LIMRA CEO: Don’t Stop Pedaling Despite Tough Insurance Trends

BOSTON -- Insurance executives, agents, distributors and everyone else in the industry are all bicycling hard in the face of change trends, said Dave Levenson, president and CEO of LIMRA.

The biking analogy was part of Levenson's first annual message to member companies at the LIMRA 2019 Annual Conference.

"You are working so hard. You are sweating and pedaling hard, but the bike isn't moving," Levenson said.

The trends are tough, he added. For starters, insurers are on the decline:

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The number of agents is on the decline:

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Finally, states are infringing on retirement planning. Several states are passing legislation to start state-run retirement plans or auto-enrollment capabilities for companies. It adds up to less influence and business for financial services.

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In his first year at the helm of LIMRA, LOMA and the Secure Retirement Institute, Levenson brings an executive perspective to the position. He came to the association world from Edward Jones, where he was a principal and responsible for all products distributed through its network of 17,000 advisors in the U.S. and Canada.

With that recent experience in mind, Levenson told the room that he wants LIMRA to focus on real-world solutions with a "member-centric" focus.

"There are other things that we are going to be paying a lot closer attention to as your industry," said Levenson, pointing to change management and customer satisfaction as examples.

Those two things topped a new LIMRA global survey of life insurance executives. The focus is the right one, Levenson said, as changing demographics necessitate an accompanying change on the part of insurers.

"Are we building products and designing marketing programs based on where are customers are -- or where they will be?" Levenson asked.

There are more than 100 million single adults in the United States, he added. The days of becoming an adult and immediately getting married and having kids is in the past.

"The demographic of our country is changing rapidly," Levenson said. "The minority will be the majority."

LIMRA will partner with member companies and undertake research and craft programs off that research -- all with specific, defined goals in mind, Levenson said in his closing.

He cited LIMRA's new FraudShare program as an example. The association partnered with insurers to develop a program to prevent cyberattacks.

"We are in an awesome industry. We do things that nobody else is capable of doing. We do good for our customers," Levenson said. "We've got a ways to go to reach our full potential."

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at john.hilton@innfeedback.com. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.

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