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The Human Element of AI Transformation

Discover ways to effectively navigate through AI transformation. Only 4% of companies say they’re creating real value from their AI investments. The key differentiator is how well organizations manage the human side of implementation. 

Download the white paper to explore best practices for taking a human-focused approach as you lead through change.

Recruiter Report: Find the “Perfect” Candidate

Finding top talent remains difficult in today’s labor market. However, holding out for the “perfect” candidate may mean losing out on high-potential individuals that would thrive in the role.

Read our blog post gain insights on redefining what the ideal candidate looks like and share how to take a realistic and future-focused approach to making the right hire.

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Compass 15.4: Comprehensive Succession Planning for Future Success

This quarter’s Compass feature article explores best practices for effectively approaching succession planning beyond the executive ranks. The newsletter also includes an overview of the industry's current labor market and recent executive-level job changes.

November 2022: Labor Market Pulse

As we near the end of 2022, the insurance labor market remains relatively strong. Unemployment is low, at 1.1%, and the insurance carriers and related activities sector has added nearly 34,000 jobs since the start of the year. However, finance and insurance job openings continued a four-month decline in September*, dropping to 280,000. Additionally, retirements fell to their lowest level in more than a decade, while voluntary quits remained high at 97,000. As the industry continues to work through shifting workforce priorities and ongoing realignment, focusing on retention, strategic recruiting and comprehensive succession planning remains paramount. For insight on the industry’s succession readiness, view the results of our recent study. AT-A-GLANCE NUMBERS Unemployment for the insurance carriers and related activities sector increased to 1.1% in October.  The insurance carriers and related activities sector gained  9,400 jobs in October. At roughly 2.8 million jobs, industry employment increased by approximately 43,300 jobs compared to October 2021. The U.S. unemployment rate increased to 3.7% in October and the overall economy added 261,000 jobs.   INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS On a year-to-year basis, September* insurance industry employment saw job increases in agents/brokers (up 3.3%), property and casualty (up 1.7%), TPAs (up 1.5%), and life/health (up 0.6%). Meanwhile, job decreases were seen in claims (down 10.7%), title (down 4.2%) and reinsurance (down 3.3%). On a year-to-year basis, September* saw weekly wage increases in all categories: property and casualty (up 11.2%), title (up 8.6%), life/health (up 6.3%), TPAs (up 6.1%), agents/brokers (up 4.7%), reinsurance (up 4.1%), and claims (up 0.8%).        BLS Reported Adjustments: Adjusted employment numbers for September show the industry saw a decrease of 8,800 jobs, compared to the previously reported increase of 9,300 jobs. The BLS continues to revise numbers to be most accurate, which may contribute to inconsistencies, depending on when reports were pulled. *The BLS JOLTS report and reports on wages and employment for the industry category are only available for two months prior. The source for the data represented in PULSE is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance data is derived from the insurance carriers and related activities sector.

2022 Insurance Industry Succession Planning Study Results

Explore the industry's succession readiness across all organizational levels. The Jacobson Group's Insurance Industry Succession Planning Study measures the breadth and depth of carriers' succession readiness. The 2022 study was conducted from September 15 through October 2 and was open to insurance carriers across all industry sectors. Download the results for valuable benchmarking insights to help refine your organization's succession planning strategies.

Identifying the Right Talent for Your Insurtech

Published in Insurance Journal: Insurtechs are continuing to disrupt the insurance industry, while pushing traditional insurers to focus on modernization initiatives and how they can best leverage the capabilities of data and analytics. Whether you're an insurtech organization or any other insurance organization embarking on modernization initiatives, the ability to bring in the right people to push these initiatives forward is essential. Read this article to explore a few key areas to consider as you identify and retain the individuals who can most effectively move your organization forward.

