Yemisi Izuora
As the Global festival in of insurance Inclusion and diversity begins, insurance professionals share the same opinion that the culture within their insurance companies need to change.
A new survey conducted by Dive-In, reports that about 71 per cent of insurance professionals across the world believe the culture within their companies needs to change.
In a survey of 2,800 insurance professionals across 17 countries, two thirds of respondents named mental health and support for gender and LGBT issues as top priorities for cultural change.
Respondents said cultural change and inclusivity is needed to attract and retain top talent. This seems particularly relevant for the insurance industry as it tackles major challenges such as cyber threats and climate change.
The Dive-In Festival has spread globally since it first launched in London in 2015 with the backing of Inclusion@Lloyd’s. This year, the festival boasts a record 32 locations with events being held in London, New York, Zurich, Sydney and Bermuda, as well as new cities including Beijing, Glasgow, Johannesburg, Madrid, Miami, San Francisco, Perth and Sao Paolo.
Nicolas Aubert, chair of the London Market Group, said: “Building a diverse, dynamic workforce is critical for the global insurance market, to enable us to remain relevant in a rapidly changing world. I am delighted that the Dive-In Festival continues to grow around the globe but, as demonstrated by these results, we must recognise that there is still a lot of work to be done. As the London Market Group highlighted in our recent London Matters 2017 report – it is only by acknowledging the importance of an inclusive and diverse workforce that we can ensure we drive change in our industry.”
Inga Beale, CEO at Lloyd’s, said: “The insurance sector is working hard to address its culture. We have made a lot of progress and, although we have more work to do, we are uniting across the insurance world to attract and retain a diverse workforce. The launch of the Dive-In Festival, a unique and global celebration of diversity and inclusion, is an integral part of those efforts. Now in its third year, the scale and reach of the festival is inspiring. From what started in the UK, it now spans 17 countries and aims to get us all to a better understanding of how to embrace difference and ensure our sector is fit for the future.”
The festival’s theme for 2017 will be ‘Diversity Dividend’, focusing on how inclusion and diversity can positively impact the bottom line for industry players. Last year’s Dive-In survey revealed that 98 per cent of respondents felt diversity and inclusion is good for business.