A DIVERSE ARRAY OF JOB OPPORTUNITIES AWAIT

The employment outlook for the insurance industry continues to be positive, with a growth rate of nearly 10% between now and 2020.

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, there were 6,086 insurance companies in 2013, including property/casualty (2,623 companies), life/annuities (904), health (835), fraternal (87), title (58), risk retention groups (256), and other companies (1,323). The U.S. insurance industry employed 2.4 million people in 2013, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Of those, 1.4 million worked for insurance companies, including life, health and medical insurers (812,100 workers), property/casualty insurers (597,100 workers), and reinsurers (27,000 workers). The remaining 943,200 people worked for insurance agencies, brokers, and other insurance-related enterprises.

There’s a constant need for qualified individuals in this growing sector. Here, a variety of professionals — from a chief medical officer to actuarial model builder to sponsorship account coordinator — discuss the perks of working in this expanding and dynamic industry.

INVESTING IN OPPORTUNITIES AT AMERICAN FAMILY
Rosemary Martinez U’Ren joined American Family Insurance because it was a better opportunity, economically and professionally. She stays because of the many opportunities to grow personally and professionally – and to be involved. What does she love most about American Family? “…It’s about the passion I see in the company in how we’re changing. We’re an 80-plus-year-old insurance company that is not resting on our laurels,” says U’Ren, HRA advisor/ employee relations director. “The industry is competitive and we’re leading the path with innovation and courage, not an easy task for any organization. It’s exciting to be a part of these new challenges.”

U’Ren, who joined the company in July 2006, currently leads two areas in American Family’s human resources department. In addition to employee relations, she leads a group of business partners who manage HR services for the company’s business areas. A current project is to help the organization move to a more effective way to manage full-time employees and salary expenses for its workforce.

She’s finding a side project rewarding in a different way. U’Ren is working with the local United Way to define employer standards for employing those currently in poverty.

The youngest of eight, U’Ren’s parents came to the United States with five children in tow and didn’t speak the language, but worked hard to create a new life for the family.

“Every parent wants a better life for their children, and each of us benefitted from their hard work,” says U’Ren, a graduate of the University of Texas at San Antonio. “My dad has always stressed the importance of education. Both my parents persevered through many challenges, and I was fortunate enough to learn from all of these experiences being the youngest.”

With close to 8,000 employees in 19 states, the future is bright not only for American Family, but for the industry as well. “Bringing new ideas to our industry is the way we’re doing business now,” says U’Ren.

One innovative idea being implemented at American Family is the company’s “Dreams” campaign. “We’re here to inspire, protect and restore dreams,” she explains.

To excel in the professional world, U’Ren advises working in as many different areas of the industry or disciplines as you can. “Listen well, ask questions about what you don’t understand, and be nice to everyone you meet,” she says.

To get ahead, it’s important to be respectful of differing opinions, she says. You may not always agree with someone else’s opinion, says U’Ren, but learn why and understand their viewpoint. “You never know when you will come across that individual or that idea again.”

U’Ren is happy to pass along the best advice she’s received, which is to ask for additional training and opportunities to work on projects to better understand areas where you can improve. Put simply, says U’Ren, “Invest in yourself.”

MAKING AN IMPACT AT MOLINA HEALTHCARE
As chief medical officer for Molina Healthcare, Dr. Keith Wilson oversees clinical policy and medical management for the company’s health plans, including quality improvement and utilization management, and the company’s medical clinics. “I took the role because of my excitement about what’s happening in healthcare and the opportunity,” says Wilson. “This is a unique position to be impactful.”

With the many changes happening in healthcare, says Wilson, what’s especially exciting is finding effective ways to reach and serve underserved communities and the many people now coming into the healthcare system who historically have not had access to it.

“It’s not difficult, though it does sound overwhelming,” he says. “It’s exciting and gratifying to have the opportunity to this work.” But the work is also much different from being a front-line healthcare practitioner.

“You don’t get the immediate satisfaction,” says Wilson, who practiced as an obstetrician for 20 years. “What I do now takes time. We see accomplishments over month and years, not over hours and days.”

In this role for just a few months, one of the biggest challenges Wilson faces is to understand the many markets Molina Healthcare serves. Based in southern California, Molina offers its services, including medical clinics and insurance plans, in 17 states and employs about 9,000 people. “They all have unique characteristics and regulations,” he acknowledges. “I’m just getting my arms around the complexity of the Molina delivery system.”

