Broking is the place to be

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28 June 2010

Finally, some proof really is in the pudding.

Those working in the insurance broking industry – often with some defensiveness – will insist to anyone who cares to listen that broking is a great career.

But to those outside the industry circle – specifically the university graduates and skilled professionals targeted by recruiters – the message is diluted, unco-ordinated and too often poorly received.

Bereft of a specific theme and unified voice, the broking industry’s talking points lack sufficient punch. Spruiking the industry’s diversified work and travel opportunities don’t cut through the fact that most high-grade potential recruits see a job in broking as lacking dynamism.

All the career opportunities in the world can’t mask what the words “insurance broking” invokes. Hollywood is a case in point, with selling insurance usually portrayed as an occupation at the bottom of the career bucket.

So how do you bridge this perception chasm? Perhaps part of the problem is not the message but the messenger. Much like a used car salesmen selling a ’92 Civic with 200,000km on the clock and a great deal at just $10,990, people are inherently distrustful of a salesman with a poor reputation.

Which is why the industry needs flag-bearers. And it may have found one in the latest report from IbisWorld.

According to the financial research company’s latest forecast, insurance broking is one industry “set to fly” over the next three years, as rising premiums stoke wages and revenue growth.

According to the report’s authors, insurance has a window of three to four years to make hay until the downward cycle kicks in.

“As brokers distinguish themselves from direct insurance sellers through a greater emphasis on advisory services and financial management, they will increase profitability and allow for both employment and wage growth,” IbisWorld Australia GM Robert Bryant said.

The IbisWorld report is talking some big numbers. Revenue growth of 7% and wages growth of 3.1% are not figures to be scoffed at. Employment is also tipped to rise by a steady 2.4%.

They are exactly the sorts of figures the industry needs to sell. Insurance broking is a dynamic and fascinating industry, and finally someone besides an insurance broker agrees.