Across the globe, Allianz is a leading brand and one of the top integrated financial services providers, offering a range of personal and corporate insurance services including property and casualty, life, protection and health solutions, as well as asset management and assistance services. This represents a comprehensive set of capabilities and network of assets which provide agents a unique advantage to tap the diversified strength of Allianz Group to serve the needs of customers in the region better, making a distinctive, holistic impact on people’s lives.

 

Being a prominent global insurer and one of the strongest foreign insurers in the Asia-Pacific region, Allianz Asia Pacific continues to attract the best talents in the market and provide new opportunities to serve a broader range of needs for new and existing customers.

 

In a new partnership with INSEAD, one of the world’s leading and largest graduate business schools, Allianz Asia Pacific is creating a training programme aimed at upskilling the agency’s salesforce, allowing their agents, agency leaders and staff the opportunity to learn from INSEAD’s professors and industry experts, enabling them to build a sustainable professional career. With a jointly developed curriculum and education programme, attendees will get to widen their perspective of the financial industry, lead and manage their businesses and better understand the needs of their customers. The partnership marks a significant step in Allianz Asia Pacific’s commitment to develop and invest in its agents, empowering the next generation of leaders and establishing a new standard of excellence in the industry.

 

Augmenting the INSEAD partnership is an internal drive towards professionalizing the agency force by focusing on building high-quality performers that qualify as Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) agents. In the insurance industry, attaining MDRT qualification is widely regarded as the pinnacle of success, representing exceptional knowledge, adherence to strict ethical standards, and outstanding client service.

 

To foster a culture of MDRT excellence, Allianz is dedicated to providing holistic training programmes, upskilling opportunities and leadership development initiatives for its salesforce. Recognising the achievement of MDRT qualification as a significant milestone in an adviser’s career, Allianz Asia Pacific organises various activities where high-performing advisers can exchange knowledge and experiences within the larger regional community. Additionally, Allianz rewards these accomplished advisers for their dedication and commitment to exceptional performance. By emphasising professionalisation and promoting the MDRT culture, Allianz not only aims to enhance the skills and knowledge of its salesforce but also to build trust and credibility with customers. Customers are assured that Allianz’s agents possess the expertise, integrity and dedication required to provide the highest level of service and guidance in the complex insurance world.

 

Explaining how these initiatives are essential in Allianz Asia Pacific’s transformation for its agency force, regional chief agency officer Mohit Bahoria, with additional responsibilities for strategy, marketing, and digital transformation said, “We recognise that agency growth is a fundamental pillar of the growth of our business. Today, the agency workforce is the top distribution channel in Asia that makes up 50% of new business premiums and 70% of value. Our endeavour is to manage a holistic transformation programme to build the next generation of agency by continuously improving various aspects of agency development, including the ‘best-in-class’ compensation, training, leadership development, digital and enablement.

 

“This year, we have been ramping up our engagement with the agents. Besides various regional initiatives, such as our partnership with INSEAD, regional recognition for MDRT agents, we are strategically activating our global assets to widen our reach and provide a value-added experience for our distribution salesforce and customers. To name a few examples, we are leveraging our position as a global sponsor and partner of the International Olympic Committee and FC Bayern Munich to engage our agents to be a part of two large sporting events in Singapore. Rewarding and recognising our agency force significantly improves engagement with our agents, who are a critical first touchpoint for us in serving our customers.”

 

The pandemic has also changed how people engage with each other across industries. Many activities have shifted to digital and remote channels, and this includes the distribution of insurance. To revolutionise the learning experience of their agents, Allianz Asia Pacific is not only focusing on improving the agent-to-customer experience, but also on equipping agents with a holistic professional development experience.

 

With the introduction of new technologies, the agency channel requires new skill sets to cope with the change in customer expectations and the ever-growing complexities that technology presents. Allianz Asia Pacific’s investments in technology have already yielded positive results, allowing them to provide a more seamless experience for employees, customers, and distribution partners.

 

As an industry, insurance is up to date with the increasing number of regulations, but it has often been slower to adopt new technologies. As digitalisation becomes crucial in driving customer-centricity, the industry has been starting to embrace technology more rapidly. Allianz Asia Pacific’s priorities in digitalisation are centred around the interconnected areas of distribution, customer health management, and customer experience to improve advisor productivity, improve operational efficiency, and cultivate better customer engagement.

 

A multitude of data points also enables Allianz Asia Pacific to leverage data analytics to enhance their offerings, and they are constantly innovating to provide value-added services, focusing on personalised content and services to enhance insurance across touchpoints that appeal more to next-generation customers. Besides ramping up the use of these digital tools, at the core of their transformation is still the training of agents to enable them to use these tools effectively and create greater value for themselves and their customers.

 

In March 2022, Allianz Asia Pacific launched the first phase of a comprehensive application for its agency force in Malaysia – Allianz 360. The application, a single unified app for agents, is targeted to provide a seamless interface, covering pre-sales to post-sales, policy servicing, and performance monitoring. Since its launch, it has seen a high adoption rate, with 89% of active agents recording close to 500,000 transactions in its first three months. Following this success, there are plans for the app to be rolled out across the region.

 

While digital enablement has undoubtedly revolutionised productivity and improved experience levels for agents and customers alike, Allianz recognises the enduring importance of human relationships in effectively serving customers.

 

Mr Bahoria said, “We are proud of our strong agency network in the Asia Pacific region, and our ongoing transformation is a testament to our commitment to growing our expertise and reach here as a global leader in insurance and financial services. We remain committed to developing and investing in our agents and leaders to enable them to reach their full potential. A