Can insurers use tech to attract Gen Z?

A shift in talent attraction is underway, driven by the entrance of Gen Z into the workforce. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that Millennials and Gen Z will comprise 60% of the labor force within the next decade. 

According to an EY and LIMRA study, one-third of all employers and 40% of organizations with more than 1,000 employees identified that meeting the needs of a multi-generational workforce is a significant challenge. Remote and hybrid work is also here to stay, according to the study: 84% of employers said that at least some of their employees work remotely, and 31% said that a quarter of employees work remotely most of the time. 

According to John Swigart, co-founder and CEO of Pie Insurance, a small business workers compensation insurer, offering remote or hybrid work is key to attracting new talent.

"Carriers can leverage digitization by offering flexible tools and modern communication platforms, but the most important thing we can do is to offer remote work and commit to it," said Swigart. "Talent, not just Gen Z, want flexibility and control over where and how they work. Remote work options give employees the balance they crave while also opening up a much wider talent pool than if you only hire near an office location."

Of the leadership surveyed by EY and LIMRA, many who said they were previously skeptical of remote work were surprised that productivity did not decrease and that some firms experienced an increase in productivity. 

The same research also found that all stakeholders have an increasing interest in digitalization and fully integrated, data-driven ecosystems with tech solutions like artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced analytics.

Deloitte research into the career-related expectations of Gen Z employees indicates that the demographic values personalization and organizations that stay up-to-date with current external trends.

"Gen Z values technologies like AI-driven tools, collaboration software and learning and development platforms that give them opportunities to grow their skill sets on their own schedule," said Swigart. "They also want to work for companies with a long-term digitization strategy, where technology is thoughtfully utilized throughout an organization to support efficiency and scale, and not used as a short-term bandaid."

Swigart adds that a digital experience is necessary to attract and retain younger employees. 

"Gen Z are accustomed to personalized and fast online interactions and they expect the same level of customization in their work experiences," said Swigart. "At Pie, we've seen things like tailored onboarding processes, clear and actionable career development plans and digital platforms for communication and feedback make a real impact on employee engagement and retention."

Some insurers are attracting through recruitment methods like internship programs, mentorship opportunities and university partnerships that facilitate networking events. 

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) partners with a number of educational groups to attract aspiring insurance professionals, across various departments and positions that include technology roles, with college student programs like Braven and Posse.

"We're certainly trying to attract and hire people into our technology group and into our IT roles, like app developers, engineers and coders. The infrastructure of technology continues to be extraordinarily important for insurance companies. So many of our interns and early career talent are actually coming into our technology group, so that's very important," said David Lee, talent acquisition leader at BHSI. "With technology, you could do those roles anywhere. What we're trying to do is encourage, create awareness, identify and attract people into doing technology in the insurance business. And then the other avenue is some of our digital platforms."

BHSI also works to attract talent through digital platforms, such as with its BERXI team, which is a direct-to-consumer digital platform in the small business insurance space.

"...That can be a really fun group [that is] very innovative and probably not at all what people think about traditional insurance," said Lee. "It's a great place to also start a career. People that have a technology or computer science passion may only think about [joining] Google and Amazon, but I think they often realize that there can be an extraordinarily rewarding career in insurance."

Partnering with universities and college programs brings more awareness to the career options available within the insurance industry.

"There's such a wide variety of the types of roles, the geographies in which you can operate over time and career development that you can see throughout the business. We talk a lot about connection to the greater good," Lee said. "[It] seems Gen Z folks today want to feel that their work is actually contributing to the social fabric to feel connected to a larger purpose and to the greater good."

Swigart believes that using technology to attract Gen Z will also have a positive impact on the industry. 

"...Those working in insurance have an exciting opportunity ahead of us to modernize a historically manual and stagnant industry. We need Gen Z and their technology first mindset to create long-lasting change," said Swigart. "That means, part of attracting new talent is to ensure that they deeply understand the immediate impact they can and will have on creating a better insurance experience."