Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Hello, Insurance World. So welcome to our new podcast episode of Business Transformation with FBSPL, the Insurance Edition. Today we will navigate the insurance landscape with Bryan Falchuk, where we dive deep into the ever-changing world of insurance and insurtech. I'm your host KB, and I'm super excited to have Bryan joining us today. Now, speaking about Bryan, he's the founder and managing partner of Insurance Evolutions Partners, a company that helps insurers and solutions providers navigate the shifting dynamics in the industry. Plus, he's also the president and CEO of PLRB, a cool trade organization that supports carriers in providing top-notch coverage to policyholders. But wait, there's more. Bryan has written a fantastic bestselling book series called The Future of Insurance from Disruption to Evolution. I repeat once again. the future of insurance from disruption to evolution, where he spills the beans on all the things innovation in the insurance industry. He's all about making insurers flexible, responsive, and equipped with the digital tools they need to revolutionize this industry. With over 20 years of experience in the insurance business, Bryan has seen it all. From being a COO and Chief Claims Officer to the rocking sales department at an insured startup, he knows the ins and outs of the industry. And guess what? He now advises a bunch of insurance and insured techs, sharing his wisdom and helping them thrive. So, whether you are a seasoned pro or just curious about where insurance is headed, today's podcast is something you don't wanna miss. Bryan's bringing the heat with deep insights, mind blowing discussions and practical strategies to keep you ahead of the game. Get ready for a witty ride to the fascinating world of insurance and insurtech with our incredible guest, Bryan Falchuk. Welcome Bryan, how are you?
Bryan Falchuk: Thank you very much for having me on KB. I'm doing really well.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Amazing, amazing. So, Bryan, can you tell us a bit about your professional journey and how you have transitioned from the insurance industry to become an author, speaker, and coach?
Bryan Falchuk: So, it was muddy, I would say the transition, but my time in insurance is I think how a lot of people get into insurance, which is by accident. Very few people plan to get into it. Maybe their parents were agents or something like that. But, um, you know, no different for me. I was doing business strategy work, and I found a role at a carrier doing that. Um, and what I found is it's actually really exciting. There's I like making things better. I like seizing opportunity. And there's a lot of that to do in insurance because we typically are behind other industries, you know, we move slower. And I wanted to find ways to do that better. Um, and that's what my career has been about. And I was lucky to get exposure to different lines of business and functions along the way, different carriers. I spent time at a consulting company called McKinsey, working for, you know, other carriers as well. So, I saw even more, just honestly, a really lucky ride in lots of different contexts and issues and experiences. And that, uh, sort of came together in the work that I do today, which is. You know, bit by bit, as I was still working at a carrier, I started to work on some books to try to help people overcome what they face and wanted to do the same for the insurance industry. And that's how I got into the coaching, the speaking, the book writing. It just sorts of happened organically, almost as if I didn't have a choice. I saw these paths to making things better. I was getting to see people's firsthand stories of, you know, companies that needed to overcome something and they did. And you know, I think that's worth sharing. So that's what I've been trying to do the past few years.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Amazing then that's fascinating to hear and I'm sure besides the ups and downs, it must be a thrilling journey so far
Bryan Falchuk: It is. And I think, you know, when we go to conferences or when people share publicly, often you only hear about the ups, right? They're giving a very sanitized story and that's fine. And I think we should have positivity and all that. But the reality is we need balance. We need honesty in the tough moments we face and what we did to come through them. And I always say the fact that you're still standing here today is evidence that you got through it as hard as it was. What can we learn from that journey? And so, we need those honest stories of the ups and the downs and, you know, hindsight, what would you have done differently? What did you do in those moments to turn it around? That's the kind of stuff we need to share with each other to figure out a better way to do things.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): couldn't agree more. And talking about learning, your other bestselling book, Do a Day, has helped countless people make lasting changes in their lives. Can you share the inspiration behind writing this book and the core message that you want readers and our listeners to take away?
