Adviser firms are generally positive about the coming year with growth, acquisitions, and partnerships high on the agenda.
But as firms gear up to grow their businesses, they are also alive to recruitment pressures caused by Brexit and Covid and the challenge of helping clients fulfil their aim of returning to full productivity post-pandemic.
“I started my business in 2014 so I’ve been trading for a little while but there’s certainly no exit strategy,” Naomi Greatorex, founder of Heath Protection Solutions, told Health & Protection.
“The plan with the business is to grow it this year. Last year, I had my best year so far and that’s come from really developing relationships.
“I don’t buy any leads in so all of my business comes through referred business. So it’s a structure which has taken a while to build up because of the nature of dealing with introduced only business from professional connections.
“But now it’s looking at where the success has come from and how you can grow that success to go to the next stage.”
Greatorex revealed she has developed a strong referral relationship with a London-based mortgage company which has been key to her success.
“I work with them and their clients and that’s been very successful because we really have worked hard on how the brokers there refer, so I work as their protection director and that has been really successful,” she added.
Likewise Alan Lakey, director at Highclere Financial Services, revealed 2021 was the firm’s most profitable year of trading – a trend he hopes carries into 2022. Though he added the business is sustainable whoever runs the show.
“Highclere is not a protection-only firm, we also arrange mortgages, equity release, pensions and investments,” he said.
“The business has been based around ongoing income as well as new clients so that it is sustainable regardless of whether one of us retires to the Seychelles or Tahiti. This offers the option of selling the business or bringing in fresh talent.”
Acquisitions and partnerships
Isaac Feiner, owner of Lifepoint Healthcare, told Health & Protection his focus in 2022 will be on growth and acquisitions.
“We had 44.9% growth in the business in 2021. The objective this year is to double the business via organic and acquisitive means and we welcome conversations with PMI brokers looking to exit, retire or release equity from their books.”
But Andrew Wilkinson, director at Moneysworth, revealed his firm is open to partner with a larger organisation to cope with increased consumer interest.
“Demand for our services has increased through the pandemic and we continue to grow our client base,” Wilkinson said.
“Ongoing demand brings challenges in terms of building resource to support the growth. As a small organisation, the obvious solution would be to generate investment, or partner with a larger organisation, which we would potentially consider.”
Loaded premiums and online integration
While advisers are alive to growth opportunities, they are equally aware of threats to their business over the coming year, and how insurers are able to provide the services they rely on.
Debbie Kennedy, CEO at LifeSearch, expressed concerns around elongated underwriting and claims assessment processes – not just due to increased pressures on medical staff due to the pandemic but also struggles to recruit underwriters due to Brexit.
Kennedy added she hoped the Financial Conduct Authority’s new consumer duty would have teeth and that the regulator would move to ban loaded premiums.
According to Kennedy, LifeSearch’s emphasis in the coming year will be on serving new customer expectations with a significant focus on online capabilities.
“Our customers are more comfortable using online technology yet still want a personal service that provides advice when they need it,” she said.
“In 2022 we will invest in customer journeys that speak to different needs and expectations, allowing people to move intuitively from online to offline; with human support there when wanted. This is already the practice in other service sectors, and we must anticipate customer expectations in protection as well.”
Kennedy added that there was huge potential to collaborate between reinsurer through the insurer to distributors, to share insights and learnings.
“By using the huge amounts of data at our industry’s fingertips we aim to improve the customer experience markedly,” she said.
Holistic advice
In the corporate advice space, Claire Ginnelly, executive director at Premier Choice Group, said it was imperative the industry talked more holistically to clients about overall employee health and wellbeing and offered solutions across the board, as opposed to purely advising a client on their PMI or group risk policy.
“I believe success will be seen more by those companies who do this,” she added.
“Signposting will also continue to be important. Partnering with organisations which can offer solutions to your clients that you can’t can only be a positive thing for all involved, and most importantly the client.”
Iain Laws, CEO at Towergate Health & Protection, echoed Kennedy’s concerns, highlighting the impact of Brexit, Covid and the potential for increased taxation to change employer and employee benefits spending behaviours as key threats in 2022.
“Employee health has moved to centre stage and is a critical factor in employee engagement,” he added.
“We will be continuing to act on the wide-ranging opportunities to add value to business clients through high-quality delivery of effective employee health, wellbeing and protection tools and advice.”
Physical, mental and financial health
Ultimately, however, Steve Herbert, head of benefits strategy at Howden Employee Benefits & Wellbeing, believes the biggest opportunities for the industry in the year ahead remain centred on how the country copes with Covid.
“Employers across the nation are desperate to return to full productivity and to dust-off those pre-pandemic business plans too. But they will only be able to do that if their employees are physically, mentally, and financially healthy.
“So after almost two years of pandemic restrictions the industry can do much to help the national effort to return to normality by ensuring that both employers and employees have access to all the tools and support necessary to deliver good employee wellbeing.
“And that in turn will present plenty of growth and income opportunities for organisations in our sector too.”