Here's what three surplus lines professionals have to say about the future of the industry. (Photo: Shutterstock)
Alan Kaufman, Chairman, President, CEO, H.W. Kaufman Group 
Very often, an industry's biggest challenges opens the door to new opportunities. While the prolonged soft market continues to be a challenge for the industry, we are focused on leveraging the current market status to position our business for long-term growth. Our largest challenge is finding the best talent.
One of the key ingredients for continued growth is building a pipeline of highly qualified individuals. We are addressing this challenge by supporting both internal and external education efforts in addition to very competitive compensation and opportunities for career advancement.
First, we are raising awareness about insurance as a successful career opportunity, and I encourage other business leaders to do the same. In 2016 I endowed a professorship of Risk and Insurance Management at Michigan State University. It has already resulted in the establishment of an insurance minor in the business school and a future source for excellent recruits.
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Danielle Ling
Danielle Ling is an experienced video journalist and business reporter. As associate editor, Danielle manages all multimedia and reports on industry news and risk-related coverage, managing all weather-related content. A University of Maryland and Philip Merrill College of Journalism alum, Danielle previously served as a video journalist for Verizon FiOS 1 News NJ, Push Pause. Connect with Danielle on LinkedIn or email her at [email protected].
