S4 EP64: Driven to help high-performing insurance people succeed - Nick Hoadley, CEO, Insurance Search

The Insurance Coffee House

“DE&I is one of the biggest challenges for the industry. For a lot of our clients in the US, it's one of their biggest priorities”, says Nick

"Before we engage with a client, we really want to make sure they're set up for diverse candidates. It's so important for us as an insurance executive search firm, that if we move someone who's very successful into a new environment, that they're going to be set up for success there.

And that internally, there are no barriers and people will have the same opportunity across the board.

For us as a search firm, it's key for our processes to be as transparent and inclusive as possible.

When we’re working on a mandate, rather than just going to a little book of contacts, that we actually do a thorough market mapping to identify every single person who could potentially do that role.

What that gives us is a more diverse talent pool. The shortlist of candidates we provide is more diverse. When you've got more people in that process, you can scrutinize those candidates more and end up with a better-quality hire.”

On the podcast this week, Nick shares his journey from corporate law to insurance broker to founding global insurance executive search consultancy, Insurance Search.

“I was working for an insurance company. We were looking to hire great quality people, but were really struggling to get the candidates.

I was working with some of the agencies, seeing some of the CV s that were coming in. It could be quite depressing and just thought, there's an opportunity here. I backed myself that I could do better.

I've always been a real people person, helping people in whatever way I can. It just seemed like a really natural fit, putting businesses together with great insurance talent.”

Nick highlights the challenges to launching an executive search consultancy and how he’s coped with adversity along the away.

“We're still very fresh from it, the pandemic. We were doing very nicely as a firm, working with lots of good insurance companies who were expanding.

But then the pandemic came along and the world changed.

We went from all of our clients actively hiring multiple positions to pretty much zero overnight.

That was a real trauma. But it gave me the opportunity to really reflect and decide where I wanted to take the business.

We’d been doing quite a lot of senior, international work at the time, but we are also still doing some quite junior insurance roles, which was an area we weren’t enjoying as much.

And so, we pivoted and really focused at the senior end of things.”

Nick discusses the motivation behind launching the Insurance Coffee House Podcast as a way to highlight the breadth of opportunity across the insurance sector, and to learn from the experiences of C-level insurance leaders.

He emphasizes the executive search, human capital consultancy and market intelligence services Insurance Search provides, both to global insurance brands as well as smaller, mid-market businesses.

“Our core service is insurance executive search and finding senior leaders for insurance companies.

As part of that work, we have a human capital consultancy where we very much look to align ourselves with our clients. Where they are as a business now and work with them to achieve those strategic objectives and where they want to be in 18 months, two years, five years.

And we offer insurance market intelligence studies.

We've got a great team of researchers, who are looking externally for our clients at what their competitors are doing, how those competitors are being successful, looking at some of the aspirational businesses that they want to be like in 24 to 36 months.”

With Insurance Search seeking to make executive search more accessible, Nick highlights the types of roles the team works on.

“As well as C-level positions, we also work on business-critical roles. They might be middle management or upper middle management positions which larger search firms may overlook. They’re roles that are critical to those businesses and they're often some of the hardest positions to fill.

We feel that our methodology and the way we work, is a real benefit to those insurance companies.”

Nick emphasizes why he’s driven not only to help insurance businesses succeed, but also the individuals within those businesses.

“We always say we have two clients. We've got the company itself. But number secondly, is very much around the people we're working with. The Chief HR Officer, the COO or the CEO, they want to be successful in their particular roles.

We align ourselves with them and really figure out what's the biggest problem they're facing and how can we provide a solution.”

Nick shares how the Insurance Search team are supporting candidates to develop in their insurance careers, by opening up introductions through to the firm’s insurance network and Leadership Advisory Service.

He emphasizes the values that underpin Insurance Search’s core offer – honesty, integrity, excellence and transparency – and why he’s looking for high-performing insurance leaders to join the team.

“We look to hire in people to our organisation, who are insurance industry experts. People who are actually working in the industry as an executive or a leader. Whether they're from underwriting or broking, we feel they can add a lot of value.

We've got a team of highly experienced executive search consultants in the UK and then we have our managing partners who are based in different parts of the world, in the US primarily and in Bermuda. People who are very credible, who've got great relationships and are culturally aligned with us as well.

It’s a real opportunity for them to leverage their network.”

As advice for insurance leaders seeking a new opportunity or when preparing for an interview, Nick says, “Be hungry and know the value you can bring.”

And as for people leaders and insurance talent acquisition professionals, Nick emphasizes that it’s all about the process.

“Make sure that your hiring process is inclusive and attracts the greatest number of candidates.

You're under pressure when you've only got one or two candidates in the mix to choose from. Open up that pool. Try to take anything out of the job specification that doesn't need to be there to encourage more diverse candidates to apply.”

Find out more about Insurance Search or connect with Nick Hoadley on LinkedIn or email [e-mail]

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