Blogging Tutorial for Insurance Practitioners

After having scanned through the cyberspace for blog sites of insurance practitioners practicing in Malaysian markets, sadly there are none, save for some life practitioners who owned websites as well as blog about the life insurance industry and relevant products hoping to make some sales. It is a notable fact blogging about insurance matters (...serious stuff) is time consuming and getting the blog site in working order is also a challenge for beginners, to a big extent weared down any bloggers having big dream.

But as practitioners, we need to blog so that our Malaysian insurance industry can be kept vibrant and robust. So, dude....in order to get you guys into the cyber ecosystem, malaysian insurance will be offerring some classes to begin with to give a feel into the world of blogging.... are you ready for it and are you charge up?? If you are, please register your name, email address and put in some comment.... we will contact you.

Cheers

Blogging the insurance industry trades

This Malaysian Insurance Online blogsite would be used for centralised viewing of all the relevant sites blogged by myself and business associates over the last 9 months. It has undergone substantial refurbishment to get to this friendlier and certainly welcoming sort of looks.... I supposed more handsome and good looking...

Where thou art “Job Security”?

While most companies are bracing for the worst case of economy brewing, the Gen-Y graduate employees are still busy shifting jobs and as a result getting a sizeable pay rise. Gen-Y of Chinese origin tends to achieve better in this respect compared to their other counterparts. Why is that so?

I guessed this is really about this Chinese Gen-Y’s fast-track and highly self confidence outlook that push them into an adventurous mode. They have no qualm about taking on a greener pasture even if this means moving to a totally green-field; something totally new to them. They just wanted to challenge themselves and push their boundary while they are still at it, ie. this young era of their life. Job security is not important….is also not part of their vocabulary either.

Over the last three years, I have trained or rather coached at least 3 graduates to undertake some work aspects that are near entirely new to the company. We have to learn and review issues arising, as well as innovate from scratch to work out something viable that can be good building blocks to what I wanted to achieve in the shorter term future. Whilst doing this, I tried my very best to inculcate in them to need to have a steeper and constructive learning curves, I simply do not want them to be mere task handlers as there are already aplenty in the company……and also work out the best possible career path as well as salary that is competitive to the market.

Alas, the willingness of the market to pay cannot be under-estimated….especially coming from the non-insurance industry….. Another important comment they made was, “Look! The existing staffs that gave their major part of their lives are still normal executives, and they are already near retirement…..yet not achieving anything substantial” It is a reality that increment (year-in-year-out) to existing staff are usually nominal if there is no promotion, and this is not unusual for other industry as well. Frankly speaking, although the insurance industry may not be paying the workforce extremely well but it is still better than most and it is also an enviable industry during this trying economic times being more resilient to any downturn. We can’t be rich but able to live our daily lives contented and possibly save a couple of ringgit off-and-on….

To the Gen-Y, this is not going to be music to their ears…. What? You mean we have to save a couple of hundred ringgit or so on, and hope to have a secure job with a big company….and further hoping to retire with the EPF….that is may be the “Baby-boomers” sort of thinking….not ours!

So, in the next era of urban Gen-Y making a splash into the job market, there is no such thing as job security….the word security is nothing more than their confidence and capability to push their boundary……

(Gen-Yers are people born between 1985 and 2004)

BAD ECONOMIC TIMES OF OUR MAKING?

The media have been consistent with their report.... yes! It is really bad times because US is having a bad time, Europe and Japan is sliding into recession.... In Malaysia (somewhere closer....), not that many unemployment although is slightly on the uptrend. But the more the media reports the seemingly very bleak future, the more adamant that malaysian companies are not into employing as well as not even want to employ for replacement of staff having left! Companies are now being dragged along and driven by the pessimistic outlook painted by the media. Some are even thinking of pay-cuts..... pay-cuts??? What's that? Pay cuts for this insurance industry? Come On, it can't be that bad lah! I think our industry captains are just not driving hard enough. This is the real test of their captaincy and we followers truly need them delivering on their true potential as capability as industry captains. The captains now must truly drive as hard as if lives depend on their driving ability. This driving ability can't be drifting towards the negative end....Not going down south.

May the REAL CAPTAIN stands up and be counted please! Please don't making bad times out of the already bad economic situation........ Thank you very much.

Networking the industry

The industry is just an overcrowding of people trying to make it....the old ones goes out, the young ones trying to make headway, impressing one another as they go along. The babyboomers are still around nevertheless, holding key industry positions and still an important part of the key decision makers deciding the direction of our industry. The Central Bank is also composed of old baby boomers, some have little inkling of where other advanced contries are heading, nevermind the IT perspectives....but still insisted that micro managing the industry is the best options going forward. Still in this last part of the first decade of the 21st century, our industry is still not going forward....which I believe was a result of too many events of networking between people trying to scramble for key position....thus very little on thinking; thingking that involves intensified clashes of opinions. If our industry is too much into netwroking rather than strong exchanges of thoughts, then we are just moving around, where the right people supposedly to helm higher positions may not be able to make it. Off course networking gets people of this industry in a "political correct" platform thus it is much easier to exist compared to a platform that entails a consistent clashing of great minds. But as our country is struggling to navigated through to tonnes of political rubbles, the economic pretence and the world markets going down, networking alone will not do a great job of pushing this industry forward.....wines, drinks and an occassion rubs will create nothing than a standstill.....

If you know what I mean..... Cheers

Risk-Based Capital framework - Implementation?

This morning the newspaper reported that the risk-based capital (RBC) framework will be implemented come 1st Jan next year. However just two days ago the Central Bank raised a circular to all insurers requesting for comment in respect of its intended implementation; whether the industry intends to proceed given the current bad economic position the world markets are going through. I supposed the Bank may have secured enough reply for the go ahead......

For some information or write up in respect of Malaysian Risk-based Capital from the perspectives of the non-life underwriters, please visit: http://malaysianinsurance.com/RBC/RBC.html

Durian and Heavy Metals..... What do they have in common?

Durian rind can be processed into some powdery substance to remove heavy metals in the human body. Wonder how these metals come into us? Through touch, inhalation and frequent consumption of contaminated seafood...lead poisoning from toys manufactured with paint containing heavy metal....

So what is heavy metals? They can be mercury, petrol vapour, lead poisoning, arsenic or even copper. Heavy metals accumulate in the body's tissues and cause serious health problems.

It is not in too long into the future that insurance company will be measuring your saliva or your fingernails for such metals.....before approving any life insurance or even health insurance....or perhaps it is better if the insurers force you to buy and consume the said powder....what did they called it? mDRP or in long, modified durian rind pectin.

MalaysianInsurance.com

MalaysianInsurance.com was born on the 29th October 2008. As a prelude, this site will have 3 main sections:
1. Everything to do about the insurance market, ie. from products, services to pricing comparison
2. Promoting strategic agents for Berjaya Sompo Insurance Berhad. This is intended to support the geographical categorisation of agents to better build a more viable insurance buying online platform for the malaysian community
3. Community news uploaded by members of the public including matters pertaining to crime watch and general public wellbeing

Hope to see you in 6 months time......on www.malaysianinsurance.com