Feb 2019
Feb 2019
A difficult economic environment, worrying political climate and a tough regulatory stance have had their impact on the insurance industry. This has brought the need for revised strategies and outlooks in order to further growth.
A platform for brokers and allied partners for the past 3 years, the Insurance Brokers’ Forum is a common ground for discussion and debate on topics of relevance. The event focuses on latest trends in the market and brings to the fore relevant approaches that are critical to the broker who needs to understand new risks and manage them.
This year, IBF 2018 touches on the practical side of the business and presents insights into strengthening the operation. Listen to best practices, leverage on key presentations and incorporate to achieve business agility.
Houda NajiFounder, Younoh Media
With more than 18 years’ experience in the MENA region, Houda Naji fulfilled various senior sales and marketing roles in the IT industry working for multinational companies such as Compaq, BEA, Computer associates, Autodesk and Etisalat. She brings a valuable hands-on experience and is an advocate of getting brands to connect with stakeholders in the digital world, via meaningful engagement. She founded Younoh Media in 2014 in Dubai, a digital agency with a focus on social media marketing and is now expanding to Europe. She holds Bachelor and Master Degrees in Marketing and International Commerce from a leading French university and has completed a certificate of leadership from Vital Voices Organisation.
Kannan SrinivasanCRM Engagement Manager, Sage
Kannan Srinivasan carries an overall work experience of 15 plus years, including a decade of experience in CRM & ERP solution selling, product management, pre sales, technical support and project management. He has led consulting engagements to successful completion with partners & customers (spanning requirements analysis, solution design, concept implementation, training, knowledge transfer, and customer mentoring). He possesses a deep understanding of business needs amidst an evolving market place covering markets such as south East Asia & Middle East, and has worked towards solving business issues.
Kannan has a master’s in business administration specialising in project management. Kannan has various CRM certifications around products like Sage CRM, Salesforce & Infor CRM and a rich understanding of the CRM Marketplace etc.
Kannan has been instrumental in identifying innovative solutions by leveraging on regional partnerships. One of the key milestones has been around the launch of the enterprise mobility solution centered on CRM & ERP targeted for the distribution sales industry. He has established synergies between Project management, Artificial intelligence solutions and CRM and successfully led engagements towards adoption. He has helped establish alliances with local data centers for deployment of local cloud solution deployment and has authored industry whitepapers to substantiate the benefits of CRM.
Lori BakerCIPP/E
Lori Baker is an experienced attorney with expertise in data protection and regulatory compliance, as well as broad practice in commercial contracting. She is qualified in both the USA (in the states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania) and the UK, and relocated to Dubai in October 2016. In Dubai, she provided temporary compliance and commercial drafting support in the legal team at Careem and then as Group Legal and Compliance Counsel for Moby Media FZ LLC until April 2018. Lori now provides data protection and security strategy and support in one of the leading financial centers in the MEASA region.
Prior to relocating, Lori was based in London, UK for 10 years, having worked most recently for Fieldfisher LLP in the technology and outsourcing team as a senior privacy and cybersecurity associate. She held in-house roles as senior Compliance and Privacy Counsel at Dun & Bradstreet, head of Ethics and Compliance at Orange Business Services and Global Regulatory/Privacy Specialist at BT Global Services. Lori attended DeSales University, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in politics with a minor in philosophy, followed by Widener University School of Law (the Delaware Law School), where she was awarded a Juris Doctor with an emphasis in international business transactions. While at Widener, Lori enrolled in the Geneva International Law Institute, directed by instructors from the WTO, the UN and other international organisations.
Tom BicknellPartner, Pinsent Masons
Tom Bicknell is a Partner who specialises in financial services and corporate insurance.
Bicknell works with international (re)insurers, coverholders, Lloyd's syndicates, brokers and TPAs in respect of their business throughout the GCC. He also routinely advises investment and pension product issuers, international financial institutions, wealth managers, financial advisers as well as online platform operators and fintech start-ups.
His experience includes licensing and establishment instructions throughout the GCC, ongoing licensing and regulatory advice, corporate structuring of regulated entities including acquisitions and joint ventures, product structuring and onshore/offshore distribution strategies.
Thiru NaickerSpecialist, Succession Planning
Thiru Naicker specialises in Talent Management. She has extensive experience within the Learning & Development and Talent Management field across the different genres; strategy development, succession management, high potential identification, sssessments, leadership development and coaching, in both the private and public sector in South Africa and the Middle East. She believes in having an integrated talent management system, where succession management features prominently.
Naicker has a great passion for people development. She strongly believes in personal mastery and advocates that learning and development is a life long journey. She is an ardent coach who enthusiastically supports those seeking or embarking on personal mastery. She collaborates with her clients in though-provoking and creative ways, encouraging them to maximise their potential leading towards personal transformation.
Naicker has a Master’s degree in business leadership, Honours and Bachelor’s degrees in industrial psychology.
8:30 am: Registration
9 am: Welcome Address
9:05 am: Keynote Address
9:30 am:
Session 1 – Making Sense of Regulations
With an aim to strengthen and structure the insurance industry, the Insurance Authority has been introducing new laws in quick succession. What impact do these regulations have on brokers? What can they do to conform to the law without comprising on operational capabilities?
10:30 am:
Session 2 – Data Protection
The recent GDPRA regulations stand testament to the need for increasing scrutiny into data management and security. Those who do not have to comply with this landmark regulation cannot afford to stay complacent. Brokers typically manage a large share of data and have to learn how to protect this information, while using it to analyse appropriate coverage for the customer.
11:30 am: Coffee Break
12 pm:
Session 3 – Succession Planning
Every organisation, whether large or small, is open to risk and needs to have a strategic process to determine critical roles within the company while identifying and developing skills to fit these roles seamlessly. Brokers need to create a talent pipeline to meet emerging leadership needs in order to ensure continuity.
12:30 pm:
Session 4 – Getting Social Media Savvy
In a world of technological advancement, the need of the hour is to be able to use new media to tap new segments. The different digital channels available to an organisation necessitate analysis, review and then action. What media should brokers use? What channels will access the corporate sector? Has traditional media bowed over to social media? This and more discussed in this session.
1 pm:
Session 5 – Doing Away with Legacy Systems
A barrier to the adoption of new technology, processes or sales strategies is the legacy system that is already in place. This session focuses on the need to build a CRM for business relationships, the risks of intermediation and value of a broker, and innovation collaboration with members outside the industry.
1:30 pm: Lunch & Close of Event
Houda Naji
Kannan Srinivasan
Tom Bicknell
Thiru Naicker