Bryan Falchuk: So Do a Day was my first book, and it's based on my own journey and story. I have a background of a lot of anxiety and obesity, and the two were very intertwined. And it came to a head that I lost weight, put it back on. But then my wife, when we were just starting our family out, became gravely ill. Her doctors called me to tell me there's nothing else to be done, and that was it. And so here I am. thinking about or at a point in our lives where we would have been thinking about building a family and instead, I'm now looking at being a single father all of a sudden. Not something you expect, right? And she is still alive today, but I remember getting that call from her doctor when I was told the opposite was about to happen. And that was this massive wake-up call to me to finally address the things that were standing in my way. And really at the time, it was about being a better father to this kid who was watching his mother fade away. In hopes of him having a brighter future than was being set up for him. That was enough motivation at the time. What it's become for me is not any less about him, but I wasn't ready to value myself in that equation to understand why I would want to be better for me. Why did I even deserve that? And that's what evolution was. So, from that starting point of having a real purpose, at the time my son, and it's bigger than that for me now. what needs to change in my life. And this is true of business too. We look at these things as mountains, right? And you don't climb to the mountain, to the top of a mountain in one step. And that's the notion of Do a Day is, you look ahead, you know, I had a hundred pounds to lose. That is too much weight to lose at any given time. And there's people who've had more than that. I will tell you as a fact, you look at that and you shut down, right? No one
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Yes.
Bryan Falchuk: looks at that. level of mountain and says like, okay, I can do this because it's a long process. It's very hard. You work your blooks at that. level of mountain and says like, okay, I can do this because it's a long process. It's very hard. You work your butt off, and you feel like you're making no progress because maybe the scale moved a pound or two. It's still a mountain ahead of you. But the thing is you're not losing all that weight today.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Yes.
Bryan Falchuk: You're not, you know, changing your systems and digitizing this massive organization. It's so difficult and migrating your data today. Today you have actions you have to take that move you towards that. that summit, you know, you're, you're walking along that path, and you may veer off the path at times, you may trip and fall and that's okay. Progress does not have to be a straight and direct line. So, Do a Day is really the kind of thinking behind that mentality of how do we have these goals and change our life? What drives us to do that? And how do we structure it in a way that we don't get discouraged because it's so overwhelming that we don't even start, or we shut down once we do. And that's what I had struggled with my whole life. That was 2011, when I got that phone call from that doctor. Here we are this month, sorry, next month, June, will be the 12th year reunion, like anniversary of that call, if you will. Nothing's changed for me since then. I have been on this path, and I've achieved so many great things. I have not gone back. And what's so important is that's how I know it works. And I actually. apply that same mentality in business. It's not just a self-help kind of thing. It's a way to live your life, to lead people, to execute holistically.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Oh, absolutely. This is an inspiring story and reminds me of a line. So, I've seen most of the movies from Sylvester Stallone and
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): There was one movie, John Rambo, I guess, and this part, he was leaving the town at the end of the movie and the sheriff asked him, how are you going to live the rest of your life? And his answer is still very fresh with me. It's like day by day. And I think that's the most beautiful answer you can give to such a question. So I think Do a Day is like, you know, it totally relates and it totally makes sense because there's another theory, you know, called if you, if your task involves eating a frog, do that first thing in the morning so that at least you have, you have started and you have done the toughest thing, the first thing in the morning. So, thank you for such an insight. And so, your coaching practice. It focuses on both life and executive coaching. What are some common challenges you see your clients facing? And how do you help them navigate these situations?
Bryan Falchuk: Yeah. Well, it's funny that people don't understand the interplay of the two and I don't understand the separation of them. And I think if we're honest with ourselves, if you have a tough day at the office, it's not like you walk back into your house at the end of the day and walking through that door somehow washes you of all of that difficulty and you're this wonderful, easygoing, happy person, even if only a piece of you, you're carrying that pain with you and vice versa. If you're struggling at home... If you're honest with yourself, it's showing up at work as well. And I know for many of us now, home and work are in the same place. So maybe it's not technically walking in the door again, but
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: We are complex intertwined beings. We don't have these as much as we may try to, we don't have these silos of ourselves. So, to me, it's one in the same. And that means I don't think you can work on your abilities as a leader, as an executive, uh, as a guide to other people in their lives and for your own success. if you're also not working on who you are as a human being. And I do think we have to bring both together. And so, the things I end up working on with people are often exactly the same, whether they've come to me about like, oh, I need to lose weight, or my finances, personal finances are a mess, and I can't get myself on that side of it. Or I have this great opportunity at work, I don't know if I'm ready for it, or I want to move ahead and I'm not getting that kind of support, what do I need to do? Or should I leave my job and... all those issues, it's not that I don't care what your issue is, it's that it's almost irrelevant in terms of what we should do about it, because it ultimately comes back to what is what drives you. So, we have to get back to
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: sort of a first principles of value standpoint, what matters to you above all else? What are your non-negotiables? And then we have to craft something around that. So, you know, when you're facing those tough moments. Uh, you need to dig deep, right? And you need to know what it is you're digging for that will carry you through when someone's attacking you and challenging you or being difficult or not siding with you in a, you know, a debate about something, or you're not getting the funding that you need and one of your peers is getting all the staff they need and you get none, how do you get through that? Not, not just negotiating for a better outcome, but how do you then operate in a way that doesn't get you fired because you're worked up about it? And that, you know, that, that takes knowing how you personally navigate what you're facing to remembering what matters and it may mean you need to leave. It may mean you need to go about things differently or maybe you're wrong in the first place and there's a reason why that person got those resources and if you really separate yourself from the personal attack, you felt or the loss you felt could you see it through another lens like the lens of the organization. There's you know all kinds of different ways to navigate it, but it starts from that place of understanding what truly matters to you. And then you have to execute against that and not, you know, not from some other place or just, you know, people say like, it's Do a Day, grin and bear it. But it's just like, you know, buckle down and deal with
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): happen.