Wilson previously served as vice president of clinical services for the Molina Medical Group clinics. What he’s most proud of is how Molina has restructured its systems of care to better serve more complicated patients.

“Traditionally, we’ve served the Medicaid population — mothers and babies, that was our providers’ comfort level,” says Wilson. “But with the Affordable Care Act, we’re seeing more complicated and complex patients that exceeded the skillsets of traditional providers.”

As such, Wilson and Molina built care delivery teams with specialized providers as well as medical clinical social workers, caseworkers, and pharmacists, to take care of the sickest, most challenging patients.

“We’ve been able to reduce the frequency of hospital visits and give them a better standard of living by managing and coordinating their care,” says Wilson.

It’s this commitment to quality care and improving people’s lives that make Molina a great place to work.

“Molina has a great mission, and they live the mission,” acknowledges Wilson. “You see it as you walk the hallways and talk to employees and managers. There’s consistency in the mission and living the mission and it manifests in our day-today policies, procedures, and activities.”

Wilson’s advice for career success is to be clear on what you want to do and what your career objectives are. Once they are clear, work toward preparing yourself, but don’t forget the basics, including interpersonal and communication skills.

“Pursue your dreams, seek education, and the higher the better … you’re more likely to be more successful,” he says. “To borrow an old cliché, luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity, so be prepared.”

SHAPING THE FUTURE OF HEALTHCARE AT WELLPOINT
Data is key for many industries, and the healthcare industry is no different. Kejian Niu knows this well. Niu is vice president of the Advanced Analytics department within the Health Care Analytics organization at WellPoint, one of the largest healthcare benefit companies in the nation. His team uses advanced analytical tools and methods to derive insights and knowledge about the company’s consumers, then works with internal business partners to apply that information to drive better business results, improve consumer health and wellness, and better manage increasing healthcare costs.

For instance, his team is currently developing proprietary statistical models to predict the risk of readmission for consumers who have had an acute hospital admission or surgery.

“Based on this model and other business decision tools, we send the names of patients who have high readmission risk to the patient’s primary care physicians through an electronic portal,” says Niu, who joined WellPoint seven years ago. “The providers can then use that information to conduct follow-up appointments and watch for issues that may trigger readmission. That’s just one example of how we leverage extensive information about patients to empower their physicians to better coordinate care. It’s how we apply data and analytics to improve the quality of care.”

In fact, that’s what drew Niu to WellPoint, which employees 48,000 people across the country.

“Every day, I have the potential to make an impact in shaping the future of healthcare by creating the tools that help Americans make more informed healthcare choices and providing healthcare value without sacrificing quality.”

Niu came to the United States from China when he was in his 20s to pursue a graduate degree. Faced with a vast cultural and language gap, he focused on the skills and talents he already possessed that were transferable to the U.S. job market to succeed. For those who grew up in a different culture, Niu acknowledges that it does take more effort to advance your career in corporate America, but that it shouldn’t be a deterrent.

“I had to keep an open mind and learn from my experiences. I let my hard work, skills, and knowledge speak for itself and I was able to earn trust. My career has advanced accordingly,” says Niu.

For new and soon-to-be graduates, there is an increasing demand for analytical talent in business, a trend that will continue for the next 20 years, Niu says. Success in this area requires a combination of great analytical skills and an understanding of business problems.

“In any business, there can be gaps between business strategies and processes and analytical or technical functions. Some leaders may not have a good understanding of how analytics can improve their business,” says Niu. “Ensuring you have a clear understanding of business strategies, and knowing how analytics can execute on those strategies, provides an invaluable foundation to build a successful career.”

And the healthcare industry is a great place to use analytics to improve business.

“The health care industry is looking to create innovative approaches to health care that better manage costs and help consumers make more informed decisions about their care,” Niu explains. “The advanced analytical field is at the forefront.”

APPRECIATING THE CLOSE-KNIT COMMUNITY OF ASSURANT
Alice Gogh and Gladys Del Rosario Arzola have very different jobs at Assurant, but both find the company a special place to work.

