Careers in insurance companies: professions related to technological revolution

New profiles such as those of data scientists, cyber security officers, online underwriters, etc. are emerging.

Careers in insurance: professions related to technological revolution

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Data scientist or database manager

Process the massive amount of data collected, insurance companies are making recourse to new specialists tasked with analyzing and structuring often scattered data.

Having command over computer and statistical tools, these experts are in charge of building customer data bases: preferred contracts, expressed needs, etc. This task makes it possible to gauge policyholders’ conduct, customize supply and better adjust premiums.

A survey on digital transformation jointly conducted by Boston consulting Group and IBM has found that Big data that allows better segmentation of customers, should yield 14 billion USD of additional premiums for insurers in the next ten years. ⁽¹⁾.

Information system security expert

Data abundance raises a security issue as insurance companies are up against huge hacking threats targeting customers’ files. Recourse to information security experts has become paramount; hence the growing needs of hiring in the area of information security.

Cyber risk consultant

Jointly working with security engineers, cyber consultants‘ task consists in crafting impact analysis and in mapping information risks to better contain threats, secure and improve the performance of services.

Chief digital officer (CDO) or digital strategy officer

This task consists in helping the company expedite digital transformation process, devising new operating patterns for the company and defining the priorities for upcoming years.

Mobile tool developer

in an effort to face competition fueled by the proliferation of mobile applications, insurance companies have found themselves bound to rethink their design and product distribution methods.

Maintaining market shares necessarily goes through the development of mobile applications designed for customers, predominantly young and desperate for change. Developers of mobile tools are therefore tasked with the creation of digital and simple platforms, adapted to the profiles of smartphone users.

Careers in insurance: The new relational and commercial dimensions

At the era of the digital, insurance companies are no longer product-minded but rather customer-minded. Indeed, customers have become the sum and substance of the entire insurer craftsmanship.

Being customer-minded and not product-minded requires a new marketing approach. The information gathered will make it possible to customize the solutions proposed to clients who, in turn, will have to stick to the new needs as much as possible.

This change of course triggers change among several insurance professions:

Customer relationship manager

This task is highly regarded today as it is held by the one who is the spokesperson of policyholders. His duty consists in actively pushing the insured for feedback, evaluating their experience with the company, their level of satisfaction and their expectations.

The information collected will make it possible to adjust corporate policy and improve the company’s services. The ultimate objective is to satisfy clients and ensure their loyalty as they are at the core of the insurance business.

Community manager

Fully aware of the potential of social networks, insurers are wasting no time to hire community managers whose role is to mediate communities on the social networks. Uniting customers around the company is synonymous with visibility. Developing the brand image therefore becomes a strategic objective assigned to community managers.

Case manager

The new consumption patterns, especially those related to some classes of business such as insurance assistance have triggered the emergence of new local businesses. The case manager showcases this need expressed by insurers to be listening to their customers.

The role of a case manager, for instance, is to facilitate the reintegration of accident victims in society and/or in their profession. He collaborates with physicians, psychologists, legal experts and associations in order to come up with a solution that is adapted to each situation.

Careers in insurance: Human resources management

In modern corporate world, the role played by human resources manager is no longer confined to the administrative management of staff: payroll, management of leaves, health files, etc.

Training and in-house communication are additional tasks entrusted to the human resources manager. Such extended tasks certainly require imagination, anticipation and responsiveness.

The manager of human resources : He is a refined strategist whose job is to design and implement a provisional management and administration policy.

He holds and takes part in in-house communication operations, creating social ties among wage earners, feeding the standards related to corporate culture. He also develops ongoing vocational training programs with a view to upgrading wage earners’ skills.

Careers in insurance: Ethics and compliance manager

To avoid legal disputes and penalties, insurers are making more recourse to experts and specialists in the areas of ethics and compliance.

This staff, dedicated to risk management and legal cases, will be attending to the company’s compliance with all national and international regulations. They warn the management against the risks at stake, suggest solutions and implement preventative measures.

Careers in insurance: Careers linked to the emergence of new risks

A major part of insurers’ current losses is accounted for by climate change that triggers more and more frequent catastrophes of unparalleled scale and intensity.

Apart from natural phenomena, insurers are affected by terrorism risks that are spreading to all continents. Political instability, social and economic imbalance, religious conflicts and “globalization” are the main factors behind this scourge.

In terms of new risks, insurers are required to come up with solutions to cyber criminality, to connected objects and to global population ageing, etc.

Climate mission officer: This task has been created in order to assist analysts and actuaries. The officer in charge of climate mission may originally be a meteorologist, a geographer, or a hydrology engineer. His duty consists in crafting research programs related to climate change and drawing up an advanced mapping of climate risks.