How Insurers Can Attract New Talent in a Competitive Marketplace

An aging workforce poses a challenge to all economic sectors, and in the insurance space—where the median age is over 45 and as many as 8 in 10 Millennials have said they’re unfamiliar with the industry—the pressure is on to confront it before time runs out.

Meanwhile, on the heels of a difficult year—and presented with the opportunity of greater workplace flexibility—many employees are back on the talent market as the COVID-19 pandemic begins to ebb. When the world has been turned upside down, why not look for that silver lining? 

Fortunately for you, this could mean an influx of potential applicants with diverse skills and perspectives to help round out the open roles on your team. Unfortunately? Many other employers—some of whom are in flashier industries, like technology or investments—are thinking the exact same thing.

So how can insurers and brokerages be more attractive to job seekers? Welcoming fresh talent can help you close critical skill gaps, ensure healthy knowledge transfer between more experienced and newer employees, and protect the future of your company—but it’s no small feat.

Let’s take a look at three insurance recruitment techniques that could help you manage it.

1. Join the flexibility bandwagon

In a post-COVID world, there’s little reason not to embrace flexible work arrangements for your team. For some, this might mean employees are given complete freedom to choose whether they’ll work in an office environment or be remote—but it doesn’t have to be that extreme.

Flexibility can take the form of small and large ways you empower employees to make decisions not just on where they work, but when and how. For example, can you invite employees to set their own hours to accommodate better work-life balance? Decline to force employees suffering from Zoom fatigue to have their video cameras on all day? Consider job-sharing or flextime arrangements for some roles?

All of these options will attract new prospects who are looking for a company that will respect their ability to perform well without being micromanaged all day, every day. 

How to get started: You can showcase your flexibility as an employer right from the get-go by being an accommodating interviewer. Offering online video interview capabilities as part of your insurance recruitment strategy makes it easier for potential employees to chat with you, and having a generous window of scheduling availability sends the message that each prospect matters to you and will get the attention and respect they deserve.

2. Build a warm and welcoming recruitment process

In addition to flexible interviewing, your recruitment process should let prospective employees know that you are ready to welcome them as they are. Stuffy phone screenings and panel-style interrogations are out; down-to-earth and honest communications are in. Candidates may be expecting the former from an insurance provider, but you can be the company who pleasantly surprises them.

Step one of this process is to create approachable and honest job postings for every open role. The talent pool is evaluating you as much as you’re evaluating them, so put your company’s best foot forward in the way you describe the position, the work it entails, and your organization’s values. 

Make sure you’re showing candidates how welcoming you are of new and cutting edge skill sets, too. After all, the insurance space offers exciting opportunities in data science, emerging technologies, collaboration, and more—so make that known on your postings and Careers page.

How to get started: Give applicants an opportunity to be themselves—not just a piece of (digital) paper. You can use one-way interviews in your insurance recruitment strategy to screen applicants in a way that invites them to show you who they are, face-to-face, without requiring extra time and input from your busy recruiters.

3. Support employees’ physical and intellectual wellness

Insurance providers and brokers give themselves a leg up as employers by showcasing that signature mission of providing financial security. Good health and retirement benefits will help you give prospective employees the same confidence that you give new customers who buy coverage from you.

Additionally, today’s job seekers want to know that their employers want to support their holistic wellness—and that means intellectual growth as well as physical health. Supporting employees’ furthering and ongoing education is a great way to improve performance, tap into emerging skill sets and areas of expertise that could bring new opportunities for innovation to your organization, and increase retention.

In fact, according to a 2019 survey by LinkedIn, 94 percent of employees say they would stay at a company longer if it was invested in helping them learn.

How to get started: During interviews with candidates, encourage interviewers to ask the right questions about how the candidates’ formal education has influenced their work habits, what types of ongoing learning they enjoy, or what they hope to learn from working for you. It could provide insight on how soft skills and life experiences help differentiate one candidate from the next, and convey your company’s interest in employees’ intellectual growth.

It’s never too early to start locking down young talented professionals, many of whom are now open to career transitions and looking for exciting opportunities. You can secure the future of your organization by hiring the right talent now and we want to help. Chat with a client success expert today to learn how our video interviewing platform can help your insurance recruitment strategy to attract new talent.

About The Author

Jessica Skerritt is a Strategic Account Manager at interviewstream, supporting clients in enhancing their recruitment processes through technology for the past 7 years. In her spare time, Jessica can be found working on fixer uppers and spending time with her family and 2 dogs in Central Texas.