Headquartered in Mumbai, IndiaFirst, is one of the country's youngest life insurance company promoted by two large public sector banks - Bank of Baroda and Andhra Bank - along with UK's leading risk, wealth and investment company Legal & General. Launched by then Union Finance Minister Mr Pranab Mukherjee in March 2010, IndiaFirst is today present in over 1000 + cities and towns across the country through 8500+ partner bank branches, covering over 10+ million lives. With a share capital of Rs. 625 crore, It has over INR 100 billion (Rs.10,000 crore) of AUM in just 7 years of operations.
Breaking the Glass Barrier
The Senior Management Team at IndiaFirst consists of the three senior women leaders including the MD & CEO. This is 33 % of Top Management Team. Out of the Total employees promoted, 22 % were women employees (75% of the eligible women employees got promoted). Employees who could not make through the next level of transitions were supported with developmental feedback and with an Individual Development Plan.
R. M. Vishakha, Managing Director & CEO IndiaFirst Life Insurance, a senior BFSI professional says, “IndiaFirst Life has always believed in gender diversity. Our partner, L&G, has a stated mission of “50:50 by 2020” and has HR processes that mandate evaluation of female candidate resumes for every position. There is absolutely no compromise made on competence and capability. It is about ensuring that a fair chance is provided and subconscious bias against women at any level does not overshadow providing equitable opportunity.”
Increasing Gender Diversity
Out of the total non-sales population of the company, 33% are female whereas in sales it is 19% of total sales population. Female employees constitute 22% of total population (Ratio 1:5). The company strives to increase the female population across sales by looking to hire Female Managers (BUH’s and Group Heads). This would also help in getting more female employees at frontline sales roles. Also preferences are given to women employees in certain urban locations.
At various levels median salaries for female employees are higher as compared to their male counterparts. In addition, the female attrition (out of overall female employees) as compared to male attrition (out of overall male employees) is substantially low. At IndiaFirst Life, average appraisal rating for female employees viz-a-viz male counterparts, are higher for over past two years. “At IndiaFirst, we break many a stereotype, from having a woman CEO, to one of the very few woman appointed actuary and a woman Chief Strategy Officer.” Vishakha added.
Performance and policies
The average performance scores for Female employees are 3.8 which were higher than average performance scores for Male employee which is 3.5. The company also has policies which enable flexibility at work and offer employees a freedom to plan their work schedule accordingly. Some of the policies like Maternity Policy (182 days), Sabbatical Policy and Alternate Work Arrangement Policy are utilized by women employees.
“Gender Diversity is a conscious awareness to break free of age old beliefs and judge each individual on their merits that will achieve true Gender diversity. It will lead to an ideal scenario where women will be taken into the workforce and given opportunities based on their merits and competencies,” assert Vishakha a Chartered Accountant and Fellow of Indian Insurance Institute who has a successful track record of over 25 years in the financial services industry with both public as well as private organizations.
Creating an inclusive work environment
Praveen Menon, Chief People Officer, IndiaFirst Life Insurance feels that one of the focus of great places to work is the ability to create an inclusive work environment that fully engages diversity - diversity in thought, experiences, gender, skills and perspectives.
“Gender parity enhances the quality of decision-making as we get diversified views. An undeniable fact is that women are as loyal if not more to their organizations and are as qualified, creative and ambitious as their male counterparts. I strongly feel that every organization must support women in every possible manner to help them pursue their careers be it flexible working hours, crèches, friendly policies and even increased training for them – in a few words – an appropriate eco-system enabling them to reach the pinnacle of success in their respective positions,” Menon reiterates.
Overall gender wise exits in IndiaFirst Life Insurance include 42% male and 31% female. Sales which usually sees a high attrition (40%) also sees just 6% attrition for female employees in the company. If very many organizations are able to create this eco-system in their own ways a positive social change across the country won’t take very long.
