Historically, few graduates would choose the insurance industry as a career option, the main reason being that there is very little career guidance in this particular field.
This has resulted in the industry remaining relatively unexplored and has contributed towards a definite skills shortage in the insurance industry.
As a result of this skills shortage, one of SA’s leading short term insurance brokers, Indwe Risk Services, has taken the initiative to inform students of the Indwe internship programme and educate young learners on the career opportunities in the insurance field. Indwe recently paid visits to the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) and the Durban University of Technology in Pietermaritzburg to encourage students to join the internship programme.
Giel Muller, CEO of Indwe Broker Holdings, says that this internship programme has been specifically designed to overcome challenges within the industry. “This is an excellent on-the-job training course which directly addresses the skills shortage and lack of representation currently experienced within the insurance industry,” he explains.
Adds Jabu Sibisi, Strategy and HR Director at Indwe, “We developed a programme whereby interns are able to benefit and learn from the tremendous skills and expertise of highly-experienced insurance industry leaders. These leaders play a pivotal role in keeping the interns motivated and take great pride in their development and achievements.”
Now in its 8th year, potential interns first undergo a selection process. The application criteria include a tertiary qualification, participation in an in-depth selection process and completion of a twelve-month training programme. All interns start at administration level and move on to various other departments, which include claims processing, maintenance of claims, sales and service and specialised areas such as personal- or business insurance.
“Whilst in the past, interns who completed the programme have not been guaranteed employment at Indwe Risk Services, we are now in the position to offer all successful interns a position within the company, says Sibisi.
“There has been a significant investment in people through this programme, both in monetary terms and indirectly on time spent mentoring and coaching the interns,” Sibisi concludes.
Indwe believes in investing in people and living the value of nurturing and developing our future leaders for business growth and sustainability. Our company is committed to providing growth opportunities for these young graduates as they find their niche in the insurance industry.
