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Insurance Industry Increases Hiring for Technology Jobs

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Insurance Industry Increases Hiring for Technology Jobs

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August 28, 2014
By Michelle Nicolson
TMCnet Contributing Writer

The increasing need to replace legacy computer systems in the insurance industry will spark an employment boom for technical staff over the next year, according to a recent survey.


Technological changes — including the increased need for mobile access, automation and improved business intelligence — means insurance companies are looking to fill more tech positions. Additionally, those positions are becoming increasingly difficult to fill, according to the midyear 2014 U.S. Insurance Labor Outlook survey by the Jacobson Group and The Ward Group.

“Getting more data from your systems is on everybody’s minds,” explained Jeff Rieder, partner and head of the Ward Group. “It’s no surprise to anyone that technology has been, is — and may well remain — the greatest focal point of hiring.”

Part of the demand also stems from improved underwriting technology development. “Today’s systems are making the underwriting decisions for the underwriters, particularly on smaller, less-complex accounts,” he said. “This lets the underwriter focus on more complex risks, which essentially reduces the number of underwriters needed across the entire book of business.”

While technology jobs were leading the list of jobs where insurance carriers are seeking to add staff, other hiring areas include analytics, claims and — by smaller firms at least — underwriting.

The survey results indicate actuarial positions will be the toughest to fill. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that employment of actuaries is projected to grow 26 percent from 2012 to 2022, much faster than the average for all occupations. However, it’s a relatively small field, resulting in only about 6,300 new jobs over the 10-year period.

The overall headcount for the insurance industry is expected to increase 1.01 percent in the next year, according the survey results. Overall employment increased 1.35 percent in the previous 12-month period. Generally, industry unemployment is low — 3.4 percent for the industry compared to the U.S. average of 6.2 percent in July.

However, hiring for temporary positions will likely slow. Only 8 percent of carriers expect to add more temporary positions, versus 15 percent earlier this year. Additionally, 9 percent of carriers plan to let staff go, compared to 4 percent earlier in 2014.




Edited by Peter Bernstein

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