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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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The Insurance Career Story: Stable, Rewarding, Limitless.

The insurance industry stands at the cusp of a growing talent crisis. Nearly half of insurance professionals will be retired or on the verge of retirement within the next 15 years. To remain fully staffed, the industry needs to fill 400,000 open positions by 2020. Unfortunately, graduates from risk and insurance programs currently meet only 10 to 15 percent of this growing need. Adding to the challenge is the reality that less than five percent of Millennials are interested in working in insurance. In order to find a solution to this worsening skills gap, the industry must work together to engage, educate and enlist the best and brightest emerging talent. Jacobson is proud to be part of the collaborative of industry organizations—including Hamilton Insurance Group, PCI, MyPath, InVEST, and Valen Analtyics—that ignited a grassroots movement dedicated to raising awareness of insurance as a desirable career choice. This cross-industry, multi-phased initiative is kicking off with an inaugural Insurance Careers Month—a month long focus on careers in insurance. This February is just the first leg of an awareness campaign branding insurance as the career trifecta—stable, rewarding, limitless. It is not too late to join the movement. Pledge your organization’s support by visiting www.insurancecareersmonth.com. It will take the joint commitment of hundreds of carriers, brokers and industry partners to impact the industry’s career brand. This is not a fundraiser. Participating companies are leveraging their own voice to amplify our unified message through their own individual initiatives, local outreach and social media. Looking for ways your individual organization can make an impact? Check out the following tips for promoting the insurance as an industry of choice to today’s young professionals: Revitalize your internship program: Internships are an excellent way for insurance organizations to find emerging employees who can help grow their business. However, not every program is created equal. Is your current internship strategy in need of a face-lift? Now is the time to revamp your current plan. Focus on a quality program that appeals to today’s bright and ambitious young professionals. Post your openings on MyPath—an initiative dedicated to educating students and young professionals about the insurance industry or on the Gamma Iota Sigma—the international risk management, insurance and actuarial science collegiate fraternity—website. Inspire the next generation: Take the opportunity to share what makes insurance a great industry to work in. Providing a first-hand look at a day in the life of an insurance professional is a great way to build excitement around an industry career. Allow students to job shadow or participate in career days at local schools. Check out InVEST for resources to help your organization get started. Take advantage of technology: Today’s young professionals are tech savvy and socially connected. Appeal to emerging talent by utilizing the technology they rely on every day. Have your Millennial employees launch a video campaign describing why insurance is a great industry to work in. Or, hold a virtual meet and greet with key members of your organization. Be a social media master: Five out of six Millennials connect with companies on social media. Make sure you are not missing your chance to engage these individuals. Be active on Twitter and other social sites frequented by today’s young professionals. Utilize popular Twitter hashtags to expand your reach. Highlight recent events and volunteer activities. Encourage employees to share their experiences on your company pages. And don’t forget to follow the hashtag #careertrifecta and share the published content. Promote your success stories: Take advantage of your current Millennial employees to reach out to other emerging professionals. Provide a forum for these individuals to share their own stories of working within the insurance industry. Highlight these on your website and social media. More than 320 companies, including Lloyds of London, Marsh and McLennon, and CNA, have already announced their support and participation in Insurance Careers Month. Working together, the industry can make a difference in combatting the impending skills gap. Isn’t it time you got involved in this industry-wide campaign? Learn more!

