Does a Reinsurance Gender Gap Lead to a Consumer Gap?

Tally Kaplan Porat

As a marketing director at an InsurTech company, I see how we are constantly focused on how the insurance and reinsurance industry is lagging behind when it comes to the digital platforms and how it’s time we close the digitalization gap with corresponding industries, such as banking. How we can no longer afford this gap now that COVID-19 has changed consumer behavior and that digitalization needs to be accelerated to step up to the new consumer standard.

That’s all true, but what if I tell you that even with all the digitalization accelerated, we would still be only hitting 50% of consumer potential? What would you say then? Would you ask why?

Well, according to Swiss Re Institute in 2019 women represent about a fifth of the insurance and reinsurance executive level and only 10% were CEOs[1]. Considering that women are 51% of the world’s total population, meaning the majority of the world’s population are women, wouldn’t you say there is a lack of representation within the insurance and reinsurance industry of most of its potential customers?

Operating with only a 50% view and understanding of the market is something that no company would ever consider doing, no investor would ever invest in such a distorted market view, and no reinsurance company would ever underwrite a policy based on a 50% data coverage. And yet, here we are. Without gender diversity in the reinsurance organization we are basically operating with a 50% potential rate, power, insight, resources etc.

Lower Risks and Higher Success Rates

Research shows a positive correlation between executive team diversity and financial performance and found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on their executive teams were 21% more likely to experience above-average profitability[2].  Furthermore, there is a positive correlation between greater levels of gender diversity and higher likelihood of financial outperformance across geographies at the executive level[3].

At an InsurTech company, we focus on managing risks every day. However, the risks we focus on have a very defined parameter, which is the policy itself.  As human beings, by nature we tend to focus on what is defined, what are the parameters, what is the scope of field. We need that frame to define our focal point.

Gender gap however is not part of any insurance policy, which means that if we don’t raise our heads above our scope of work we’ll never bridge the 50% we don’t realize we’re missing.

The gender gap has so many implications for an organization, and its direct effects on consumers and markets are so profound that not only is it time to close it, it’s also smart business for lowering risks and increasing success rates.

Fortunately, I work in a value-based company were gender awareness is part of our corporate culture. I’m proud to be working in an environment that strives to accomplish far beyond the 50% point of view, by educating and implementing gender diversity as part of our global success.

[1] https://www.swissre.com/institute/research/topics-and-risk-dialogues/society-and-politics/expertise-publication-gender-diversity-re-insurance-industry.html

[2] https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/organization/our%20insights/delivering%20through%20diversity/delivering-through-diversity_full-report.ashx

[3] https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/organization/our%20insights/delivering%20through%20diversity/delivering-through-diversity_full-report.ashx

Tally Kaplan Porat

Tally Kaplan Porat Corporate Marketing and Marketing Communications at Sapiens. Over 20 years of strategic marketing and communications experience with proven track record in brand transformation, managing teams and global marketing programs from development to execution.