Insurance challenges
As we rapidly approach the end of 2021 and the insurance industry works on their planning for 2022, many are recognizing that their biggest risk next year is different than in previous years.
Typically, insurers are fearful of a big natural disaster or other event that could cause them heightened claims. Sure, they are thinking about that too, but the even bigger risk to their business is not even insurance related. And, this is a risk that is also being faced by nearly all other companies in other industries. The biggest risk in 2022 is the growing shortage of talent available. For most companies in the insurance industry, the key to growth is to be able to find and hire additional talent and that is proving to be something very hard to do at the moment. Demand for talent is far outweighing supply and this is creating a crisis of sorts for everyone from insurance companies to insuretechs.
One specific department that is feeling this crisis more than most is IT.
Demand for IT talent has never been higher and often insurance companies are not just struggling to find the talent they need to grow, but are having a hard time backfilling roles when current IT staff moves on. And, insurance companies are typically more vulnerable to attrition than other industries – particularly those that are located in more rural parts of the U.S. The reason for this is twofold: first, insurance company IT talent is being poached away by other companies that are offering virtual roles that compensate talent comparable to big city salaries, but offer that person to live in less expensive rural areas. This can provide the person with a better work/life balance while also earning more pay. The other reason by insurance companies are more vulnerable to poaching of their IT talent is that many of the roles inside an insurance company are fairly static and deal with fairly legacy technology. Good software engineers may be turned on by more modern tech stacks or innovative companies where they can grow and be challenged in new ways.
If you are dealing with this crisis, there are several things to consider that will help you find and keep IT talent.
First off, the insurance industry needs to become more accepting of a virtual workforce – particularly for IT related jobs. Most IT jobs can be done from any web-enabled PC and often at a cost to the employer that is lower than hiring that same person to be on-site.
Another trend among insurance companies is to utilize international talent pools. Insurance Tech Talent receives inquiries daily from insurers and others in the insurance space that want to expand their search to candidates outside the United States. Not only does this improve the likelihood of finding the talent needed, but these resources are typically 40-50% less than it would be to hire the same type of person domestically.The talent shortage that we are facing is here to stay.
Future economic growth will depend on the ability for companies to fill jobs successfully. If you are prepared and think more globally, you will have greater success against this talent crisis.