Recruiter Report: Recruiting for Skills, Not Experience

The tight labor market continues to intensify, with savvy insurers seeking creative ways to attract qualified professionals and expand their talent pools. Our team regularly works with hiring managers to determine the needs of a particular role, as well as how to creatively uncover qualified, yet perhaps non-traditional, candidates. In this edition of Recruiter Report, we explore how to look beyond professionals’ experience and resumes to uncover their potential for success in a role. Below we explore the pressing question, How can insurers most effectively recruit for skills? Determine the skills necessary for success in a role. Traditionally, many hiring managers focus on specific educational requirements, background experience and past positions titles when defining the requirements for a position. However, this not only limits your candidate pool, it potentially excludes individuals who may have the aptitude and abilities to thrive in the role. Rethink how you approach the recruiting process by identifying the core skills needed for success. Rather than focusing on a specific number of years’ experience in a certain position, identify what you’re hoping an individual would have gained within that timeframe, using this information to influence your search. For instance, transferable skills such as customer service, attention to detail and emotional intelligence are key for claims roles; while strong analytical thinking and sales skills create a solid foundation for underwriters. These interpersonal skills are often more difficult to teach than department-specific programs and processes. Refresh job descriptions to resonate with a broader audience. As you expand your candidate pool and explore less traditional hires, ensure this mindset is also reflected in your job postings. If you’ve previously included long lists of qualifications and desired experience, determine which are vital coming into the role and what can be learned on the job. By distilling your requirements down to the most essential elements, you’ll avoid discouraging otherwise well-qualified individuals from applying. At the same time, rather than simply listing a role’s day-to-day responsibilities, use your job posting to showcase its larger impact, growth potential, and opportunities to flex and develop various skills. Take a fresh approach to how you’re positioning open roles, focusing on making them more inclusive and compelling to a broader audience. Look for talent outside your comfort zone. The industry has recently seen record numbers of open positions; yet, there’s not enough available talent to go around. Keeping specific skills in mind, explore how you can expand your talent pool beyond your standard recruiting campuses and industry competitors. Consider different insurance verticals or even other industries that leverage similar skillsets. Partner with a broad range of college programs, actively participate in career fairs and expand your social media footprint. You may also choose to reach out to specialized recruiting firms with broad networks and extensive reach. Leverage behavioral interview questions. Especially when interviewing individuals who are not making linear moves or lack exact experience, determine how you can best uncover their ability to perform within a role. Rather than solely focusing on their background and past positions, ask questions that are more future-focused and help you understand how a candidate would handle potential scenarios. Here are a few examples of the many open-ended behavioral interview questions that can provide insight into an individual’s transferable skills, thought process and approach to various situations:            • How do you coach your team members to use their critical thinking skills?       • In what ways do you guide your team to advance the goals of the organization?       • Provide an example of a time you made a mistake at work and explain how you fixed the issue.       • Tell me about your biggest professional achievement. Be intentional when selecting interviewers. Along with behavioral interview questions, explore additional methods for further uncovering a candidate’s transferable skills. This could mean having someone other than the hiring manager or department head participate in the interview process. The candidate may feel more at ease with a peer, allowing them to engage in more natural conversation and enabling you to uncover different facets of their experience and skills. As an added benefit, this also grants candidates broader insight into your organization’s people and its culture. Recruiting for skills, as well as experience, is a key strategy for expanding your candidate pool and cultivating an agile and diverse workforce in today’s challenging market. Determine the transferrable skills needed to excel in a role, rework job descriptions to resonate with today’s candidates and create tailored behavioral interview questions to uncover potential beyond a resume. View the last edition of this quarterly series, “Recruiter Report: Job Hopping”

