The majority of professionals within the insurance industry remain passionate about the industry itself and about helping the people they serve, according to a Vertafore report.
Vertafore recently released its 2024 workforce survey, "The insurance agency workforce: Talent, tech, and the hard market." The report provides insights into the experiences of independent agency producers, owners, account managers and customer service representatives.
The report, which included responses from approximately 2,000 professionals from Vertafore's network of independent insurance agencies, found that the majority of professionals within the industry remain passionate about the industry itself and about helping the people they serve.
Three-quarters (75%) said their favorite thing about working in insurance is helping clients protect what matters, a large increase from 55% in 2023. In addition, interacting with people in the community rose to 43% in 2024, up from 29% in 2023.
Unsurprisingly, more than 60% of respondents said that the current hard market conditions are causing difficult conversations with clients, and 70% noted difficulty placing risk. Agency professionals are experiencing heavier workloads and increased stress, particularly in agencies with 25 or fewer employees where nearly three-quarters of insurance professionals reported more difficulty placing risk. At larger agencies, 60% of respondents reported more difficulty placing risk.
To overcome hard market difficulties, agencies are turning to increased technology usage. Nearly 1 in 3 respondents said that their agency has added new tools and technology solutions in response to the hard market. Over 60% agreed that software solutions—such as insurance knowledge databases—are key to dealing with such difficulties.
Agencies also continue to deal with challenges in finding and attracting talent, which is a pressing concern given that one-quarter of survey respondents said that they expect to retire in the next five years.
The largest segment of potential retirees are account managers, followed by owners and principals, the report said. More than one-third of hiring managers said they are either “concerned" or “very concerned" about filling positions left by retiring employees and more than 25% are “somewhat concerned."
While 65% of agents would recommend a career in insurance to a friend, that number has dropped 20% since 2021, when 85% of respondents said they would refer a friend.
Olivia Overman is IA content editor.
