Welcome to our annual Review & Outlook section, based on feedback from agents and brokers, insurers, wholesalers, associations, consultants and young insurance professionals (the next 14 pages contain discussion from four of these six categories; the rest are online along with the list of 2012 advertisers).
2012 has been an insanely eventful year for the property-casualty industry and the world in general. Between the relentless pound of politics and a spate of record-breaking natural disasters, it seemed as if our industry was constantly in the spotlight.
The good news is, the presidential election is over; the bad news is, the presidential election is over. Many businesses are concerned that we could be in for another 4 years of gridlock and are staying in retrenching mode.
One thing is certain: The Affordable Care Act is going forward, at least alleviating that uncertainty, although the independent agent's role is still up in the air because various states are taking different approaches to the insurance exchanges and the multiple loss ratio issue is still on the table.
More significantly for our readers, especially those on the Northeast Coast, Superstorm Sandy's impact is likely to reverberate through next year. Many agencies are trying to help customers while rebuilding their own businesses. And although most insurer executives agree that property-casualty rates won't experience a big bump solely because of Sandy, the still-undetermined final cost of those losses are likely to contribute to a continuing firming of pricing.
So what's ahead for 2013? Experts across all disciplines agreed on the continuing importance of these trends in the world of independent agents and brokers:
- Technology. Especially for young agents, social media is embedded in their daily work. The growth of technology for marketing, branding and basic agency operations will continue and will help agencies grow and compete.
- The balancing act. With everyone doing more with less, it's critical for agents to balance everything and do it better: renewals and new business, personal and commercial business and most importantly, work and life.
- Mergers and acquisitions. Because organic top-line growth is so difficult, many agencies are turning to M&As to grow their businesses. Consultants saw a record-setting number of deals done in 2012, a trend that's likely to continue into next year.
- Recruitment. We've been beating the drum for years, but it's more important than ever to hire bright young people now.
- Growing globalization. More midsized businesses need coverage on international risks—a good opportunity for independent agents and brokers to tap into the global market, especially because developing countries represent most robust growth than in the U.S.
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