Anne Baye Ericksen

 

Rest assured the insurance industry continues to underwrite a multitude of career possibilities

 

Health. Auto. Home. Life. Chances are you own at least one if not all of these types of insurance policies. They are among the most common types of insurance purchased each year. In fact, according to the Insurance Information Institute, life/health policies account for 54 percent of all premiums paid and property/casualty represents 46 percent.

 

However, the insurance industry offers other types of policies offered to protect and replace important aspects of everyday life. Supplemental insurance, for example, adds additional layers of coverage to existing policies. Renters insurance extends the benefits usually associated with a homeowners’ policy to tenants. There’s even insurance specifically written to cover high-tech devices.

 

The fact is, insurance is an extremely varied field as are the people who choose it for their careers, including the following four individuals who fulfill roles or oversee business units outside what many consider typical to the longstanding industry.

 

Cerating A Public Profile For Country Financial

 

“Insurance isn’t sexy, but it’s a necessity,” observes Fernando Cornejo.

 

That may be the attitude many people hold regarding the idea of purchasing an insurance policy. But when making necessary decisions that require a significant financial commitment, it makes sense to have pertinent materials to review to make sure you comprehend the finer points. Wouldn’t it be nice if all the paraphernalia explained the details in a visually attractive, if not sexy, format?

 

As supervisor of marketing design services for Country Financial (www.countryfinancial.com), it’s up to Cornejo and his team to create various documents, pamphlets, advertisements, and sales materials in an appealing yet informative presentation.

 

“We take complex issues, such as understanding the importance of renters’ insurance or auto insurance, and visually put them in a tone people can understand,” Cornejo explains.

 

Of course, the process requires Cornejo to possess a firm grasp on not only the basic tenets of how insurance functions, but also the variety of options the company offers.

 

“It’s like asking a waiter for a recommendation and the waiter hasn’t tasted anything on the menu so he can’t talk about it. I have to know about the products,” comments Cornejo.

 

Translating the details into a manner to grab people’s attention can be challenging, but Cornejo views it as an opportunity to flex his creative muscles.

 

“For example, talking finances is difficult for people, and we want to spark those conversations with Country Financial representatives. So we created a game piece with stickers to represent people’s dreams, such as travel, car, and family. That game piece helps begin the conversation. It’s the coolest project visually and it tackles a topic that is a hard conversation to have.”

 

Cornejo admits most people are surprised to learn a large insurance carrier maintains a design department. But it’s actually an essential business support operation, and the insurance industry is where Cornejo has spent his 20-year career. He’s enjoyed engaging his artistic nature, but a few years ago, Cornejo decided he wanted to become more involved with the business aspects, and was willing to change employers to find the right position. Still, he didn’t want to join just any company extending an offer.

 

“I wanted to make sure the leadership was behind the design department and it was going to truly believe in me. If I believe in them, then I will work harder for them,” he explains.

 

So when called in for an interview with Country Financial, based in Bloomington, IL, Cornejo turned the tables on his interviewers. He recalls, “When they asked me, ‘Do you have any questions?’ I had a lot of questions. I’m curious by nature and I had to make sure it was a good company for me and that it met the values I have as a person, father, and artist.”

 

Needless to say, both parties were impressed with each other and he joined the carrier in 2013. During his short tenure thus far, Cornejo has done more than just supervise his design team. He’s also been invited to observe leadership in strategic planning sessions.

 

“It’s been fantastic hearing the executive vice presidents or chief executive officer,” says Cornejo. “The more I know about the company and our products and having conversations with our subject matter experts, the better I can to help [my team] understand and design products.”

 

He’s also valued the direct leadership he’s received. “I have a vice president who is out of this world,” Cornejo states. “She’s allowed me to expand my wings to succeed and fail. When I fail, I pick up and move on to the next thing and learn from it. For me, that is really important.”