The Wild World of Sports Insurance

We’ve all heard the stories: Gene Simmons and his $1 million tongue, Mariah Carey and her $1 billion legs, and Julia Roberts and her $30 million smile. In the world of insurance, celebrities top the list of outlandish policies, but what about insurance in athletics? Professional sports are well known for their big dollar items. Already, Super Bowl 50 is being touted as “the biggest Super Bowl the NFL has ever celebrated”—and its associated costs back it up. But did you know that these costs extend to insurance? The minimum requirement in total insurance coverage for this year’s game is $350 million. In addition, general liability coverage required for each pre-game activity is $20 million. The staggeringly high costs of insurance in the professional sports arena is not limited to big events like the Super Bowl. In fact, individual athlete insurance policies are following suit. Let’s take a look at some of the most unique insurance policies taken out by the world’s top athletes. Mark McGwire: Amid major league baseball’s heated home run race of 1998, Mark McGwire decided to insure his ankle, which had been a nagging injury throughout his career. After the St. Louis Cardinals’ insurance company denied coverage, Lloyd’s of London stepped in and covered the appendage for a reported $12 million. He later went on to beat Sammy Sosa and set a new record of 70 home runs in a single season. David Beckham: Considered one of the most popular soccer players in the world, former Manchester United soccer superstar David Beckham insured his legs for a cool $70 million in order to protect himself from any accidents that could hurt his playing ability. In 2006, Beckham expanded his coverage to $195 million. The “biggest personal insurance policy in sporting history” covers him against not only injury and illness, but also disfigurement— as many of Beckham’s current endorsement deals rely on his looks. Cristiano Ronaldo: Following in David Beckham’s footsteps is Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo. In 2009, it was announced that the club had insured the legs of their star player for $144 million. It is safe to say that this World Player of the Year is covered in case of injury. Troy Polamalu: Gaining popularity on the field for both his powerful tackles and his long, flowing hair, Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu scored an endorsement deal with shampoo brand Head & Shoulders. His trademark, three-foot-long mane is now insured for $1 million through Lloyd’s of London. According to Head & Shoulders, Polamalu’s hair is “so thick and full that, end-to-end, it spans 100 football fields,” and is now protected in case of damage. Tim Tebow: Insurance policies are not limited to professional players. In fact, a number of student athletes have taken out policies to ensure their futures in case of injuries on the field. During his senior year with the Florida Gators, Tim Tebow took out a $2 million policy to protect against injuries. Fortunately for the Heisman and national championship-winning quarterback, he did not need to cash in on his policy before joining the Denver Broncos for his rookie NFL season. With athletes relying on their physique and their physical skills in order to make a living, it is no wonder that sports insurance has become more-and-more popular among today’s professionals. And now you’re armed with some insider insurance trivia to wow your friends while you watch this year’s big game!

Insurance Disruption: Embracing the New Reality

The business world as we know it is changing. Etsy has transformed the handmade marketplace, allowing artisans and crafters to sell products to a global, online audience. Uber has single-handedly turned the taxi industry on its head with its groundbreaking rideshare application. Rent the Runway now allows individuals to rent designer gowns and accessories for a fraction of the cost. But what do these changes mean for the insurance industry? No longer are insurers able to ignore the transformations that are re-shaping the business world. Thanks to new regulations, increased industry competition, rapid technological advances and change to distribution channels, insurance organizations are coming face-to-face with the new disruptive reality. As my brother and co-CEO at The Jacobson Group, Greg, discussed in our latest edition of Compass, the insurance industry stands at a vital crossroads. Only those organizations that adapt to the new business reality and embrace the untapped potential provided by disrupters will succeed. Disruption is not a new phenomenon. In the last few decades, we have seen the personal computer replace the typewriter and the cellphone revolutionize the telecom industry. Within insurance, the emergence of organizations such as Esurance and Progressive, with their simplified online-based models, have changed the way policyholders purchase and manage insurance policies. Having historically siloed itself away from most radical changes and innovations, the insurance industry now faces monumental upheaval. Technological advancements are increasing the opportunity for disruptions while consumer preferences are fueling the demand. From telemedicine and home sensor systems to drones and the e-commerce revolution, insurers are beginning to embrace change and expand beyond the status quo. Disruptive innovation is poised to redefine the future landscape of the insurance industry. Only those insurers who are prepared to challenge themselves and to overturn their current business models will be able to successfully compete in today’s constantly evolving and competitive insurance marketplace.  For insights on the growing importance of industry disrupters along with an update on the insurance industry's talent market, download Compass.

What Talent Trends Will Have an Impact on the Industry in 2016?

2016 is poised to be a year of rapid change and innovation within the insurance industry talent market. From the rise of flexible work options to the growing analytics revolution, the industry continues to be influenced by a number of key emerging talent trends. Here are the eight top insurance industry trends for 2016. Insurance Industry Talent Shortage Comes to a Head: A wave of retirements and low unemployment rates are creating a talent war within the insurance industry. Companies must rethink their current staffing strategies in order to get ahead. Emerging Talent is the Key to the Industry’s Future: Faced with a growing talent gap, organizations are tasked with updating their current engagement and retention practices in order to reach the next generation of insurance professionals. Time to Look Beyond the Industry: A tightening labor market is making it more and more difficult to find talent from within the industry. By shifting the focus towards skills and qualifications, insurers are able to find out of industry talent and grow them into valuable insurance professionals. Interim Talent is Closing the Gap: Insurers are facing a number of new mandates and regulations that are expected to tax their current staff. Bringing on highly qualified interim professionals is quickly becoming the solution to support this growing demand for talent. Flexible Work Options are Becoming the Business Strategy of the Future: Flexible work is quickly becoming a key engagement and retention tactic, creating happier employees and enabling organizations to expand their recruitment talent pools by looking past physical locations. Hiring and Staffing Goes Mobile: The job search is moving to mobile. With the number of smartphone users on the rise, having a recruitment strategy that embraces digital advances is vital to reaching potential employees. Gamification is Taking Training to the Next Level: Traditional training is dull and boring. The rise of gamification is providing organizations an alternative method to increase engagement among new hires. The Analytics Revolution is Here to Stay: Analytics is revolutionizing the business world. In order to fully embrace the innovations brought by growing technological advances, organizations are hiring analytics professionals at a rate more than five times faster than the overall national employment growth rate. Want to learn more about the top insurance industry trends anticipated in 2016? Download our full trend guide for an inside look.

