adminWalter Muchinguri in Nyanga
The insurance sector should adopt the use of new media technologies to remain relevant in the market, a marketing and e-commerce expert has said. FBC Holdings executive director retail banking and e-commerce Mr Agrippa Mugwagwa said companies that fail to get on to the bandwagon risk going out of business.
Mr Mugwagwa was addressing a topic on e-commerce marketing of financial products during a session of the Insurance Institute of Zimbabwe summer school that is underway in Nyanga.
To this end he said insurance companies should adopt a holistic digital strategy, which is key to communicating, engaging and transacting with the market.
“The world has gone digital, people are now connected through the virtual network and everyone is on one channel or another, so there is need to change our business models,” he said.
He added that adopting new technologies was key to tapping into the vast market of digital natives, those below the age of 25 years.
He said that digital natives, who constitute about 60 percent of Africa’s population, are the next big market for insurers.
“The wired generation is growing in numbers and they engage online. Online engagement is much cheaper than traditional channels, so collaborate or die,” he said.
Mr Mugwagwa also urged the delegates to craft new products that address the needs of digital natives.
“The new generation is not obsessed with owning things as we do, all they want is convenience at their fingertips.
“For instance, they are not going to be obsessed with owning a house or a car or cars all that they will be interested in finding something convenient to use for the right fee,” he said.
Zimbabwe Leadership Forum chairman Mr Canaan Dube, who was speaking on leading towards servant leadership, said the new dispensation requires managers to be knowledge- able about servant leadership, a revolutionary way for leaders to serve their employees’ needs before their own.
“It is a shift from the old leadership paradigms and structures.
“Servant leadership is upending the old pyramid placing employees at the top and leaders at the bottom where they can serve their employees and help them grow. Leaders work at the bottom of the pyramid as servants.
“They have the characteristics of listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualisation, foresight, stewardship and commitment to the growth of people and building communities.
“Implementation of servant leadership is a key application for this revolution. It all starts with the choice to become a servant leader, then a change in culture and finally a need for education and training.
“There are a number of successful organisations practising servant leadership everyday,” he said.
He added that servant leadership is anchored on three core elements that is love, trust and vision and these were key to the success of organisations.
Meanwhile, Insurance Institute of Zimbabwe president Mr Chomi Makina said that one of the critical aspects that came out clearly during the summer school was the need for prudent risk management.
Mr Makina, who was speaking on the sidelines of the summer school, said the purpose of risk management is not to eliminate risk, but to understand it so as to take advantage of the upside and minimise on the downside.
“This requires clarity on what risks you are prepared to take, how much to take and whether or not you have a process in place to manage these risks.
“I believe risk management should be an integral part of good insurance business practice at both strategic and operational levels,” he said.
Online Reporter