Bryan Falchuk: The tough time and it will pass. Well, the problem with
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: Life is when I hear people like, I just need to get through this and then it'll be fine. It's like, really? There's nothing else you're ever going to face in your life. That's not reality.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: So, we need the tools to live as ourselves rather than thinking if I just, you know, close my eyes and hold my breath and wait. then I'll be okay. That's not the way things work. You need to be more engaged and know what you're engaging from.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Absolutely. And I also feel, you know, when they say it will pass, but it won't pass on its own. You
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Cannot just play victim for a while and then you'll be happy go lucky guy. You have to do something about it to change the situation, be it your life or business. Couldn't agree more on this. So yeah, that's something to keep a note of every day. Thank you for that.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): So
Bryan Falchuk: Notice it's Do a Day,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Now talking
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): About
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Insurance
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Thing.
Bryan Falchuk: I was saying, you'll notice
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Hahaha,
Bryan Falchuk: It's Do a Day,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Absolutely.
Bryan Falchuk: Right? Not just a day. You have to do something for that progress. Just sit on a conveyor belt and move ahead.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Yeah, you gotta be the driver, absolutely. Absolutely. Great, so yeah, now talking about some insurance things. So, you have spent a lot of time in the industry and as a seasoned insurance professional, what do you see as the most significant challenges currently facing the industry and how these can be addressed?
Bryan Falchuk: So, I think we have a number of macroeconomic factors that are really coming down on the industry, making it difficult. And I think we have internal factors as well. The macro factors, we will always have macro factors. They may change over time. The internal factors have been with us for a very long time, and they tend to be the same ones. On the macro side, there's a lot of cost-related pressures out there, the cost of insurance. So, there are a lot of natural catastrophes going on that the environment is extremely unstable. People hear global warming and then it's cold out and they're like, oh, see, it's a lie. No, that's not global warming, it doesn't just mean it's getting hotter. That is a piece of it. It's also the instability and weather patterns, which drives more storm activity, which drives volcanoes and earthquakes and all of it. And when you look at the data, it's extremely clear. No question. That is where we're at. And that creates a lot of just fundamental problems in insurance. That's a huge one. There's a lot of inflation globally. That's another macroeconomic problem that is profound for insurance on a number of fronts. And there's a lot of political unrest and instability and extremism, a lot of extreme partisanship and extreme views, which brings some problems on the law side, but it also, what you see is it infects societies. So, we have a lot of hatred and blame within societies. I mean, look, I live in the US. We're a very litigious society anyway. But the nature of litigation has changed. It's no longer, this person was hurt, we feel so bad for them. Don't they, they need money to survive, and they should be paid for their pain and suffering. There's a piece of that now, but instead it's that plus, and these people hurt them and they're terrible and they're evil and they're trying to kill us all and we need to punish them, and you need to send them. It's like a political ad. It's about getting a jury to be angry and hate someone rather than playing on their emotions to feel bad for someone who has been hurt. And that's a very dangerous difference. And you see that in the outcomes, the dollars are significantly larger. That's another macroeconomic issue. That is, it's a societal issue. And frankly, it's really unenjoyable to live in a society where so many people hate each other and villainize each other. And I wish that that would stop. Putting aside the insurance, I don't want my family growing up in that.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Yes.