Gogh, senior analyst with Assurant’s business development and strategy team, recalls her initial feelings about Assurant while she was job hunting. “The more people I spoke to at the company, the more I realized that there was something unique about the organization,” she says. “De spite being a Fortune 500 company, operating in multiple geographies with more than 17,500 employees, Assurant has managed to preserve and foster a close-knit community that encourages collaboration.”

Del Rosario Arzola, a former “nosy auditor” who worked for an outside accounting firm that audited the company’s financial statements, was wowed by the culture, respect, and assistance she re ceived, even as an outsider.

“Everyone al ways took the time to answer my questions in order to help me do my job,” says Del Rosario Arzola, who became Assurant’s SEC reporting manager three years ago. “Who wouldn’t want to work for a company like that? When the time came to leave public accounting, joining Assurant was the natural choice because of the great experiences I had there.”

With the company for about 18 months, it’s Gogh’s job to help Assurant grow. In her role, she identifies and works on strategic initiatives and growth opportunities that align with the company’s business strategy.

One opportunity Gogh recently had was creating a strategy learning game. The game, she explains, takes employees through a maze of questions, educating them about Assurant’s long-term business objectives and engaging them in an open discussion about the company’s future. “The game is being played through out our offices around the world and, so far, it has been a great success,” she reports.

She also helps identify growth opportunities and keeps a close eye on emerging trends and market disruptions affecting the industries Assurant operates in.

While Gogh is looking for new ways to help Assurant advance its business, Del Rosario Arzola ensures that the company is in compliance in the way it’s doing that business, responsible for all aspects of the company’s financial statement pre - paration process. This includes coordinating the preparation of Assurant’s SEC filings along with the company’s benefit plan financial statements.

Both women say it’s the people that make Assurant great.

“Assurant offers a results-driven environment with plenty of interesting and challenging projects,” says Del Rosario Arzola. “At the same time, the company also shows that they care about their employees by listening to their wants and needs, and rewarding hard work.”

The diversity of thinking and backgrounds Assurant employees offer make the company a stronger, more thoughtful place to work as well, adds Gogh.

And right now, diversity is needed in this growing, fast-paced field to help meet consumers where they’re at in their life.

“The insurance industry is at a critical point where consumers are moving to rental and mobile economies,” says Gogh. “These are just two of the trends that conflict with how insurance companies have traditionally looked at consumers and their needs. The industry will need employees to think about different ways to protect the consumer outside the traditional insurance model.”

From a business development perspective, says Gogh, who has degrees in political science and American studies, curiosity is critical.

“Students who want to work in business development and strategy need to be inquisitive and have an open mind. You need to be able to look at problems from different angles and connect your company to the world, which is always evolving.”

From a financial perspective, a high-quality work product is imperative, says Del Rosario Arzola.

“You don’t want to make careless mistakes in the financial statements,” she says. “Make sure you develop a reputation as a meticulous worker who cares about quality.”

For those currently in a job search, Del Rosario Arzola says the best advice she received came as a freshman in college. She wanted to get an internship, but without any technical accounting experience, she hit roadblocks. Then a career counselor suggested she take an unpaid accounting internship to build up her resume.

“This experience really boosted my resume and, just a few short weeks later, I was able to find a paid accounting internship during the semester,” she comments. Eventually, she landed a coveted summer internship at one of the Big Four accounting firms in the country.

In fact, Del Rosario Arzola says utilizing a career counselor should be an early, integral part of your job search.

“Simply getting good grades will not guarantee a job after graduation,” she says. “Put aside any preconceived notions about what you think you know about job searching and interviewing and let a professional career counselor guide you. The time to look for a full-time job is not after graduation — it’s while you’re still in school. And, for freshmen, it’s never too early to start.”

EMBRACING THE CULTURE AT ALLIANZ LIFE
For Wendy Nie, actuarial model developer for Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, one of the best things about her job is the company’s culture.

“This was my first job out of college and what has kept me here is the culture Allianz Life fosters,” Nie states. “Allianz Life develops its employees professionally and personally through classes on campus and events in the community.”

One way Allianz develops its employees is with SOAR month, which stands for Support Ongoing Achievement Recognition. The entire month is dedicated to celebrating the company's employees and their achievements. This year, Nie was nominated for Operational Excellence Practitioner of the Year.

“I was so thrilled to actually win that award during our recent ceremony,” she says.

