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Life Health > Life Insurance

Ohio addresses insurance professional shortage

By Noah Guillaume

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To address the shortage of career professionals, Ohio insurance companies launched Insuring Ohio Futures.

The launch of Insuring Ohio Futures program and the InsuringOhioFutures.com website will begin the process of recruiting the next generation of insurance employees to the industry and help maintain Ohio’s place as a leader in insurance.

A study conducted by Columbus State Community College’s (CSCC) Center for Workforce Development found that more than 17,000 new jobs in the insurance sector will need to be filled in the next five years as baby boomers begin to retire, leaving behind a critical shortage of skilled workers. The study also points to career openings at nearly every level of Ohio’s 256 insurance companies.

“Thanks to Gov. Kasich’s leadership, insurance industry leaders developed a comprehensive plan to increase awareness, provide more training opportunities, and ensure these high-paid, high-skilled positions are filled by a new generation of trained professionals,” said Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor, director of the Ohio Department of Insurance.

The website offers the following information and tools:

  • Ask a Pro — Allows job seekers to ask questions and connect with seasoned insurance professionals;
  • Career Survey — Offers job seekers a tool to learn more about possible insurance career paths, which align with their goals, interests and skills;
  • Career Paths — Offers insight on popular insurance careers including details on each profession, daily responsibilities, educational requirements, important skills, average salaries and projected job outlook for the Ohio industry;
  • Resources — Provides information for students, veterans and career-changers to make informed decisions on an insurance career;
  • Videos — Offers the ability to hear firsthand testimonials from insurance professionals regarding the wide range of opportunities in insurance;
  • Ohio Insurance Industry Information Bank — Provides company listings by one of five Ohio regions, as well as direct links to the companies career resources to and to available insurance jobs in Ohio.

In other industry news:

New York Life elected Hy Pomerance as a senior vice president of the company and promoted him to chief human resources officer. He previously served as chief talent officer.

Pomerance will continue to report to Senior Vice President Barry Schub.

In his new role, Pomerance assumes additional responsibility for Compensation and Benefits, Employee Relations and the HR Business Partners function. He joined New York Life in 2009 as a first vice president and head of Talent Development, and in 2010 he became chief talent officer. In 2012, his role was expanded to include responsibility for Talent Acquisition and the HR Services unit, with additional oversight for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Prior to joining New York Life, he held multiple roles of increasing responsibility at various companies, including UBS Investment Bank as managing director – global head of talent management and also executive director – head of learning and development.

Pomerance received his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Yeshiva University, and his PhD from Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

Conning and Milliman Inc. Conning now offer insurance companies a seamless file exchange interface for running Milliman’s MG-ALFA system with output from Conning’s GEMS Economic Scenario Generator (ESG).

The integration of MG-ALFA and GEMSprovides a comprehensive solution for life insurance companies undertaking economic capital, strategic asset allocation, liability valuation, stress testing and other asset-liability modeling. For MG-ALFA users, GEMS scenarios can be used to enhance users’ financial and regulatory reporting and improve overall risk management.

In addition to providing MG-ALFA users with real world and market consistent scenarios, GEMS also factors in important economic and capital market variables such as inflation, interest rates and equity market changes as well as credit spread and migration dynamics, among other available features. The GEMS economic models and their simulated data are internally consistent within and across all major global economies.

Susan DeakinsThe Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company board of trustees approved the appointment of Susan T. Deakins to senior vice president, chief financial officer, a member of Penn Mutual’s Executive Team.  Deakins previously served as the company’s chief actuary.

As CFO, Deakins will have responsibility for all financial management at Penn Mutual, including capital management, expense management, financial planning and projections, financial reporting, rating agency relationships, risk management and tax planning.

Deakins started her career in Penn Mutual’s actuarial development program. Prior to being named CFO, she was vice president and chief actuary. Her predecessor, David M. O’Malley, has been appointed Penn Mutual’s chief operating officer.

Deakins earned her degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Aflac launched a new hospital confinement indemnity insurance policy designed to help with out-of-pocket costs resulting from an unexpected hospital stay or visit to the emergency room.

With the average hospital stay in the United States now costing approximately $10,000, Aflac’s new hospital plan is a cost-effective benefits solution that helps workers pay for expenses that are not covered by major medical insurance.

Aflac’s Hospital Advantage policy offers multiple options and levels and includes hospital confinement benefits of up to $3,000, a health savings account-compatible option, guaranteed-renewable options and one rate for all ages.

Product benefits per covered individual include:

  • Option 1 — Cash benefits of up to $3,000 for hospital confinement and up to $100 per day for treatment at a rehabilitation facility, in a hospital emergency room and during short hospital short-stays, depending upon the plan selected.
  • Option 2 — All benefits included in Option 1, plus cash benefits of $25 per physician visit, $150 for once-yearly medical diagnostic and imaging, and up to $1,000 twice yearly for transportation via air ambulance.
  • Option 3 — All benefits included in Options 1 and 2, plus cash benefits of up to $1,000 per 24-hour period for surgery and $100 per 24-hour period for invasive diagnostic exams.
  • Option 4 — All benefits of Options 1, 2 and 3, plus cash benefits of $100 per day for hospital confinement of up to 365 days, as well as for intensive care unit confinement of up to 30 days.
  • Option H (HSA-Compatible) — This is an HSA-compatible plan and includes a hospital confinement benefit of up to $3,000, as well as $100 per day for daily hospital confinement and hospital intensive care unit confinement.

Jackson National Life Insurance Company launched the Center for Financial Insight, a Web-based public thought leadership site for consumers, advisors and Jackson employees, and The Alternative Investment Learning Center, a LinkedIn community designed exclusively for registered advisors.

The two new online resources are intended to serve as central components of Jackson’s educational strategy, offering insights on financial planning, from basic terminology and fundamental investment concepts to information on investment vehicles and trends. 

Located on Jackson’s website, the Center for Financial Insight will help to bring the financial planning environment into focus for today’s investors, offering educational content, ideas and commentary from some of the top thought leaders in the financial services industry. The online resource provides proprietary research, informational videos, white papers, industry commentary and “Investor 101” materials.  

In addition to the LinkedIn group and the Center for Financial Insight, Jackson’s educational efforts include a focus on alternative investment strategies, a growing area in portfolio planning. In January, Jackson announced a plan for alternative education training in 2013, including 30 regional half-day training events, six national full-day training sessions, 120 alternative education training sessions, 130 alternative investment Continuing Education (CE) training sessions and a variety of virtual opportunities, including Quarterly Alternative Market Webcasts and monthly alternative investment conference calls.  

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