Bryan Falchuk: And I don't know how to escape it because it seems to be spreading. We need to do something; we have to do something to change that. That is a choice we all need to make.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Oh, absolutely. And it made me think, you know, when we say great America, what made America great was the, the, the inclusion, you
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): know, the feeling of inclusion, you
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): know, welcoming everyone and being, you know, part of the society and not just
Bryan Falchuk: Understanding,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): An individual
Bryan Falchuk: Supporting.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): or a race or a community, but you know, together as one force, one nation becomes a bigger force.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): But I think we are losing on that as a, it's a global problem.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): It's
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Not just America. It's not just one country. It's
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Everywhere. And I can
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Totally relate to that, you know, very well pointed. And of course, if something happens in society, businesses cannot get unaffected. So, it's going to cast a shadow on this.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): And talking about that, just that name came to my mind. Instead of global warming, I think more relatable is like global weather disruption. That's what we are going through because winters are different, summers are different, spring and rainy seasons are shorter, and
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Everything has changed. So...
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): I can totally relate to it. Thank you. Now, talking about digital transformation, the insurance industry has experienced significant digital transformation. in recent years. However,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Tech adoption is still slow overall within the industry. What future trends do you foresee in the insurance tech space?
Bryan Falchuk: So, we had a forcing moment in COVID because insurance has things that must happen. We can't just close for two weeks. If someone has a claim, we have to, by regulation, we have to be there to respond. And the good side of that is it did force a lot of change that needed to happen, and it made it happen faster. What I hope it showed us is we can get a lot of things done in much less time. and in much less painful ways than we said they must take. You know, I saw companies talking about multi-year remote work enablement. And of course, they did it within days. It's like, wait, you just said it would take
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Umm
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Sorry
Bryan Falchuk: And a half and you did it in two days, how is, how is the year and a half, right? What can we look at to change the way we're scoping these things? So I would love to see that as a path forward. I'm not so sure that's going to stick. Unfortunately, I've already seen a reversion back to slower. And it was too fast, and it was too erratic because it had to be. But that doesn't mean we have to go back to the way it was. What I do see in the near term is more of a shift to the cloud for the core operating systems of carriers, which then brings with it, it comes with friends. And the friends are APIs, microservices, an easier ability to connect different systems, microservices, data, uh, whether it's data sources. data storage, data analysis tools, AI, etc., all of that can be so much more easily enabled once you're on the cloud. And it's a momentum story. So, you get on the cloud, you start working with APIs, your people get better at working with them. The ball starts rolling in the right direction. It's a virtuous cycle. So that's one thing. And I've seen a lot of progress on that. There's still much more to be had. And I still today see carriers making core system decisions. on premises because they say the cost of the cloud is too much. But everything you're going to spend now, which is huge and more than you think it will be, and we still haven't learned this lesson. We scope 50 million and spend 280, and yet we still scope 50 the next time. We have to learn that lesson. We are throwing vast amounts of resources away, reinforcing the wrong answer for how we should be enabling our future. So... I would love to see that conversation move forward more rapidly than it is, but I appreciate the progress that's been made. Where I think that goes is more interconnectivity. You hear the word embedded insurance. It's a bit of a buzzword, but it really isn't. It is a real tangible thing. And I think we're in the very early days of that. No one wants to buy insurance generally. They want to buy the thing that had to get insured or have the experience that you
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: Need the insurance for. How do we make the protection of that thing? more seamless. There are all kinds of things going on with that. There's other enablement, IOT, connected cars, all kinds of other things brewing that when you look at those and you look at embedded, you see this really holistic story of not just a better buying experience, but less risk, more ability to control it. And, you know, we talk about the weather patterns, risks are becoming uninsurable, either on the whole or because the price of insuring it is not sustainable, no one can pay it. Some of these stories start to affect the insurability or the rate because we have other mechanisms at play that can help control it. We have to be open to looking at some of these things and embedded in me is one piece of that puzzle. So, I'm very excited by the conversations going around that as one example.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Absolutely. And I only wish, because I see lots of talks going on about it, but I want to see a lot of actions as well alongside, which is lacking a bit right now. But I'm happy at least we're talking about it, because it feels like things will change soon. Let's hope and
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): wait for that day. Cool. Now, we were talking about customer experience. Customer experience has become a crucial aspect of the insurance industry. Can you share your thoughts on how insurance companies can improve their customer engagement and satisfaction?
