NIBA / Special Feature
INVESTING IN A NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY?
IF YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT INVESTING IN A NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, ANDREW KNOWLES HAS THESE TOP FIVE TIPS:
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Financial viability
Market analysis
Risk management
Talent management Ensure you have the right people in place and consider the impact on your existing team.
Scalability
Ensure your current systems and processes can scale to support the new branch or premises.
Identify potential risks and have strategies in place to mitigate them.
Assess the potential return on investment and ensure you have the financial capacity
Understand the market demand and competition in the new location.
to support the new venture.
firms are investing in technology to provide scale and productivity, whilst reducing the burden on their key assets – their people. Ask yourself: Will our current systems still work as we grow? Can they help us stay compliant, reduce admin, and improve service?” Macquarie's 2024 Insurance Industry Benchmarking Report explores and identifies key trends within the insurance profession. Interestingly, the report shows that top-performing firms tend to have leaner teams, with a higher proportion of client-facing staff. “They’ve removed friction and noise, automated routine tasks, and focused on what matters most, which is their clients,” says Knowles. Compliance is a fundamental component of every broker business, and as growth happens, those compliance obligations continue to increase.
essential your tech stack is keeping the business compliant, too.
“GROWTH ISN’T SOMETHING DRIVEN BY JUST ONE OR TWO PEOPLE – THE WHOLE BUSINESS NEEDS TO FOCUS ON SUPPORTING THE GROWTH YOU ARE HOPING TO ACHIEVE. START BY EVALUATING THE CURRENT SKILLS WITHIN YOUR BUSINESS AND IDENTIFY THE TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT NEEDED TO SUPPORT GROWTH ACTIVITIES.” Andrew Knowles, National Segment Lead – Insurance, Business Banking at Macquarie Group
“Having the right integrations across your tech means that you’re not necessarily just relying on people to adhere to regulatory requirements on their own, but almost having that happen in the background as part of that great client experience.” Ultimately, he says, it’s imperative to have the tech in place before you scale. “It can be really disruptive to change one of those systems halfway through, so make sure you're set and you're ready, and then scale off the back of that.” According to Holster, it also means that as the business grows, the cost benefit increases, too. “The more revenue you make, the technology cost – as a percentage – decreases with scale.”
In addition to helping support the customer experience, Holster says it’s
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