FIA/Cover broker summit: it’s a wrap

The Financial Intermediaries Association (FIA) and Cover Magazine hosted the inaugural Short-Term Insurance Broking Summit (STIBS2016) at the Sandton Convention Centre on 18 April 2016. The theme of the summit was “Broker-Innovator-Disruptor”, highlighting the changing landscape that brokers and underwriting managers find themselves in.

There were several sponsors of the Summit, including CN&CO’s associate Lombard Partnerships, which had a stand on display. Headed up by Doug Laburn, Lombard and its partner UMAs were on standby to engage with the 500 delegates about their position in the market. Carel Nolte emceed the event, which had an impressive and diverse line-up of speakers. A variety of presentations linked to the overall theme were delivered, including:

• Creating a culture for innovation to thrive in by Nicholas Kurger from MMI
• Global trends in intermediated distribution by Nic De Maesschalck from the WFII
• How to stand out in a crowded market by Gideon Galloway from King Price
• How tech innovation affects consumers by Luke Mckend from Google SA
• South Africa: born out of innovation and disruption by Nick Binedall from GIBS

There were also two panel discussions entitled Personal Lines Showdown and Women in Insurance. The first centred mainly on how the market could better cater for all South Africans while the second focused on gender diversity in the industry, as the name implies.

The topics presented in the summit reinforced that the landscape is definitely changing in the intermediary world. Brokers and underwriting managers need to stay relevant by embracing technology to either improve old ways of doing business or find new ways  to provide their services in a tech-heavy environment.

As the first of its kind, the summit provided huge value for the intermediaries and will no doubt continue to do so in future years, thanks to the FIA and Cover.