Bryan Falchuk: Yeah, and you know, I have seen a lot of progress here, and I've seen a lot of folks who give themselves credit for progress, but I'm not sure that they've made it. And I think the real differentiator in this is whether you're hearing it from your customers or not. And I would include your staff in that, the people on the front lines that are engaging with the customers, using your systems, even if it's not a customer facing system, if your people who are serving your customers are using it. The net effect is its customer facing. And so, what's their experience and what are they hearing? My own experience in the carrier space is there was a lot of sorts of telling the customers what it is they want or just speaking on their behalf. And even when you would see survey results that don't align with what you're saying, I saw something that a carrier was building the third most wanted thing in this list of 10 requests customers had. The problem was the first thing had like 90% of the votes. The second thing had just a few and then this third thing almost didn't register. But the way those executives pitched it to leadership was we're building one of the, you know, the top three most wanted things. I was like, well, technically you are. But when no one wants to use it, don't ask me why, because you had your answer from the start, you were just working on something, and you try to justify what you were doing rather than listening to your customers. And that's something I think COVID helped teach that a bit. I think, you know, Amazon, Netflix, all other things people hold up as great customer experience examples. Whether that's directly applicable to your space or not isn't the issue, because I see people saying, well, we're a large, complex, we're ensuring oil rigs. Amazon, one click, that has nothing to do with it. Sure, but all the people that you're engaging with, including yourself, our sense of what a customer experience is has changed. And so. we should be more open to taking that in and looking more critically, and maybe it means getting some outside opinions and outside help but rethinking the art of the possible instead of saying, well, you know, we've always done it this way, or this is a rule. What I love is when people hold up a rule that you must do it this way, and they say why, and I say, well, is that true? Show me the regulation. And what you find quite often is there isn't one. It's already been repealed or replaced. It was something old that, you know, 40 years ago, it was a rule and it's just stayed in kind of the company lore since then. I've gone through this in my own organization. We thought we had to do something on paper. I looked at the regs. We don't. And every time I said we should move to using our mobile app to do this, um, person after person, yeah, but we have to have the paper to give to the regulators. I said, do we, you know, look,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Ha
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Ha.
Bryan Falchuk: We were shredding the paper when we were done with it. We never gave it to anyone. So. Clearly, we didn't need the paper, but in our minds, it was like, oh, this is a rule, because literally in the 1980s, it was a rule, because there was no other way to do it. So why are we still operating from that place? And that's about humility and a willingness to listen to what your customers are actually telling you and not speaking on their behalf or reinterpreting it in a way that fits your own desires or thoughts better.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Oh, absolutely, and I can totally relate. Yesterday, someone was asking me, you know, what's your success-mantra as an organization? And I was like, it's keeping the clients first. And how we do that is by listening to them. And when we listen to them, we understand their pain points, what they want to achieve as a business or as an individual. And when you know it, then you can plan your solutions around it. But if you want to impose your solutions onto them, it's not going to work on, you know, we're not selling candies. We are not going to have impulsive purchases. You're not selling toys. So, you need to make sure you are working around their problems, their needs, and you're listening to them for your whole year. Otherwise, it's not going to be a long-term relationship with them, and your customers will not be happy. So, I can totally relate. Right. Now we talked about tech, we talked about the customers. Now talent, the employees, so talent acquisition and development are essential for the continued success of any industry. How do you think the insurance sector can attract and retain top talent in an increasingly competitive job?