 

Combined Insurance Connects With Hispanics

By 2014, Combined Insurance (www.combined.com) had established itself as a leader in the supplemental insurance sector. The Glenview, IL-based corporation also sells disability, accident and sickness, and life insurance options. But over the years, executives identified a significant gap in its offerings—not necessarily in the product selection, but rather in its clientele, namely Hispanic consumers. So in 2014, Combined Insurance announced a program to tap the traditionally underserved population. Key to the initiative was a commitment to create a sales staff that not only was fluent in Spanish to comfortably communicate with potential Hispanic customers, but that also was culturally fluent with the customer base.

 

“The growing Hispanic population represents more than $1 trillion in purchasing power, making it a vibrant and vital part of this country,” stated Jorge Enderica, vice president, national sales-Hispanic markets, in a company press release. “Combined Insurance recognizes the importance of understanding and working within the various Hispanic cultures, and we look forward to providing them with the care, products, and customer service that is important to them.”

 

“Coming from the Hispanic community, I know there’s generally a lack of understanding and education about insurance,” notes David Escontrias, senior sales education trainer. “The challenge is that there are some misconstrued views of how insurance can help. There’s a barrier to it, and sales agents have to break down that barrier and provide customers with the proper education.”

 

Before the agents initiate those conversations with clients, Escontrias carries out conversations with the new hires, usually in a classroom-type setting. It’s his job to make sure the sales staff is well versed in the intricacies of insurance.

 

“Our No. 1 priority is to educate and professionally train the sales staff so they are ready to go out and provide for our clients,” he says. To cater to the community, the training is provided in both English and Spanish.

 

Escontrias first served as project lead on the Hispanic program, but over the past 24 months, he has expanded his role to cover many areas of sales training. And as he’s come to learn, promoting within Combined Insurance is not only a viable option, but also another company initiative.

 

“We do have a lot of career progression here,” he says. “In our philosophy, we want employees to continue to learn and grow and develop. You can’t stay complacent. If you don’t evolve with what’s going on, you’re going to be left behind.”

 

Not only does Escontrias convey that message to his trainees, but he also embraces the philosophy for his own development. He plans to complete his doctorate degree in organizational development.

 

“I put it on hold temporarily when I entered fatherhood this summer. But through programs available at Combined Insurance, I should be able to finish it,” he says.

 

Although young professionals may consider the field of insurance to be old-school or rigid, Escontrias advises them that well-established industries may offer more proven avenues toward professional goals.

 

“Young people may not think an insurance career is one they can grow into, but I’ve seen firsthand that’s not true,” he concludes.

 

Your Career Is In Good Hands At Allstate When mayhem creates doubt about your coverage, it’s reassuring to know you’ll be in good hands with Allstate. However, when it comes to cultivating new hires, Allstate (www.allstate.com) leaves little room for mayhem to disrupt the process of achieving personal and professional goals. To set them up for success, the nation’s largest publicly held insurance carrier assigns many new professionals to a formal training program. For example, Melissa Alvarado partakes in the Technology Leadership Development Program (LDP).

 

“As part of a three-year program, LDP participants have the opportunity to complete one-year rotational assignments in business and technology areas. Throughout each year, we receive mentoring and formal learning to round out our development,” she explains.

 

Alvarado began working for the Northbrook, IL, company slightly more than two years ago. So far, she’s completed two rotations. The first was with the Information Services Group (ISG).

 

“I was an information analyst and worked to lead projects involving Tableau, a data visualization software pro- gram,” she describes.

 

Next, Alvarado gained broader business exposure through a rotational assignment outside of the technology area. She spent her second year in the claims organization, where she served as claims process expert.

 

“Using my analytical skill set, I developed dashboards to highlight the drivers of customer experience with the data we had. That analysis was recognized by the region I supported and it became a focused initiative that has helped improve our overall customer satisfaction,” she says.

 

Recently, Alvarado began the third and final LDP rotation as delivery leader for the Agency Facing Technology unit.

 

“I’m responsible for the management and successful delivery of an information security project that impacts every Allstate agency owner and their staff. My team has extensive knowledge and experience in this field and my role is to lead and motivate them to enjoy the work they do and maintain optimal delivery of a high-profile project. This current role allows me to gain people management skills along with learning the complexity of the company’s information security process,” she says.

