Award programs seem to be flooding our industry. Every time youturn around there's a new award being announced by vendors, associations and, yes, trade publications.
For example, in this issue we are wrapping up coverage of our INNovators awards program, and announcing the call for nominations for our 5th annual Women in Insurance Leadership program. And, at the ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum on May 24, we'll announce the winners of our Vanguards in Insurance Practices program.
Is the existence of so many awards a good thing, or does their very abundance devalue them?
At a time when the insurance industry's reputation could use some improvement, awards can boost individual, company and the industry's reputations. And, it never hurts to receive a pat on the back for a job well done.
But if it seems as though there are more than enough awards to go around, think about what goes into actually winning. As the person in charge of submitting nominations for INN's various publication awards, I know just how taxing it can be to nominate a candidate - endless questions to answer, examples to produce, information to gather from multiple sources, etc. The value of winning is in the assumption that it is earned, and those who earn awards tend to do so not solely for themselves, but as a representative of the greater insurance industry.
Someone who knows that you have to be in it to win it is Ursuline Foley, CIO, XL Reinsurance, who also serves on INN's Board of Advisers. INN would like to congratulate her for being one of four insurance executives named to our sister publication, Information Managementmagazine's 25 Top Information Manager list.
We already knew that Urs is a game-changer in her company and within the industry after being named one of INN's Women in Insurance Leadership in 2007. With acquisition and growth, Urs led XL Reinsurance's executive management team through a strategy that would realign the reinsurance business from 11 to a single global system. She and her team are also credited with executing a 5-year plan that came in on schedule and within budget in late 2009.
So, the next time it seems like insurance awards are overwhelming the industry's print and online news coverage, consider the benefits of learning from the award-winner's example, and employing those lessons to your own "in it to win it" professional strategy.