Bryan Falchuk: Yeah, and this is mission critical right now. You know, globally, we have an issue where talent is closing in on retirement and we're not filling the pipeline as quickly as we need to. And even if we are, we're not keeping it in the pipeline, which is problematic. So, we can get people in and quickly they find, ah, this isn't what I want it to do. And I think a piece of that comes from the systems, the processes, the tools that we have. If you're 25 years old, are you gonna be willing to put up with that? Are you going to want to work in that way where 53 different tabs are open and you have all these post-it notes with different logins and remember to do this, remember to do that, you're not going to put up with that. Most other jobs you might look at would not require that of you. Just because it's how we've always worked and the people who are closer to retirement are used to it, so they don't think to question it. We have to be willing to look at that. Someone said this really interestingly. She talked about the way that our systems respect our staff. and I've never heard that before, that word respect, is what you're asking that employee to do, respectful of them, their intelligence, their time, their capability, their path. If it's not, they're not gonna stick around. And I think we need to think about that first and foremost. We do need to think about recruitment, and a big piece of that is around the idea that insurance is boring, it's old, it can be those things, but it also, from my experience, is fantastic, fascinating, supportive. Uh, stable insurance can be a wonderful place to build a career with so many different kinds of things you can do, whether it's functional or product or geographic, or a mix of all those things. And I've been really lucky to get to mix across that matrix. That's something that could be appealing to people. And I think ultimately, especially with younger, uh, prospective employees or actual employees, they want purpose. And we hear so much about Gen Z and millennials, they want to know what they're doing matters. If you really stop and think about it, we talk about putting lives back together and insurance. I ran a claims organization. That was the work we did. It's very important and that's the purpose. But go back even deeper than that. If you look around, there is nothing in your life, nothing in the world that happens without insurance behind it. Because the risk of something going bad would stop, and not just thinking about, well, oil tankers and I don't wanna support oil and gas. Fine, what about the solar project? Do you think they can build that without insurance behind it? Do you think
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Right.
Bryan Falchuk: That water project in Africa that's helping, you know, a village that has no clean water, do you think the manufacturing the equipment or that nonprofit or any, none of those things happen without insurance behind it. And so, when you really think about that, it's not just about putting lives together or back together, it's about taking risk off the table so people could live in the first place. And I think that is really profound. If we can harness that instead of, oh, it's boring. And, you know, it's slow. Let's focus on why it really exists. And I think not only do you attract people, but you attract them under the right circumstances, so they're then bought into that mission and they're much more likely to want to climb to the top of that mountain. And I think that's what we need to think about.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Wow, wonderful. Yeah, and I know we have touched upon bits and pieces of most of these things. But finally, Bryan, can you share your thoughts on the future of the insurance industry? And what do you think will be the key drivers of change? And how should companies adapt to stay ahead of the...
Bryan Falchuk: So, some people get frustrated with me that I don't name a lot of specific technologies or technical kind of things. And because I don't think that's the answer, I think there will always be technology. We need to engage with the right ones. And the answer of what's right will be different in different circumstances. So, I don't focus on that. I do think it's about values and culture and how we're willing to engage in it. Are we listening to our customers, our employees? Are we building the right kinds of things for the right reasons? And one of the things I point out a lot is I call it a bank robbery example or analogy. A lot of times in the industry, we look at what we did before and if we're better than that, and then we think that we're good or we're good enough. And I say, if you robbed 12 banks before and you robbed five now, you're better than you were. And a lot of us would pat ourselves and look, look at the progress we've made. You're not supposed to be robbing banks. Let's remember that. So, when we think, look how far we've come, fantastic, celebrated, I'm not against any of that. But just recognize that's not the stopping point. And I think that is where it comes from, is having that humility. As in, the number one leadership quality I look for is humility. I want to see a leader who does not think they're perfect, that they have all the answers, and that there's nothing they could possibly learn. For me, the best jobs I've had have been when I felt like an idiot every day. because I knew there's so much, I didn't know that I'm taking in and it can be exhausting and scary, but it means I'm growing. And it means my skillset is burgeoning and that's what we need as an industry. So having people who are committed to that, willing to listen and learn genuinely and not just paying lip service to it and recognizing we've made great progress, fantastic, good for us. And what if we were even better? Imagine what would happen then. And that's, I think it's that spirit that we need to embrace more as an industry and one that is less protectionist and sort of, you know, self-aggrandizing when maybe we shouldn't be doing that just yet. We're still robbing banks as far as I'm concerned.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Absolutely, you know, it's like, yeah, I'm moving towards quitting smoking or drinking, but instead of a whole bottle, I do one peg or two peg a day,
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): But you're still drinking, you're not sober.
Bryan Falchuk: It's better.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): So, I can totally understand you want to, you can celebrate that, but it's just a milestone is not the destination itself.
Bryan Falchuk: Right. Right.
Kuldeep Bhatnagar(KB): Wonderful. Well, that was it. Thank you so much, Bryan. We enjoyed the conversation and I'm sure a listener will do and Guys, please keep listening to us. Stay tuned We are on Apple Spotify, and you can find us on our website as well FBSPL is the name and fusionfirst.com is the website. Thank you, Bryan. And thank you everyone!
Navigating the Insurance Landscape: Changing Dynamics in the Industry