With the company since August 2007, Nie leads a team that manages the nine actuarial models used by the Allianz Life financial reporting team. Her team develops and tests changes to these actuarial models for different product lines and different reporting regulations.

Earlier this year, Nie’s team launched a new variable annuity product, and as a result, the company’s variable reporting actuarial model needed to be updated, requiring work with the reporting team and IT department to identify all the financial data needed.

“After months of development and testing, the expanded model was ready to be used,” says Nie. “Projects like this one require collaboration across departments and use of a wide range of technical skills.”

Nie has the opportunity to work on non-actuarial projects as well. Being part of company-wide projects, she says, creates more visibility to senior management and “has definitely brought me more professional opportunities and recognition.”

In addition to a great corporate culture, what makes Allianz Life a great place to work is the people, says Nie.

“My manager listens to my ideas and concerns, and then acts on them,” she explains. “My team is made up of people whom I trust. We work hard, and we enjoy our time together away from work, too. Everyone that I’ve met here is friendly and open to new ideas.”

Allianz Life — and the insurance industry as a whole — offers job stability as well for those in key areas.

“Fifty-eight percent of insurance companies plan to add staff during the next 12 months,” says Nie. “Technology, actuarial, and analytics positions are the most difficult positions to fill.”

For students seeking a career as an actuary, self-discipline is a must, even before starting their career.

“The actuarial exams require a lot of self-discipline, because to be successful, a person in this profession must balance workload, study time, and social life,” acknowledges Nie. “There are sacrifices to be made, so be prepared for that.”

To succeed, she encourages people to always be curious. “Understand thoroughly what you are doing and why you are doing it,” she says. “Continue to ask the question, ‘How does what you’re doing benefit the bigger picture?’ If there’s no clear benefit, then challenge why are you doing it.”

Allianz Life is hiring and as openings for both internships and regular positions. Nie encourages readers to apply online at allianzlife.com and say she referred you!

PLAYING AN INTEGRAL ROLE AT FARMERS INSURANCE
Nikki Jost wants to make Farmers Insurance top of mind, especially for sports fans. A sponsorship account coordinator at Farmers Insurance, Jost’s job is to develop and execute marketing strategies that leverage sponsorships and help the company achieve its business objectives. Farmers has partnerships with the PGA TOUR and player Rickie Fowler; Hendrick Motorsports and NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne; and the Pasadena Tournament of Roses. Jost primarily works on the PGA TOUR and Rickie Fowler sponsorships.

Earlier this year, Jost helped coordinated a visit with a Farmers brand ambassador and Fowler in Sea Bright, New Jersey, which is still rebuilding after 2012’s Superstorm Sandy as part of the company’s Farmers Cares initiative. Fowler spent a day in Sea Bright to help rebuild a home and put on a golf clinic on the beach for the community as well. “Months of planning went into organizing and preparing for both of these events,” says Jost, who started with Farmers in May 2013.

After holding a few different positions within the sports industry, Jost came to Farmers to focus on sponsorship marketing.

“Because Farmers’ sponsorship department is relatively new, there was an opportunity for me to play an integral role in the development of the department,” says Jost, who completed a dual degree program at UMass - Amherst, receiving a master’s in sports management and an MBA. “Furthermore, being part of a company that made an investment in sponsorships to help grow its brand was very appealing to me.”

Another draw was the opportunity to work with a diverse group of people across the organization.

The best advice Jost can offer is to talk to as many people as possible currently working in the industry to build your network. For instance, UMass-Amherst not only provided Jost the business skills and education she needed to advance her career, “but they also have an extensive alumni network. Networking and making connections in the industry have proven to be extremely important.”

In addition, “it’s very important that you volunteer and intern as much as possible,” she says. “This will also help with establishing those vital business connections.”

She advises young professionals to not limit the job search to a specific geographic location or function. Your first job probably isn’t going to be your last, Jost says, but can help get you to where you want to go. In fact, the best advice she ever received was to get outside her comfort zone.

“When I was searching for my senior internship as an undergrad, my advisor at Temple University encouraged me to get out of my comfort zone and take a risk. For my entire life up to that point, I had lived in the Philadelphia area,” says Jost. “I ended up accepting an internship at the United States Olympic Committee in Colorado Springs, CO, which I never regretted. If I had limited my search to only the Philadelphia area, I would not be where I am in my career today.”