From: Insurance Business
“We need to challenge the narrative of the industry,” says executive
In order for the insurance industry to progress, it must expand upon its rather conservative image to showcase the breadth of opportunities and the diversity of folk who drive this profession forward, one executive has suggested.
“We need to challenge the narrative of the industry,” said Grace Grant (pictured), executive director of Gamma Iota Sigma, a collegiate fraternity that spans 100 chapters and a network of over 5,000 students across North America. Its main goal is to promote and sustain student interest in careers in insurance, risk management, and actuarial science.
“There is more to insurance than its traditional and outdated image of being a boring industry that is male dominated,” she said.
During an interview with Insurance Business at RIMS in Atlanta, Grant spoke about how insurance needs to be viewed as a viable career path rather than an incidental professional recourse, while also revealing how shifting values in the younger generation will change the industry.
“This should be the first career choice”
In various conversations at RIMS with individuals from across the professional spectrum, a common revelation during introductory “ice breakers” was that securing a prominent and ultimately fulfilling position in the industry was not an intentional goal during collegiate life.
“That is a common talking point we want to eliminate,” Grant said. “This should be a first career choice, rather than an area that one enters with curiosity and a little bit of hesitation.”
The diversity of thought, skill and opportunity the industry affords should be the main topic of discussion to sustain interest within collegiate and high school level students who are figuring out their career projections.
“There’s so many different specialties and niches to explore,” Grant said.