Experience working as a Recruitment Consultant?

Why a career in Commercial Insurance could be the new challenge you are looking for….

Having worked as a recruiter within professional services for over 5 years, I’ve heard all too often from job seekers just how difficult it can be to get a chance to learn a new career using their transferable skills. I am sure you are all familiar with the term ‘Pigeon-holed’ and unfortunately in a competitive job market, this is how many talented and able professionals feel.

In this article, I will be exploring why your experience working as a Recruitment Consultant may be able to open doors to a career in Commercial Insurance! 

8 reasons Recruiters should consider a career as a Commercial Account Executive

You already have the ability to build new relationships from scratch

As a Recruitment Consultant you often have to be proactive in building relationships with new clients. This often involves initial research into business in your allocated ‘patch’ and contacting them over the phone to make an introduction with the aim to book a meeting and become a supplier to that business. In insurance, building a commercial portfolio works in the same way, you will need to research your prospects and make an initial call to find out their needs and you may need to stay in touch and build the relationship before you get a chance to quote for their business.

You will be prospecting the same customers

As in recruitment, you will be developing relationships with business owners and senior managers and you may even be able to utilise some of our existing contacts. It may also take time to develop the relationship and you will need to listen carefully to the client’s needs in order to arrange cover which is best suited to their business, similar to adapting your approach to recruiting for each client.

Your targets will be similar relatively speaking

The sort of new business targets you will be set as a Commercial Account Executive will be similar to recruitment, relatively speaking. For example, you could arrange cover for 20 businesses with smaller premiums to hit your target or just 4 customers with larger premiums which would be similar to Executive Search level recruitment.

You will get repeat business when you provide a good service

In recruitment, you may get repeat business, referrals and even the opportunity to be an exclusive supplier to one of your clients. Within the insurance industry, word also travels quickly and if you’ve done a good job, your customers will renew their policies with you, buy additional products from you and refer their friends!

You will spend more time out of the office visiting clients face to face

As an Account Executive, you tend to spend most of your time on the road (there is usually a company car provided!) meeting customers face to face and strengthening your relationships. If you enjoy this aspect of your role as a Recruiter, you will love the fact that you get to spend a lot more time doing it!

The earning potential and career progression is comparable so no need to take a significant pay cut to change careers! 

When you’re doing well in your Recruitment career, it’s easy to progress in to a high paying position quite quickly which means that it’s often difficult to pursue other career areas without taking a significant pay cut. This is not the case when moving in to insurance which offers a similar earning potential in the short term and excellent progression opportunities in the long term. In addition, there are a huge range of different roles in insurance and lots of ways you can develop and change your role as and when you need a new challenge!

You will develop skills which are highly sought after and in high demand

There are not too many experienced Commercial Account Executives in the industry yet there is a huge demand for such skills and experience which means that once you have developed a strong track record in the industry, many doors will be open to you throughout your career.

You will get the opportunity to study towards a professional qualification

The majority of insurance businesses will encourage you to study towards a professional qualification through the CII (Chartered Insurance Institute) and will even fund it for you while you gain on the job training. As the insurance industry is regulated by the FCA, qualifications are well respected and can also be completed at your own pace. You can find out more about these qualifications here.

Want to know more about career paths in insurance? Why not connect with me on LinkedIn and drop me a message https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigittehill/ Or apply speculatively by emailing me directly at brigitte_hill@nfumutual.co.uk