Biba’s Trudgill on attracting fresh talent to insurance

The story of how a janitor at Nasa told President Kennedy that she was helping to put a man on the moon really illustrates the importance of how every job, company and industry has a bigger story to tell than what might first be expected. 

We are currently sharing the insurance industry’s bigger story with students at the two schools where Biba’s London and South East Committee are running a pilot. This is in conjunction with the Careers and Enterprise Company and with an aim of raising awareness of careers in insurance. 

It tells a great story, highlighting the variety of careers and opportunities that insurance has to offer.

Graeme Trudgill

It follows the message we repeatedly hear from our member brokers - that recruiting talent is a challenge. It’s no secret that we are an experienced workforce, and the 600,000 over-50s who decided to retire during Covid didn’t help. 

The effect that Brexit had on workforce availability is also part of the story, as most likely is the fact that insurance is not at the top of the career wish list for most young people when they are growing up. There is also the incorrect perception that insurance is restricted to mainly call centre handling. 

Telling our story

There’s a whole opportunity with fresh talent out there that we need to attract and the starting point has to be telling our story. Our careers initiative is underway and aiming to help address the need to bring local diverse talent into the industry, specifically with a focus on young people from underprivileged areas. 

Originally, teachers involved in the pilot told us students think insurance is just about protecting their mobile phone and is barely on their radar as a career. 

But since our London and South East Committee has been into the schools, they have changed their perceptions. They’ve been sharing their experiences, along with a new video ‘Because I work in insurance…’, which showcases how young people in the industry are helping and contributing to a wider range of bigger-picture issues. It tells a great story, highlighting the variety of careers and opportunities that insurance has to offer. 

Since the visits, the teachers have been inundated with questions about the next stages of the pilot, which includes work experience and an activity day at Lloyd’s. 

This reinforces the importance of the need for us to tell our story more widely because, when we do, people are interested. The messages hit the spot with the students; they are now at least keen to know what insurance is about. In fact, one teacher said that we were the best organisation to come in and present. 

The students now want to know how much they can earn, about progression and the entry routes, all as expected. But they are also interested in the bigger picture, such as how premiums are set and why Banksy’s artwork and Lionel Messi are insured for multimillions of pounds. Interest has certainly been sparked. 

The next steps will be to gain commitment from the insurance sector for the work experience places for these Year 12 students in July, and to deliver the activity day at Lloyd’s. For this, we’ve brought in expertise from Davies, who will provide practical training on interview tips, CV writing, networking and an introduction to the world of work. 

Looking further ahead, once the pilot is complete, we’ll aim to roll it out, where there is a need, to other Biba regions across the UK. 

So, our small part in this bigger story is that this initiative has been able to get young people interested in insurance as a career. 

We haven’t quite put a man or woman on the moon, but it’s incredible what a small group of dedicated individuals, talking to students in a relatable way (and giving out a few portable mobile phone chargers), can achieve.