Online marketing and services are spreading at a lightning speed to almost all the corners of the world. A developing country like India has also been touched by the online services and now almost everything in India is going online. The limit is not only the online shopping and the social networks. Nearly every service from financial to educational and many more are going online so that you do not have to go out anywhere to fetch a particular service.
Similar to many other services, online insurance in India is also getting famous and is benefitting a number of people.
Why do you need an online insurance?
Today almost everybody who is starting to earn is taking insurance. There are some possible reasons why people are doing so. One of the most common reasons that people give today is to save tax. Apart from tax saving, the other big reason is of course safety. The main benefit of insurance is to provide support at times of need.
Some agents and companies offer insurance policies at their office. But people prefer to take online insurance today. Why is it so? Today everyone has become so busy that no one has that much time to visit different insurance offices to check the policies and then buy a plan. In this case, online services can be easily accessed from his home or while on transit and at any suitable time, even at midnight. Also, you get an appropriate amount of time to do proper research before buying the policy. Also, the cost of an online policy is less as compared to an offline one since there is no middlemen involved.
The comfort of online insurance process made it a big success in India
Today people are more into comparing things before buying. Even in a case of insurance policy, people like to compare 2-3 companies before settling on one. Comparing becomes hectic when you are confused in between 2-3 brands. To make this easy, there are some comparisons sites that you can make use of. Here you can search for a particular type of insurance and can compare between many brands to get the best deal.
The comparison is based on various parameters like reputation of the company in the market; the services provided by the brand, the benefits and coverage offered by the policy, the price of the policy, returns and many others. After having a look at the various features and companies, you can select the policy that is best suited to you. In fact, this is why the popularity of online insurance has enhanced significantly over the years in India.
Impact of online service in Indian market
Gone are the days when people just researched about the particular insurance company and then contacted their agents to buy the policy. Now the online payment mode is comfortable and safe and you can buy virtually anything online. This feature has boosted the prospects and scope of online insurance in India significantly.
You can make payment through a vast number of choices such as credit or debit cards, mobile wallets like Rupay or Paytm and get the policy in your inbox instantly.
The gateway is also safe and password protected so that your transaction is done successfully and safely. Online insurance also provides a good customer care support, which helps the buyer tackle any tricky situation before or after buying the policy.
Increasing demand for online insurance in India
There was a time when people in the metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata among others opted for online insurance services. But with rapid growth of internet and increased penetration, online services have also become quite popular in tier 2 towns as well. Now people in those cities are comfortable in taking help of the online insurance to compare, buy and renew different types of insurance policies.
Future of online insurance in India
With the increase in number of internet users (India has over 400 million internet users; Source BCG Google Report), it has also been noticed that the number of people taking up insurance policies online has also increased. There was a time when people with high salaries believed in getting insurance policies and that too, mainly, life insurance policies. But today an individual who has just joined a job starts buying insurance.
People are getting more educated, aware and are trying not just to secure their lives but also their homes, properties, vehicles and even their travel trips. Of course, digitalization has made people more knowledgeable about various types of insurance policies, about how they can be beneficial to them. The most important thing is that people today know how to get the right type of insurance and from where. Buying insurance online is now a trend in India. One of the primary reasons behind this change is the services and benefits offered by the companies and the price benefit that one can avail of while buying online. It might be safe to presume that online is the future for the Indian insurance industry .
By the time Puneet Agarwal got the news that his shop was on fire, it was already too late. An electrical short-circuit had almost entirely gutted the building where the 28-year old cloth merchant ran his shop from Kalakar Street at Kolkata’s Burrabazar, the largest wholesale market in that part of the country. Puneet couldn’t recover anything from his shop, including the cash he had kept overnight for depositing in the bank next morning. With no shop insurance policy, Puneet now stares at an uncertain future.
The above case study if just one example out of many such incidents that keep on happening almost on a daily basis. While people are largely aware of health, term, and motor insurance, at least in the big cities and town, shop and business insurance is mostly ignored. It seems to be the prerogative of only big companies and factories. The average small trader often gives business insurance a miss.
