“Our business is very complex”

“Our business is very complex” | Insurance Business Canada

Technology

“Our business is very complex”

Being one of the fastest-growing insurance brokerages can be a double edged sword

Technology

By
Chris Davis

BrokerUnion Insurance, recognized as one of the fastest-growing insurance brokerages in Canada, has managed to thrive through the ongoing economic uncertainty. However, this growth has been something of a double-edged sword according to its president Muqit Aziz (pictured).

“Being one of the fastest-growing insurance brokerages, while that could be considered something impressive, it creates a lot of different challenges,” Aziz told Insurance Business. “When you grow too fast without the right infrastructure, it isn’t always a positive thing because we are highly regulated as an industry.”

A complex business

According to Statista, the insurance market in Canada is projected to reach a market size (gross written premium) of US$115.80bn in 2024 – with growing demand for more digital platforms to streamline operations. This rapid growth, while a marker of success, also demands a meticulous balance between scaling operations and maintaining stringent compliance standards, emphasizing the importance of having proper procedures and policies in place – something Aziz understands all too well.

“Our business is very complex,” added Aziz. “When you have a very rapid growth, it creates a lot of challenges to make sure that you know we have proper procedures, policies, checks, and balances in place to ensure that everything is done correctly.”

This emphasis on infrastructure is a recurring theme in Aziz’s approach to sustainable growth. Because, for him, the challenge lies not just in growing but in growing sustainably.

“If you do not have infrastructure, checks, and balances in place, your business will come down and it will crash,” he added. “It’s not all about top-line revenue. It’s not about just selling a policy and collecting the commission upfront; my main focus is to build the infrastructure to make sure that the highway is constructed well enough to handle the traffic.”

To combat ethical challenges facing the industry, particularly concerning profitability and integrity, BrokerUnion has implemented a robust system of checks and balances. Education, Aziz stressed, is key to maintaining integrity and ensuring that brokers are well-informed and vigilant.

“We have a dedicated Quality Assurance team that looks at each and every submission; we document what is missing, we document if there are any issues, and then we use that for educating our brokers,” he said.

“We are a people business”

Technology also plays a significant role in BrokerUnion’s operations, but Aziz is quick to clarify that it’s not a substitute for human interaction. The company’s proprietary software aids in submission processes, ensuring that brokers have addressed all necessary details before finalizing any policy. Yet, Aziz remains firm in his belief that personal connection is irreplaceable.

“Anything that doesn’t require any advice, any client interaction, technology can take care of that – everything else is human-based,” he said. “We are a people business; people choose us because they like doing business with that person, not because of the technology we offer.”

This onus on a partnership between people and tech is reflective of the industry at large, with more and more firms opting to use AI to streamline non-human processes. According to research from WorldMetrics, by 2025, it’s estimated that 95% of customer interactions in the insurance industry will be facilitated by AI, with AI adoption having grown by 25% in the past year alone.

As Aziz told IB, the importance of maintaining a human touch in an increasingly automated world can’t be understated. For BrokerUnion, the goal is clear: leverage technology to support, not replace, the human elements of their business.

“We are still people dealing with people. Technology should only be there to support the activity, but not to take over,” he added.