I’ve written a couple of times in the past about how much I enjoy the insurance industry and how I was able to find a home in it back in 2001. However, there’s no reason to keep writing about me; rather, allow me to give you a 30,000-foot overview of all of the career possibilities that exist in our important and meaningful industry! If you’re looking for a career change and haven’t considered insurance, you might be in for a surprise.
For starters, since I work in an agency setting, let’s review a couple of typical positions in an agency:
- Agent/producer: these are the salespeople responsible for finding new accounts, meeting with them to review their insurance coverage needs, then providing them with an ongoing insurance program that is tailored to their exposures.
- Account manager/customer service representative: these folks are the service-related backbone of any agency and handle numerous day-to-day aspects of insurance programs. They complete policy changes, answer billing questions, address coverage questions, report claims, etc. In short, they answer just about any customer question that arises!
Then you have insurance companies themselves and they have a number of different departments with various positions within each department. These include:
- Sales/marketing representatives: these individuals establish relationships with the agencies in their territories and work with them to write new accounts as well as retain existing accounts. They are also a primary point of contact in the event the agency has any issues of concern.
- Underwriters: underwriters work with their assigned agency partners to monitor the book of business, assist with getting new accounts written from a pricing and eligibility standpoint, and examine accounts that might have issues with claims. They are also a great source of information for agencies whenever coverage questions arise and unique situations present themselves.
- Claims adjusters: perhaps some of the most important people in the equation, adjusters work with clients and claimants to pay out claims based upon the insurance coverage that is in place at the time of a loss. Their service – along with their checkbook – is a big part of what you pay for when you purchase an insurance policy.
There are also quite a few other positions at the insurance company level. Careers can be found in marketing, information technology, risk management/loss control, customer service, legal, human resources, and premium audit.
In short, if you are looking for a position in an industry that is always evolving, values relationships, and isn’t going anywhere (no matter how the economy is doing), then do yourself a favor and consider the insurance industry!
Post authored by Marc McNulty. Originally published February 21, 2019. View original post at: https://wp.me/p1Iv7E-303 Products underwritten by Central Mutual Insurance Company and affiliated companies.
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