How Do We Meet Expectations?
October 1, 2022 – Michael Marsh
Life in the insurance and self-insurance claims world is complicated, particularly for those in a position to meet people who have had an injury or damage to their property. Each day these professionals must weigh their reponsibility to those impacted by an injurious or damaging incident, and responsibility to their employer, against their own personal safety and the health and safety of their family and loved ones.
In situation like the current CATastrophe in the SE United States, these insurance professionals are confronted by this conflicting set of valuations every day, every hour, every minute. Do I climb on that roof? Do I enter that dark space? Where do I meet the injured individual to talk about the claim?
Face to face contact is simply the best solution...the best way to show empathy to those injured/damaged and whose families and lives have been ripped apart...which is antithetical to the WFH model. Some respect and dignity can be shown through a zoom or teams virtual meeting. But if you have participated in a telehealth session, I think you will agree that it pales in its level of success and engagement compared to sitting in a chair next to the treating doctor.
We simply owe it to those with a claim to engage with them at a level that is most effective for them. Their only touchpoint with insurance/self-insurance in most cases is the claim that they have...right now.
Contrast this need and responsibility against expectations of many in the next generation of workers. The article below shows some of those expectations. Are these expectations compatible with the responsibilities of the claims professional?
Industry recruiting MUST do better in high schools, technical schools and on college campuses to let young people know how engaging, rewarding and meaningful the claims process is in our society.
The article: https://www.benefitnews.com/list/workplace-policies-job-seekers-are-demanding-from-lensa
Takeaway: The claims industry is rapidly coming up to a point where recruit expectations will be inconsistent with the needs and responsibility of claims professionals. The industry MUST address this impending crisis in high schools, trade schools and on college campuses.