Agents are the unsung heroes of the industry
The year 2020 was a complete game changer and a nightmare for many - but insurance agents and advisers rose to the challenge to demonstrate their increased value with greater focus on the end customer.
Many markets in Asia saw a surge in life premiums. Insurance became more appreciated as many life insurers tried to be flexible and more sympathetic towards policyholders in such a challenging time.
This has made us more determined to go ahead with the launch of the 6th Asia Trusted Life Agents & Advisers Awards. For the first time this year we are expanding the reach of the awards to look at agents who promote group health and employee benefits, too.
We are truly honoured and gratified in serving the agents and advisers segments of the life business sector, having seen the dynamic role they play even in the COVID-19 pandemic. They are an integral and indispensable part of the value chain. They help promote insurance brands - and trust of insurance in society. As our Patron Mark Tucker said five years ago, agents are still very much the unsung heroes of the industry.
Likewise, we also want to recognise companies and insurance executives who work so hard behind the scenes to enable their agents to excel and shine even in the digital and work-from-home era.
The awards – organised by Asia Advisers Network and Asia Insurance Review, with co-organiser LIRMA and strategic partner AIA – continue with a stringent judging process that is independently audited by EY, and an esteemed judging panel of some 30 CEOs, senior executives, heads of associations and subject matter experts.
We remain committed to the search for excellence as our CSR for the industry we love and honour.
Keep the entries coming in.
True leaders stand out in times of crisis
LIMRA is honoured to co-organise the 6th Asia Trusted Life Agents & Advisers Awards 2021, which recognises accomplished agents and advisers, and their commitment to serving their customers.
As a research-led organisation, LIMRA’s purpose is to advance the financial services industry by empowering our members with knowledge, insights, connections, and solutions. This past year was no exception. When the pandemic hit, we moved quickly to provide the industry with the tools and information they needed to address these new industry challenges and allow companies and agents alike to continue protecting the financial security of the clients they serve.
While a rapidly changing industry was already top of mind for all of us as we started 2020, the unprecedented year pushed our industry to change faster than ever. Companies had to move quickly to adapt to new remote working environments, stop in-person meetings due to lockdowns, and learn new technologies that were not part of our previous practice. This created immediate challenges for agents and advisers to connect with their customers.
Despite these challenges, we saw agents and advisers successfully adapting to the new and changing environment, continuing to find new and innovative ways to engage with their customers and help alleviate their financial fears during this extraordinary time.
It is in times of crisis when true leaders stand out from the rest and are able to show strength, determination, and inspire others to do better and to do more. It is important to recognise those individuals who go above and beyond every day to help customers achieve financial security.
I encourage you to nominate an agent or adviser who represents the best in the industry — to celebrate the achievements of all that has been positive in a world that has experienced so much recent chaos.
Recognising the immense contribution of agents and advisers
2020 has been a challenging year; we have faced both public health and economic crises as a result of the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
First of all, I hope you and your families have been – and continue to be – safe and well.
The difficulties we have faced over the last year have underlined the critical role played by financial services in our economies, both in supporting customers and in creating a bridge to a post-COVID world. Insurance has been central to this, due to the requirement for long-term capital, the need to manage new kinds of risk and the acceleration of digitalisation.
For many years, agents and advisers have led the way in the use of innovative products and the harnessing of new technologies for sales and customer service. As our industry and society adapt to the new circumstances, the inspiration and example of agents and advisers will be more important than ever.
Agents and advisers will remain at the forefront of initiatives that link life insurance to wellbeing, increasing coverage and closing the protection gap. They will offer ever more innovative products and technologies and will strive to find new ways to better serve customers. As a consequence, agents and advisers will continue to go from strength to strength and will cement their importance to the future of our industry.
These awards recognise the immense contribution that agents and advisers make to customers and to the communities in which we work and live. I would like to thank Asia Insurance Review and Asia Advisers Network for helping us to celebrate the very best of them.