If Puneet’s condition hasn’t convinced you, and you are wondering whether to invest in a business insurance policy, consider the following circumstances.
The automobile industry may suffer a loss because of a rise in raw material prices and labour costs. Worst still could be a closure of the unit, courtesy lockouts and strikes.
The chocolate industry may suffer from a cocoa shortage that’s mostly grown in the African countries like Ivory Coast and Ghana where civil wars are commonplace.
Political unrest in some of your major export destinations may hamper you revenues.
Risk is an inherent part of all business activities. But certain risks that a business faces can be reduced or entirely avoided if you insure your business.
Sample this. When you ride a motorbike, why do you wear a helmet? You may be the best rider in town and know the city streets thoroughly. But you may meet with an accident, even if it’s not your fault. The helmet you wear will protect you from head injuries that could be fatal.
In an almost similar way, your business requires protection against the risks that it may face, and a business insurance policy would protect you against some of the most common risks.
Business insurance package
Almost all major insurance companies offer business package policies that provide comprehensive protection against exigencies like fire, personal accident, burglary, third-party liability and others. These plans are convenient for business as you can cover all your assets under a single plan.
Standalone plans
Insurance companies also sell individual policies where you can choose a customised portfolio. For business units at multiple locations, some fire and burglary covers offer a floater option. This means just a single policy will cover all the locations. These are annual plans and should be renewed every year.
Types of business insurance
Fortunately, as a business owner, you have access to several types of insurances that can reasonably cover you from the risks. Here are the most common ones in India.
Property insurance: Whether your business runs on an owned or leased space, property insurance is extremely important. It covers losses to inventory, equipment, signage, and furniture in case of a storm, theft or fire. However, natural calamities that cause mass destruction like earthquakes and floods are usually not covered under property insurance.
Workers’ compensation: Such a policy is usually added to a standard business insurance plan. It covers medical treatment, death and disability benefits if an employee of your business gets injured or dies while on duty. Even if your workers perform seemingly low-risk duties, a major slip-and-fall injury may lead to a pricey claim. To prevent employers from evading claims, the government has made workers’ compensation mandatory in some sectors of the economy, particularly the ones that are risk-prone.
Product liability insurance: It’s a must if you manufacture goods for sale in the general market. Even if you adopt all necessary measures to ensure your goods meet the relevant standards, you are not safe from lawsuits and damages filed by your consumers. A product liability insurance protects your business in such cases. The coverage available depends on your type and volume of business.
Business interruption insurance: The operations of a business could be interrupted because of a catastrophic event or disaster. During such a time, the business will see a drop in income because your staff will be absent from office. Leads won’t materialise into sales. This type of insurance is imperative for companies that need a physical location for conducting their business; and that includes your neighbourhood grocery store as well.
Vehicle insurance: When company vehicles are used, those should be fully insured in the name of your business to get cover when an accident occurs. While you may just get insured against third-party injuries, a comprehensive insurance will cover the vehicle involved in the accident as well. If you use your personal car in the business, then the motor insurance of the vehicle will cover it in case of losses.
Group accident and medical insurance: It’s your responsibility to ensure the well-being of your workers as an employer. It’s an important factor for the success of your business. group medical and personal accident cover will provide monetary support to your employees if there’s a crisis, sans putting any financial burden on the business.
Data protection: While a burglary or fire protection policy covers the physical damage to your computers and servers, what about the cost of retrieving the information stored in these machines? In most cases it’s just as much as replacing the computers and storage devices. It’s almost like misplacing your wallet, where the important papers and credit cards are a greater loss than losing cash. A separate electronic equipment policy for your business can cover the loss of information and pay for the reinstatement costs.
Remember, a good business thrives on taking risks. It’s often the foundation to reap profits. But at the same time, it will be foolhardy to ignore timely precautions. Buying sufficient business insurance is wise, especially for small investors who don’t have enough buffer money to bail them out in case of losses. The amount of insurance will obviously depend on the volume of your business.
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