An upcoming event organised by Lorene Phillips, of The Huddle, aims to demystify careers in insurance.

Launched in early 2022, The Huddle meets quarterly to discuss topics and issues of relevance to millennials and gen Z professionals.

A session on Wednesday will offer a candid conversation with Bermuda's leading and global Nextgen industry professionals.

The conversation will feature three Bermudians working internationally: Jason Cabral (AA Underwriting Insurance Company Ltd) in Gibraltar, Joyce Duarte (Allied World) based in Atlanta, Georgia, and Connor Phillips (StartPoint Executive Risks), who works in London.

It will also include input from three Bermudian-based professionals: Matthew Bacon (Price Forbes), Iman Smith (Ascot Group) and Margaret Reeves-Lottimore (Axa XL).

Ms Phillips, a former underwriting executive, who is now chief executive and founder of boutique corporate coaching and leadership consulting firm, Clarendon Wallace, said: “The Huddle was created as a platform to get Gen Z and young millennials information in an honest and simple way so that everyone can understand what skills they need to thrive in the modern workplace.”

The Huddle has previously covered topics such as how to negotiate salary, build a strong network, address work burnout and build generational wealth.

“The overall goal is to give young people a safe space where they can learn and build awareness about professional matters in order to create a level playing field for everyone to succeed despite their background,” Ms Phillips said.

The free event will break down some of the myths about careers in the insurance industry by sharing the real life experiences of a handful of diverse young professionals.

“Traditionally, there has been a lack of understanding about the roles and skills needed to succeed in insurance profession roles,” Ms Phillips said. “I might ask a young person: ‘What do you want to do after you finish university? And their answer is ‘to become an underwriter’. However, they do not know what the role entails; only that it can make them a lot of money.”

Ms Phillips wants young people to know that money is not a silver bullet.

“What often happens is young people go into certain careers and they are disengaged at work because they don’t enjoy the job or it doesn't naturally align with their skill set and it shows,” she said. “Through this discussion I want to give young people the chance to hear from their peers and individuals that look like them, so they understand there are other rewarding careers in the insurance industry to consider and so they can be honest about which role or path is the best one for them to take.”

Ms Phillips also wants to correct the myth that the insurance industry is not for Bermudians.

She said: “There is still this sense of intimidation that some young Bermudians feel that the insurance industry is designed for expatriates.

“Some people believe they have to be the chosen few or extremely brilliant to work in the market, but insurance isn’t just about your academic performance.

“It’s also about developing soft skills, leadership skills and power skills, as I call them, which will serve you in your career for years and decades to come.”

She already has nearly 100 people registered for the event, sponsored by the Kitson Group of Companies.

Ms Phillips said: “I’m hoping The Huddle can provide support for those who don’t have an access point or exposure to a built-in family or friend network in business,” Mrs Phillips said.

“What I’ve found, not only as a mother of three young men, but also in my time speaking to and engaging with millennials and gen-zers, is that when given an opportunity this younger generation is doing things much differently and much better than my generation did.

“They do a better job at articulating what’s important to them. They work hard and get the tasks done, but they do it in a much smarter and more balanced way to avoid overwhelm and burnout.”