Insurance expert sees BD crops as a good bet

Keith Richards, Managing Director of Engagement and CEO of Personal Finance Society, Chartered Insurance Institute (UK), is a recognised leader within the financial services sector with 30 years' experience operating at the executive level across both manufacturing and distribution. He has shared his thoughts on the insurance sector in Bangladesh in an interview with The Financial Express. The full extent of the interview is as follows:

FE: What will be the most important issues for the insurance sector in the coming years?

Keith Richards: The most important issue is always about building and retaining the trust of our customers and the public more broadly. Without that, insurance simply cannot exist. We have to make sure that people can be confident that insurance companies have the competence and professional ethics to honour the promise to pay out in the event of a valid claim. Without that trust, it is impossible to effectively engage consumers. Everything we do in our business lives and in the regulation of insurance must contribute to building that trust.

FE: How do you integrate environmental and social issues in relation to low market penetration in Bangladesh's insurance sector?

Keith: There is no doubt that there is a huge need for insurance in Bangladesh. I have read that every five years on an average in Bangladesh, production shocks lead to a drop of up to 50 per cent in crop income for rural households. It is also true that insurance can be difficult to afford. However, Bangladesh has been making huge progress economically in recent years (per capita gross national income grew more than tenfold from US$100 in 1972 to US$1,220 in 2015), and I think that brings huge opportunities for our profession to deliver solutions against the risks that is so clearly needed.

FE: Do you think regulatory reform is mandatory to increase the insurance penetration rate in Bangladesh?

Keith: Regulation is necessary to build public trust, because only regulators can maintain a minimum level of conduct in the sector by excluding firms that do not meet those minimum standards. Every country in the world has work to do to make sure that those minimum standards are enforced.

FE: Compared to our neighbouring country India, the insurance penetration and awareness in Bangladesh are extremely low. What's your take on this issue?

Keith: It is true that insurance penetration in Bangladesh is low, but I think we should look to highlight the needs of the public and the opportunities that the future holds, rather than dwelling on what has happened up to now. Economic growth gives our profession a huge opportunity and it's now up to us to make what we do relevant to the public in Bangladesh.

FE: What's your objective behind partnering with the leading non-life insurance company of Bangladesh—Green Delta Insurance?

Keith: Green Delta Insurance established an academy - Professional Advancement Bangladesh Ltd (PABL) - in 2014, to raise standards of technical training in Bangladesh. The CII (Chartered Insurance Institute) is one of the most prestigious and internationally-recognised bodies in insurance education and we are delighted to partner with a highly respected and mutually aligned regional expert in order to bridge the knowledge and skill gap in Bangladesh. The CII has members and partners in more than 150 countries and all our associations have been established to raise professional standards and build public trust in the profession. PABL has been promoting CII qualifications along with certain in-house developed training programmes since its inception and we jointly seek to help the insurance profession achieve greater business success. We are working together to make sure we reach out to all segments of the insurance industry and recognise the need to evolve our approach in a changing landscape.

FE: How can an insurance professional in Bangladesh develop their career significantly by being a chartered insurer?

Keith: People trust cultural behaviours and expect technical competence from practitioners who are professional, have high standards of ethics, and who are able to deliver a very high level of service by looking at things from the customers' point of view. Becoming a chartered insurer is a good discipline for achieving those attributes. It's not the only way of doing it, but it does provide a strong, well-structured path to development.

FE: What's your advice to the young generation, especially the current business students, to develop their career in the insurance sector?

Keith: Always focus on trust. There will be a lot of fashions in the sector as time goes by, around business organisation, automation and improvements in communication. These changes are all important, but they all have to serve the purpose of building trust. Someone who can command the trust of their clients through competence and high ethical standards will always be in demand - that's the basis of a flourishing career.

FE: How to tackle the shortage of skilled manpower in Bangladesh's insurance sector?

Keith: This is not just a challenge in Bangladesh, but all around the world. I think we need to convey how rewarding and interesting advice, risk management and insurance can be to people who are choosing a career. In order to recruit the talented, committed individuals we need to bridge the gap in manpower.

FE: Green Delta's subsidiary— Professional Advancement Bangladesh—has been offering CII courses in Bangladesh. Would you encourage the insurance professionals to get higher insurance education through PABL?

Keith: PABL has impressive infrastructure and most of the resources needed to deliver a high standard of training programmes. The CII has conducted various 'train the trainer' courses in the last few years to enhance PABL trainers' training methodology and to integrate international standards in the way courses are delivered. CII qualifications are mostly designed and promoted via a self-study route, however students usually need support and somebody to guide and train them while they are preparing themselves for the exams. In order to cater to this need, PABL provides extensive support. While the CII is the examining body for the insurance qualifications, PABL is the training expert that supports and guides students at every step. We definitely recommend that students and insurance professionals should enroll themselves for CII qualifications to enhance their knowledge and skills through PABL.