 

Alvarado appreciates the varied training roles as they are building a knowledge base from which she can base future career decisions.

 

“[The LDP is] an opportunity to explore areas that we may never have thought about starting a career in. We get to have a diverse experience that allows us to strengthen our leadership skills and bring our perspectives to the company,” she says. “While Allstate is investing in the participant’s development, the company gets a strong return to establish a leadership pipeline that will help create future leaders with diverse perspectives.”

 

In addition to her LDP involvement, Alvarado has joined the Professional Latino Allstate Network (PLAN), an employee resource group. In fact, it was the information she uncovered about PLAN during her job search that convinced Alvarado to pursue opportunities at the insurance mainstay in the first place.

 

“I wanted to work for a company that has strong values in employee development, inclusive diversity, and community involvement,” she states. “When an insurance company also believes in helping diverse organizations in the community, volunteering, and promoting employee involvement as a part of our career, it motivates me to be a part of the social responsibility we have to give back to our communities. And the more empowered you feel working for a company, the better engaged and productive you can be.”

 

Assurant Solutions Rewrites Insurance Possibilities

Twenty-five years ago the first public websites debuted. In 1990, pagers outnumbered cellphones, and personal digital assistants were a hot new trend. It was the beginning of a technological era that kindled a love affair between Americans and their electronic devices. Who knew this high-tech revolution would create an entirely new business sector within the insurance industry?

 

Assurant Solutions, headquartered in New York, NY, has always offered traditional protection for personal belongings, but a year ago, it introduced the Assurant Solutions’ Connected Living division (www.assurant.com). This entity specializes in keeping customers connected with their be loved gadgets via mo bile device insurance, extended protection programs for home appliances and consumer electronics, and identity theft and data security solutions. It even provides technical support, repair, and logistics.

 

“We’re responding to the connected world and the products people use. What gets me excited is constantly thinking of the evolving environment and creating new products to meet customer needs,” reveals Manny Becerra, president of Assurant Solutions’ Connected Living. “What we had 15 years ago was different than what we have today. For example, in 2008, smartphone penetration in the United States was 25 percent of new cell sales. Now we’re in the 80 percent range, not even ten years later. We’re constantly changing and responding to market needs and creating new product lines.”

 

While the division offers traditional services, such as replacement coverage, it also provides customers with technical support that most associate with an IT organization rather than an insurance company.

 

“We actually refurbish technical devices,” comments Becerra.

 

What also stands out about this member of the Assurant Solutions corporate family is its diverse workforce. Not only does the business utilize all the typical disciplines, such as finance, human resources, and marketing, but it also relies on technical experts.

 

“We hire engineers, such as electrical and industrial, and there’s IT application development to facilitate interaction with customers,” explains Becerra. “In fact, we’re hoping to continue to recruit more people interested in technology as well as digital marketing.”

 

Becerra, like many American consumers, has always been intrigued by the newest technology, but that’s not necessarily where he wanted to pursue his career. For that matter, he didn’t purposefully desire a career in insurance. Instead, Becerra saw Assurant Solutions as an organization that would propel him on the path he wanted to travel.

 

“When I started my career 25 years ago, I wanted to find a company that was forward thinking, innovative, and would solve customers’ problems. I also wanted to be running that business sometime in the future,” he recalls. “That’s what motivated me. It was not the insurance industry per se.”

 

Although he’s devoted his career to one company, Becerra doesn’t believe he’s lost out on opportunities by not changing employers.

 

“You can get variability within the same organization. I’ve had many jobs and roles, but all within the same company. By doing that, I’ve built a knowledge base of the organization,” he says.

 

Becerra believes his approach still applies to today’s job market. However, he recommends job seekers broaden their scope beyond a single company or a specific industry and get creative with their career plans. For example, Assurant Solutions may not be a global brand name on the same level as big-name consumer electronics, but the company partners with several of these well-known entities, and therefore, provides employees opportunities to be involved with the tech giants.