “We tell our staff we insure 50 percent of the Cambodian economy, from highways to high-rise buildings. Our employees feel what they are doing is helping the country and creating significant impact. You can tell your grandchildren: ‘I’ve done something great’.”

A new perspective

Younger workers perceive insurance differently from their older peers, Shah said. “The discussions we have is very different from five or 10 years ago. The roles nowadays are not straight-out underwriter or broker. 

“The increasing reliance on data scientists has made the field more attractive. There’s a lot more curiosity, a lot more buzz, among younger people.”

Prou agreed, saying the key was to make insurance “something for the future”, adding: “You are joining an industry that is really growing.”

Lillian Lai, president of Tokio Marine Newa Insurance, said her company used gamification as a way to interest new recruits. “We use gaming tools to assess and retain talent,” she said. “We can explore personalities and whether the candidates are suitable for underwriting or claims.”

Jaya said his company looks for certain requirements essential to the industry, but then searches beyond to explore personal characteristics. 

“Technical skillsets can be learned and provided through training, but when we recruit we want to know what type of soft skills are ingrained.”

In Cambodia, with a more recent history of insurance, tech is used extensively, said Prou. “We always use tech as part of our acquisition and onboarding. We have not used paper for onboarding since day one.”

Shah said that Singapore has tried to pursue a “holistic” attitude to attract and develop talent. “For learning and development, regulators and industry bodies need to cultivate support through courses and funding.”

He said insurance companies try to encourage internal mobility. “We should look internally first,” Shah said. “Leadership development programmes are essential, encouraging up-and-coming colleagues to receive executive coaching.”

Insurers have seen an increased number of inquiries from potential recruits, he added. One challenge was to convince Singapore universities and polytechnics to start offering degrees in risk management and insurance.

Lai said Tokio Marine Newa is one of 19 insurers in Taiwan, but students often prefer banking and securities jobs over insurance. She said her company has devised some initiatives to promote the profession. 

“We have leadership training, on-the-job training, and mentorship. If you are identified as talent, you will have opportunity to work overseas. We’re in 45 countries. We offer Master’s degrees and provide tuition,” she explained.

Jaya said that when it comes to inclusion and diversity, Asia’s respect for elders gave the region an advantage. “We look at all age groups,” he said. In Singapore, Shah said, there was a desire to have “portability of skillsets” with an emphasis on upskilling and mid-career training programmes.

Shah said an often-overlooked issue was staff wellbeing. “The mental health of our existing staff is paramount,” he said. “It’s a proper value proposition.”

For more news from the East Asian Insurance Congress conference (EAIC) click here.

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