How Canadian P&C firms are developing diversity

Regardless of where Canadian brokerages are in their efforts to build diverse workplaces, they generally agree on three good ways to get there.

When asked what actions brokerages could take to increase diversity, survey respondents advocated promoting diverse talent to senior levels (38%), hiring diverse talent at senior levels (36%) and developing specific recruiting strategies for diverse groups (36%).

Canadian Underwriter, with the support of Sovereign Insurance, conducted an online survey in January and February 2023 tallying 322 broker responses. This is the second consecutive year the research has been conducted.

Walking the talk

Companies whose leaders express belief in DEI and actively promote those efforts will have better outcomes than those that publicize it with an ulterior motive in mind, Christopher Aloussis, co-chair of Link Canada – 2SLGBTQ+ Insurance Network, observed during a panel discussion on the research.

He added it has been proven that companies actively promoting DEI have a positive impact on 2SLGBTQ+ employee’s satisfaction with their companies.

“[Organizations should] not so much [approach] it as an organizational attempt to drive recruitment, but really focus on empowering those individuals…to be able to promote what their personal beliefs are, and how that aligns with your organization.”

Even if they don’t know how to get there, survey respondents largely agreed there are advantages to diverse workplaces.

Fifty eight percent of respondents said DEI creates a positive workplace culture, while 52% said it provides more diverse perspectives, and 47% said it helps them better understand their clients.

Given the ongoing labour shortage in the P&C industry, brokerages should heed a more subtle consequence of failing to address diversity — employee attrition.

The survey found the prevalence of employees hearing racial, ethnic and gender-based jokes is more than twice as high at brokerages without diversity in senior leadership (31% versus 13%). That’s 10% higher than the 2022 survey results.

Within that context, it’s not surprising brokers working in organizations without diversity in senior leadership said they’re three times more likely to be actively looking for another job (27%) than those with diverse senior leadership (10%).

Broaden representation

In homogeneous organizations, even the most talented employees can feel like token hires if they’re the only ones representing their group — be it ethnic, religious, gender identity, disability, or so on. That’s where having already established employee resource groups really helps motivate potential new hires for organizations looking to grow, Aloussis said.

“People don’t always want to have to bear the burden of bringing diversity into an organization. It can be very stressful, especially when you’re starting a new position there,” Aloussis said.

“If you’re at an organization where you feel like you’re running up against the wall, go speak to someone inside your network and see how they’re going to be able to help move that conversation.”

Data support that outlook. Brokerages not leading in diversity recognized failing to address DEI may lead to negative consequences — including losing good employees (46%), losing access to the best new talent (42%), and the risk of homogeneity or groupthink (35%).

This story is excerpted from one that appeared in the October print edition of Canadian Underwriter. Feature image by iStock.com/jeffbergen