October 2022: Labor Market Pulse

The overall U.S. economy exceeded job growth expectations in September. While the insurance carriers and related activities sector experienced a slight decrease in employment, industry unemployment dropped to below 1% for the first time in nearly a year. Wages also increased year-over-year across all insurance sectors. Following two consecutive months of record finance and insurance job openings, August* saw a significant drop in open positions. However, at 347,000 open roles, this remains well above 2021’s monthly average of 296,000. Additionally, average monthly voluntary quits and average monthly hires remain at record highs in 2022. The industry’s ongoing reshuffling persists, as employers continue to compete in a challenging labor market. AT-A-GLANCE NUMBERS Unemployment for the insurance carriers and related activities sector decreased to 0.9% in September.  The insurance carriers and related activities sector lost  9,300 jobs in September. At roughly 2.8 million jobs, industry employment increased by approximately 37,900 jobs compared to September 2021. The U.S. unemployment rate decreased to 3.5% in September and the overall economy added 263,000 jobs.   INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS On a year-to-year basis, August* insurance industry employment saw job increases in agents/brokers (up 3.9%), TPAs (up 3.0%), property and casualty (up 1.5%), and life/health (up 0.4%). Meanwhile, job decreases were seen in claims (down 7.2%), title (down 3.4%), and reinsurance (down 0.7%). On a year-to-year basis, August* saw weekly wage increases in property and casualty (up 10.7%), title (up 6.7%), reinsurance (up 6.1%), life/health (up 5.8%), agents/brokers (up 5.4%), claims (up 4.7%), and TPAs (up 4.5%).        BLS Reported Adjustments: Adjusted employment numbers for August show the industry saw an increase of 5,600 jobs, compared to the previously reported increase of 5,400 jobs. The BLS continues to revise numbers to be most accurate, which may contribute to inconsistencies, depending on when reports were pulled. *The BLS JOLTS report and reports on wages and employment for the industry category are only available for two months prior. The source for the data represented in PULSE is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance data is derived from the insurance carriers and related activities sector.

Cultivating a Corporate Culture that Transcends Locations

Published in Insurance Journal: Over the past few years, organizations have continued to evolve in response to shifting environments and priorities. Now, as insurance organizations are establishing more permanent plans for moving forward and operating long term, it's important to explore how a corporate culture can best translate to the new working reality. Read this article to learn best strategies for cultivating a strong culture that transcends locations.

Q3 2022 Labor Market Study Results Infographic

The results of the third quarter iteration of the 2022 U.S. Insurance Labor Outlook Study are now available. The study, led by The Jacobson Group and Aon, plc, examines insurance industry labor and hiring trends. View highlighted stats in our infographic.

Episode 8: Exploring the Current State of the Insurance Labor Market – Q3 2022

As we enter the second half of 2022, insurers remain optimistic about employment growth, according to the results of The Jacobson Group and Aon-Ward’s Q3 2022 Insurance Labor Market Study. Jeff Rieder, partner at Aon and head of Ward Benchmarking, and Greg Jacobson, co-CEO of The Jacobson Group, discuss the study’s key findings and provide insight on areas insurers should consider to stay ahead in the challenging labor market.

The Digitally Lagging Insurance Industry is Poised for a Well-Funded Transformation

Published in Insider Intelligence The insurance industry has lagged behind most other sectors in its digital transformation, but change is coming. Insurance technology spending is expected to grow significantly between 2022 and 2026. Insurers plan to use the increased tech spending to digitize their core capabilities, build out digital self-servicing tools, and create personalized products and experiences for customers. Read this article to explore the importance of digital transformation within the insurance industry.