Compass 9.1: Insurance Disruption – Embracing The New Reality

From Airbnb and Zipcar to Google Compare and cyber risk, we are facing a number of growing "disrupters." As an industry, we are no longer able to silo ourselves against the changes being wrought by new regulations, increased competition, technological developments and distribution changes. In this issue's feature article, Jacobson's co-CEO Greg Jacobson shares insights into the emergence of disrupters in the insurance industry. This edition also includes our regular overview of the industry's current labor market and recent executive-level job changes.

Revive Your Insurance Recruitment and Selection Strategies: Avoid the Hiring “Fire Drill”

This blog entry is part one in Jacobson’s Insurance Recruitment and Selection series, which provides insights into updated recruitment and selection processes and strategies for the modern workplace. Do any of these situations sound familiar? Open enrollment is right around the corner and you need customer service representatives, stat! Recent company turnover has you scrambling for a new underwriter. Your Chief Financial Officer is retiring and you need to find a replacement immediately. If you are like most companies, your current staffing strategy is to wait until the need arises to find and recruit talent. However, initiating a talent search only when a position needs to be filled immediately is actually making your job much more difficult. Don’t let your organization be waylaid by the hiring “fire drill.” In fact, while you may not always be hiring, you should always be recruiting. It may sound counterproductive, but embracing a culture of recruitment is key to ensuring your organization is able to compete in today’s increasingly challenging labor market. Building an opportunity pipeline ensures that your company has a bench of talent it can turn to in its time of need.  To be successful in growing a talent pipeline, your organization must consistently share its message and mission with the public. Regardless of any open opportunities, building positive recognition goes a long way in engaging passive candidates and fostering interest in working with you. Recruit employees to serve as ambassadors and advocates for your company. Encourage your current staff to “sell” your company and engage with others both inside and outside the industry—highlighting the perks, benefits and unique culture that you provide. Take a look at your website to make sure that you are getting the most “bang for your buck.” Your website serves as your unique job search calling card. As such, you want to make sure that you are making a good first impression and putting your best foot forward. Today’s job searchers want to be able to visit your website and learn more about your unique culture, see what you offer to employees and learn more about your history and current activities. Make sure to include employee testimonials, details on recent corporate citizenship initiatives and information on company accomplishments. With the competitive insurance labor market continuing to tighten, building a culture of recruitment is vital to avoiding the hiring “fire drill” and ensuring your organization’s future success.

Enter the Millennials: Make Way for the Next Generation of Insurance Leadership

Nearly four million Baby Boomers nationwide are retiring each year, and they are leaving behind a growing executive skills gap that must be bridged. Luckily, today’s young professionals are poised to meet this impending need. How can the insurance industry adapt their current workforce culture to embrace and encourage this new generation of leaders? In recent years, insurance organizations have renewed their focus on engaging young professionals. They have rethought recruitment practices and strategies, revitalized company cultures, and instituted company-wide policy changes in order to attract Millennials. In our latest edition of Compass, we discuss how the industry must now shift their focus to transitioning their Millennial employees into the executives of tomorrow. Fortunately, one million Millennials are entering the U.S. workforce annually and are ready to take on a leadership role. In fact, 91 percent of Millennials aspire to be a leader. Unfortunately, organizations are learning that supporting these professionals requires a new way of doing business. These achievement-oriented, passionate and energetic professionals are re-thinking the traditional corporate ladder. With Millennials focused on carving out their own career path, cultivating this generation of leaders means redefining leadership itself. A career lattice focused on horizontal, vertical and diagonal developmental paths will allow more collaborative and customizable ways for today’s young professionals to structure work and build careers. Organizations must move past their dated development programs and incorporate more targeted, personalized training programs. Dynamic, “assignment-based” career training programs may be the key to helping young professionals improve their skills and take charge. Only by embracing change and engaging today’s Millennial professionals, can insurance organizations successfully build the leaders of tomorrow. For insights on the importance of Millennial leadership along with an update on the insurance industry's talent market, download Compass.

