The Ontario Broker - Volume 23, Issue 4 - 38

COLUMNS
Let's Help Small Businesses Succeed
Susan Williams-Bonet-Vice President, Ontario, Wawanesa
T
his year's IBAOcon'23 event takes place during Small Business
Week. It's perfect timing. The connection between our industry
and small businesses has never been more important.
Small businesses are the heart of our economy, making up 98% of all
businesses in Canada and employing almost two thirds of our country's
workforce. At the same time, the security that we in the insurance industry
provide to small businesses is essential, with more small businesses turning
to brokers for advice on how they can better protect their future.
According to a recent Deloitte report, the demand for small business
insurance is increasing as " 48% of Canadian small business owners report
they are likely to purchase more or much more insurance. " Further from
Deloitte, approximately one in six businesses in Canada don't have any
commercial insurance coverage.
This is an opportunity for our industry to help more small businesses
succeed and highlight the importance of insurance experts.
At Wawanesa, we've been working closely with commercial brokers
to better understand the needs of small businesses and how we can be
better partners for our commercial brokers. Here's what we've learned.
Speed matters
Small business owners are busy, and so are brokers. We know that the
faster we can get competitive quotes to our commercial brokers, the
more likely we win the account. That's why we've invested in new tools
such as our Digital Small Business Solution that significantly speeds up
the time it takes to quote. In fact, our Digital Small Business Solution can
provide quotes in minutes, helping brokers help small businesses faster
and give great service to our members. We're excited about the launch
of our Bluepass digital platform in the fall of 2023, as it will streamline
the process even more-with a quick quote, customized coverage
features and the option to bind, potential members can walk away with a
Wawanesa commercial policy in minutes.
Skilled, responsive and collaborative local commercial
underwriters set Canadian insurers apart
While this has always been true of our industry, the war for talent has
made it even more important. For this reason, we're investing in training
the next generation of local and talented commercial underwriters.
Wawanesa now offers a range of training for our underwriters to build
or improve their commercial underwriting knowledge. This training
includes in-depth insights with a blended experience of formal learning,
case studies and on-the-job training designed to help develop skills,
foster critical thinking and set people up for rewarding careers. We offer
broker training, too. Brokers can reach out to their business development
representative for details.
38
48% of Canadian small
business owners report they
are likely to purchase more
or much more insurance.
Adding value
As risk experts, we can provide much more to every small business we
cover. Our loss control experts are eager to meet with business owners to
consult and share how they can prevent common losses and make their
businesses more resilient. Cyber security packages can help businesses
feel secure in an often frightening and confusing area of risk. Legal
expense coverage can help small businesses get timely advice on urgent
legal questions. We also benefit from having our own health and life
insurance company-Wawanesa Life-with a wide range of competitive
packages for businesses of all sizes.
Picking the right partners
Over the last few years in Canada, we've seen a reduction in commercial
insurance capacity, with some foreign-based insurers choosing to place
their capacity in other countries. This has created challenges in capacity
and affordability. While issues have been more pronounced in Western
Canada, Ontario and eastern Canada are not immune. One important
way to help provide greater pricing stability for small businesses is by
working with local insurers who will stand by brokers for the long haul.
Wawanesa is Canadian owned and operated, and committed to being a
stable, reliable partner in the Canadian market that is well-positioned to
succeed as one of the largest mutuals in Canada.
As an industry, we can do much more to help small businesses succeed.
At this year's IBAOcon'23, we look forward to celebrating the essential role
that small businesses play in our community and doing more to help the
commercial brokers who step up every day to ensure small businesses are
protected. Together, we can help more small businesses succeed.
The Ontario Broker
The Ontario Broker - Volume 23, Issue 4

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Ontario Broker - Volume 23, Issue 4