Jacobson Employee Spotlight – Q3 2022

We’re excited to share that The Jacobson Group was recently named to Business Insurance’s 2022 list of the Best Places to Work in Insurance. As a talent-focused organization, we understand the importance of investing in our employees’ growth and success throughout all stages of their careers. This quarter we’re highlighting two of the many individuals that are integral to our firm’s success. Learn more about them below. RYAN JACOBSON Recruiting Manager, 7 years at Jacobson Hometown: Mapleton, Illinois Alma Mater: University of Illinois Chicago  Describe Your Role: I’m a recruiting manager on our temporary staffing team. I manage and support our researchers and recruiters who source/recruit our hard-to-find (aka unicorn) candidates for subject matter expert roles! Favorite Movie: The Devil Wears Prada Jacobson in Three Words: Transparent, Flexible, Professional When You Grew Up, You Hoped to Become: A veterinarian Random Fact About Yourself: Those who have seen my work background may know, but I own more than 100 plants! Best Place You Have Ever Visited: Santorini, Greece Favorite Dessert: Cheesecake One Thing You Are Grateful For: I’m always so grateful of the work-life balance Jacobson allows! First Concert: An '80s hair metal reunion tour with Cinderella, Ratt, Quiet Riot and Firehouse JOANNE MERRITT Recruiter, 3 years 11 months at Jacobson Hometown: Queens, New York City, New York Alma Mater: The State University of New York at Fredonia Describe Your Role: I am a recruiter for talent delivery. I screen candidates to determine if they are qualified, interested and available for the various temporary roles we are working on. Favorite Dessert: So hard to choose, love eclairs! Jacobson in Three Words: Professional, Integrity, Respectful One Thing You Are Grateful For: Of course my great kids and their significant others, but also for my wonderful circle of friends! First Concert: Unfortunately, I cannot remember, but I was a “Dead Head” and I went to many of their concerts.  Best Place You Have Ever Visited: Italy Favorite Thing About Working at Jacobson: People are treated with respect. I also love the snacks in the office! When You Grew Up, You Hoped to Become: I have always thought I would have enjoyed going into law. Want to join our team? View our corporate careers page here. View past editions of our Employee Spotlight here or follow our Facebook page for monthly spotlights.

September 2022: Labor Market Pulse

The industry’s labor market remains strong with accelerating wage growth and continued low unemployment. Wage inflation for the industry is high, trending toward an overall 6.3 aggregate percent increase in 2022, compared to just 0.8 in 2021. This increase is even more pronounced for property and casualty carriers, which are trending toward a 10.5 aggregate percent increase, compared to -0.3 in 2021; and life and health carriers, which are trending toward 7.4, compared to 0.8 in 2021. Along with industry wage growth, we’re also seeing a substantial increase in open positions within the broader finance and insurance category. In June 2022, the BLS reported a record number of 401,000 open finance and insurance positions. This number has since been revised to 476,000 open positions, with July* 2022 keeping pace at a reported 473,000 open positions. Combined with low unemployment and changing employee expectations, hiring remains incredibly challenging across the industry. In fact, our Q3 2022 Insurance Labor Market Study found nearly half of insurers are having more difficulty hiring than they were one year ago.   AT-A-GLANCE NUMBERS Unemployment for the insurance carriers and related activities sector decreased to 1.7% in August.  The insurance carriers and related activities sector gained 5,400 jobs in August. At roughly 2.8 million jobs, industry employment increased by approximately 49,400 jobs compared to August 2021. The U.S. unemployment rate increased to 3.7% in August and the overall economy added 315,000 jobs.   INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS On a year-to-year basis, July* insurance industry employment saw job increases in agents/brokers (up 3.6%), TPAs (up 3%), property and casualty (up 1.3%), and life/health (up 0.8%). Meanwhile, job decreases were seen in claims (down 6.1%), title (down 1.7%), and reinsurance (down 1.1%). On a year-to-year basis, July* saw weekly wage increases in property and casualty (up 7.7%), claims (up 5.4%), life/health (up 5.3%), agents/brokers (up 4.9%), title (up 4.8%), and TPAs (up 2.8%). Meanwhile, wages decreased in reinsurance (down 1.7%).       BLS Reported Adjustments: Adjusted employment numbers for July show the industry saw an increase of 2,400 jobs, compared to the previously reported increase of 6,200 jobs. The BLS continues to revise numbers to be most accurate, which may contribute to inconsistencies, depending on when reports were pulled. *The BLS reports on wages and employment for the industry category, as well as its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), are only available for two months prior. The source for the data represented in PULSE is the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance data is derived from the insurance carriers and related activities sector.