Tomorrow’s insurance leaders will come from overlooked places

The UK insurance sector is increasingly focusing on social mobility and widening access to talent, as firms confront a shortage of professionals and a shifting technological landscape.

With digital transformation reshaping risk management and customer engagement, leaders across the industry are acknowledging that relying on traditional hiring practices is no longer sufficient.

The drive to widen access is partly a response to changing industry needs. Research by Ecclesiastical in January 2025 found that 50% of UK brokers are struggling to bring in candidates under the age of 30, with 66% citing a lack of applicants for roles and 51% noting insufficient experience.

Yet, 66% of firms remain keen to hire younger employees, with training and development programmes helping to bridge experience gaps.

Crescens George, chief executive at Wiser Academy, explained that the lack of social mobility was based in formerly sufficient hiring practices.

He said: “It’s not the industry’s fault that we are not able to attract people from various walks of life or socioeconomic backgrounds.

”There’s never been a need [before now]. It’s people in close proximity, or with family connections in financial services and insurance, who naturally hear about it and come forward.”

However, he added: “When the entire country is crying out for a talent shortage – not just in insurance but in other areas – if you really want to fill that shortage then we need to look beyond the natural areas of opportunity. That’s when industries should be a bit more forward-thinking.”

The issue of accessibility to the sector extends beyond geography or ethnicity, according to George.

“To look for new talent, we need to explore avenues we’ve never explored and that includes both ends of the socioeconomic spectrum,” he said.

“The real bottleneck is that qualifications are very expensive. If you want social mobility, you have to make it accessible – and affordability is a key part of accessibility.”

Market action

Insurance firms are starting to respond to the issue of social mobility. Zurich UK, which in February 2025 published its social mobility data, found a mean 10.5% pay gap between employees from professional and lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

Its programmes to address this discrepancy include pairing new starters with senior leader mentors, donating interview-appropriate clothing to charity and removing unnecessary qualifications from job descriptions. The initiatives are part of a wider effort to broaden access, ensuring employees from all backgrounds can progress within the organisation.

Mark Lomas, head of culture, talent and communities at Lloyd’s of London, described the market’s past exclusivity

“Previously, people came into the market or into insurance because they knew someone, or there were family connections, or they got told about something. Opening up pathways for talent is one of the things Lloyd’s has been particularly successful with,” he said.

He added that approximately 19% of the market now comes from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, with a further proportion from intermediate backgrounds, signalling progress but also highlighting the work still to do.

Social mobility-focused initiatives are also gaining traction across corporate programmes.

Large firms are integrating such initiatives into broader diversity and inclusion strategies. Aon’s Work Insight Programme, launched to improve social mobility in the sector, engaged 840 students in 2024, many from schools with high free school meal rates.

Katherine Conway, head of inclusion at Aon, said: “We have changed traditional work experience. All the work experience kids we were getting in at Aon were friends and family of people that worked in the industry already. That was giving those kids that privilege of being able to have work experience. What about the kids whose parents didn’t go to work in a suit, who worked in a factory or as a driver, but were longing to get into an industry like ours?”

Deer in the headlights

Industry leaders also recognise the role of perception in attracting new entrants.

Janine Powell, claims director at the Lloyd’s Market Association, said: “I would like to see the profession campaign collectively to educate students about the vital, integral role of insurance – touching them personally, enabling businesses to thrive and governments to deliver public services. If insurance is seen as a ‘boring’ subject, we shy away from conversations about it.”

The insurance sector is now realising that attracting talent from a broader range of socioeconomic backgrounds is not only socially responsible, but strategically essential.

By combining targeted programmes, partnerships with charities and more inclusive recruitment practices, the industry hopes to ensure it can meet future skills requirements while encouraging a workforce that reflects the communities it serves.

As George put it: “For people from poorer backgrounds, we need to give them confidence – to say this is not beyond reach.

“The City may look glamorous, but it’s still a people’s profession. That’s the message we should tell them.”