Holiday Havoc: A Guide to the Top Five Unusual Holiday Insurance Claims

The holidays are almost here! With the parties, decorations and celebrations of this festive season come some unusual insurance claims. Beyond the snow and ice damage to homes or emergency room visits due to a fall off the ladder while putting up decorations, here are some the most unexpected holiday situations that have resulted in unique insurance claims: Keep Calm and Gobble On: Compared to an average day in November, Thanksgiving sees cooking-related home insurance claims more than double. The increased popularity of turkey fryers is fanning the flames and adding an additional element of danger. Other tasty troubles include food poisoning from undercooked, spoiled or contaminated food. In fact, a surprising number of unlucky partygoers will experience food poisoning after mistaking inedible holiday decorations for chocolates. Over the River and Through the Woods: The holidays are a time of heavy travel as people take to the roads, rails and sky to visit family and friends. The number of accidents caused by exhausted or drunken drivers sees an increase during these busy travel months. Another holiday driving hazard? Christmas decorations. Hundreds of thousands of car accidents are caused every year due to distracted drivers eyeing lights and decorations. You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch: The flurry of gift purchasing during the holiday season is prime time for thieves—both in-person and online. Cyber criminals are known to step up their efforts during the holidays, particularly via public Wi-Fi networks. In addition, burglaries of gifts from within the home or delivered on one’s doorstep also rise during the holidays. Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With Strings: Christmas morning is filled with excitement and anticipation. However, the rush to unwrap the gifts scattered under the tree often leads to hundreds of emergency room visits. Annually, the use of scissors and knives to tear through festive wrapping paper has resulted in a number of health insurance claims for the slicing of one’s hands, arms or legs. O Tannenbaum! The Christmas tree is a centerpiece of many holiday celebrations. But this traditional holiday decoration is not without its dangers. With more and more individuals opting for live trees, there is an uptick in house fires. The combination of electricity from decorative lights and the water used to keep trees alive has led to numerous insurance claims. However, having a tree within the house is not the only danger. One particular claim tells of a woman driving home from a day of Christmas shopping whose car was nearly totaled after a poorly tied tree flew off another vehicle and hit her car. Fortunately, the woman’s auto insurance policy covered the damage, and she was even able to keep the tree! Here’s hoping your holiday season is happy, safe and claim-free!

Financial Transformations: Why They’re Taking the Industry by Storm

The insurance industry is facing a number of critical disruptions across all dimensions. Growing technological advances, increasing regulations and burgeoning competitive pressures have made the ability to transform functions and critical operations essential for continued success. This is all the more true within the insurance industry’s financial segment. But why the financial transformation and why now? Unprecedented challenges and changes have dramatically raised the stakes for financial sectors within the industry. Externally, ongoing merger and acquisition activities, increasing regulatory pressures following the global financial crisis, rising demand for personalized products and services, and the growing focus on digital experiences are driving financial transformation to the top of the strategic agenda. Internally, organizations are facing increasing demand for performance data within finance, ongoing pressure to reduce finance costs, and inflexible and siloed legacy systems that are difficult to use and exceedingly time-intensive. As a result of these megatrends and growing industry pressures, finance leaders are focused on making advancements across several fronts. Driving the transformation is a need for better decision making and more accurate, real-time reporting. Increased controls are being implemented in order to promote strong governance, help reduce risk and streamline the regulatory compliance process. The adoption of common platforms, process automations and cross-organizational standardization are being implemented to increase organizational efficiency and reduce costs. In situations where outdated legacy systems are preventing or limiting the adoption of advanced analytics practices, new and updated technology is being implemented. Closer alignment and synchronization of functions and processes across organizational segments—including finance, risk and actuarial—is being authorized to provide clearer visibility into performance and allow for better decision making. A shift is being felt within the finance segment of the insurance industry. Emphasis is moving away from transaction processing toward more strategic activities. In truth, the financial transformations of the past have primarily focused on savings—cutting costs, gaining efficiencies and establishing controls and risk-management procedures. Now, following the recent economic downturn and resulting great recession, insurance organizations must take a deeper look at their financial situations and rethink their practices and strategies. A new focus on enabling corporate strategy, capital agenda and competitive advantage in the marketplace must be adopted. Organizations must act quickly and decisively to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their finance functions.

Compass 8.4: Enter The Millennials: Make Way For The Next Generation Of Insurance Leadership

As the Baby Boomer generation begins retiring en masse, they are leaving behind a growing executive skills gap that must be bridged. Today's young professionals are poised to meet this impending need. Jacobson shares strategies and best practices for building the executives of tomorrow. This edition also includes our regular overview of the industry's current labor market and recent executive-level job changes.

