SPOTLIGHT / Meet the state finalists of the 2025 Young Broker of the Year Awards
VIC/TAS Finalist
VIC/TAS Finalist
What are some of the attributes essential to be a good broker? Transparency, empathy, and willingness to constantly learn and think outside the box are my top-rated attributes to being a good insurance broker. Transparency and empathy are key to building great relationships, not just with your clients but with your underwriters, claims handlers/loss adjusters and even other insurance brokers. Insurance broking is a people business so good relationships are a must, sometimes it’s not what you know but who you know. You also have to be constantly open to learning and thinking outside the box. I have worked in insurance for 5 years now and I still get a call at least once a week when a new client is doing something I have never heard of before. So, I go and research their profession and break down the risk as much as possible to open every option there is to cover. What does becoming a finalist of the 2025 Young Broker of the Year mean to you? Becoming a finalist has meant a lot to me. I am a very quiet, shy, introverted person (with really big ideas that I struggle to share or action to my frustration), which has made me feel that my journey to becoming a Director at my brokerage has been really hard work. The fact that I have even been able to get to this stage of the Young Broker of the Year award and be considered alongside the other nominees is just unbelievable. It has helped me sit back and appreciate the hard work I have put in. I have always found it hard to accept compliments, and when people tell me I am doing a great job. This process has given me an immense sense of pride in myself which I want to share with my employees to inspire them and show them that anyone can achieve anything. “It is so important to continuously challenge your knowledge and always give others your full attention when they are explaining things to you because you never stop learning as an insurance broker.”
ALEX PIZZOL, BJS INSURANCE BROKERS
JESSICA CUDIA, SIMPLEX INSURANCE SOLUTIONS
How did you get started in the insurance broking profession? I originally just wanted to get out of hospitality and retail. I wanted a Monday to Friday, 9-5 job to enjoy weekends with my family. I was impressed with the fact that Simplex Insurance was founded by a woman and at the time, had 3 female directors which I thought was awesome for a decently male-dominated industry! I didn’t know anything about insurance and started in reception. I have always taken every opportunity available to me, so I found myself completing my Tier 2 within 6 months and then moved into an assistant broker role afterwards. I enjoyed learning all the aspects of insurance and the fact that no two quotes or clients are the same, which gives a good amount of diversity and ensures no two days are the same, which I love. What is the most important lesson you have learnt in your career so far? I always like to be 150% prepared. I do all the homework I can and know what I’m talking about inside and out. The most important thing I have learnt so far is that you will never know everything as an insurance broker. There are too many types of insurance and too many different coverage options; there are exclusions, variations and conditions that are constantly changing. Compliance is never ending and what is and isn’t a risk for each occupation changes with technology and generations. It is so important to continuously challenge your knowledge and always give others your full attention when they are explaining things to you because you never stop learning as an insurance broker. Being stationary as an insurance broker is a professional indemnity claim waiting to happen!
How did you get started in the insurance broking profession? I really “fell” into insurance broking out of necessity. After growing up in the area, I moved to Melbourne at the age of 19 to pursue my education and try to find my place in the world. I spent close to 7 years in Melbourne before realising that I wanted to be back in the country, close to family and the beach, so I began looking for work opportunities in the area and came across the advertisement for BJS. Being a small town, I recognised Adam’s name on the listing and figured I would give it a go, having absolutely no idea what an insurance broker did. Truth be told I’d planned on it just being a temporary job that I could use to move back to the country, while I figured out what I wanted to do next, but here we are 8+ years later and I can’t imagine doing anything else. What is the most important lesson you have learnt in your career so far? The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far in my journey as an insurance broker is that there is almost always a solution to a problem, you just need to have the patience to find it. Whether it’s in the world of insurance or not, if you take your time to analyse an issue from a few different angles, there’s a strong chance you’ll come up with a way to tackle it. It’s often our first instinct to throw our hands in the air and dismiss something as being too hard, but broking has taught me that it’s usually just a matter of changing your perspective and taking a simple approach. You never know what a client is going to throw at you, from peculiar coverage questions to innovative business ideas and everything in between, so we’re constantly trying to solve problems and come up with solutions. What are some of the attributes essential to be a good broker? Good communication skills, having the client’s best interests front of mind at all times and being able to manage your time
24 / INSURANCE ADVISER JUNE/JULY 2025
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