Focus on Growing Staff Driving Search for Alternate Staffing Strategies

The results from our latest Semi-Annual U.S. Insurance Labor Outlook Study are now in! With full employment and positive staffing predictions, the insurance industry is enjoying its return to its pre-recession state. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), insurance unemployment reached 2.3 percent in August and is expected to hover between one and three percent through the remainder of the year. In addition, the rate of expected hiring has reached the second highest level in the history of the study, with 65 percent of organizations reporting that they are planning to increase their staffs. Further, nearly half of all companies are planning to increase their staffs by at least two percent in the coming year. The primary drivers for this anticipated staffing growth is an increase in business volume and a focus on filling areas that are currently understaffed. For the first time since 2012, revenue growth expectations dropped below 80 percent. In addition, 6.2 percent of organizations are predicting a decrease in revenue. This is the highest percentage since January 2012, which saw predictions of 11.1 percent. Despite this drop in revenue predictions, organizations are still focused on growing their staffs. Due, in part, to the fully employed workforce and the continued focus on filling positions, insurers are facing an increasingly challenging recruitment climate. With 1,515,500 individuals currently working in insurance, the industry is seeing employment levels that it hasn’t seen since December 2003. With a to-date average of 231,000 job openings in 2015 alone, it is clear that the demand for talent is far outpacing the supply. Positions across the board are increasing in recruitment difficulty, with nine out of twelve surveyed roles being reported as moderate to difficult to successfully fill. Currently, actuarial, analytics and executives top the list of job areas most difficult to recruit for. In light of these growing challenges, insurers are turning to temporary staffing strategies to meet their immediate needs. Despite the economic recovery, the business world has seen temporary employment continue to make waves. Since January 2015, the greater economy has added 52,200 temporary employees. In total, 2,907,700 contract professionals are active in the national workforce. And those numbers are only expected to increase. By 2020, nearly 40 percent of employees in the U.S. will be contingent employees. Within insurance, it is estimated that 30,000 temporary professionals are currently employed. As the industry faces a continued talent gap, temporary staffing is proving to be a valuable solution to workload needs. In fact, 76 percent of organizations participating in the recent survey responded that they are planning to maintain their use of temporary employees, a slight drop from the 77 percent reported in July 2014. Despite this dip, this remains the second highest rate in survey history. With more and more individuals opting for a career as an interim employee, organizations are able to find highly skilled individuals to help them with their high-priority projects and demand spikes. From entry level all the way up to subject matter experts and executives, these individuals are enabling organizations to manage their increasing workloads. As the recruitment climate tightens and organizations feel the pinch, temporary staffing will continue to play a pivotal role throughout the industry.

Connectivity is Key to a Successful Telecommuting Program

So, you’ve purchased the extra laptops, invested in remote workspace technology and developed a flexible work schedule. You’re all ready to take a step back and let your organization’s telecommuting program take off, right? Wrong. Simply putting the technology in place and enabling your employees to work at home will not automatically result in a productive business. In order for your flexible work initiative to be successful, your organization requires effective and engaging management. With team members in and out of the office, it is extremely important that leaders create a sense of connectivity and comradery. How can your organization ensure its telecommuting program is a success? What can managers do to keep their team members connected even when they aren’t sharing physical office space? Encourage virtual meetings: Effective communication involves nonverbal cues and body language. Fortunately, video calls go a long way to re-create an in-person experience. Being able to actually see the members of your team helps build a level of rapport that is vital to creating true comradery. Consider substituting standing calls and team meetings with video conferencing to help facilitate strong teamwork. Teleconference programs – such as Skype, WebEx, and GoToMeeting – make having a virtual face-to-face meeting easier than ever before. Collaborate and share documents and files: Sharing documents is a great way to keep your entire team in the loop and on track with ongoing group projects. With Google Drive, every team member can view and edit documents at the same time. From project lists to spreadsheets, your employees can collaborate remotely without missing a beat. Schedule an in-office day: Online meetings, chats and video conferencing can only go so far. Your team still needs to spend some amount of in-person time in a common space. Develop a schedule where once a month—or whatever timeframe works best for your organization—the entire team is in the office. It is important to ensure that your team spends a portion of their working time together physically. Take a team retreat: It can be as simple as a quarterly lunch out of the office or as elaborate as a weeklong retreat. Either way, it is essential that you provide your team with an opportunity to spend time together away from the office. This is a great way for the team to learn more about each other, improve rapport, and develop more personal connections. Telecommuting can be a great opportunity for your organization to increase employee engagement and retention. However, it is vital that team leaders consistently interact with their staffs and encourage a culture of kinship and comradery in order to build a flourishing team. Connectivity is the key to ensuring the success of your remote employees.